Edge

...because it was originally posted in the members area, 4 weeks ago. I think it is, Ali. I saw the car again on Saturday evening - I don't think it had the driver's seat. I hope I'm mistaken!

I hate to break it to you but at this point, that car is now a shell of its former self. He has sold most of the easily removable parts on the car. The headlights are definitely gone. I'm not sure about the gauges (or how easy they would be to swap out), but there's a good chance they are gone too. The owner of the car (his name is Alex) is a good guy though, so by all means reach out and see if any of the parts you are interested in are still available. He's sold a lot already - but you might get lucky. The car is a 2005 R53, with a build date of 10/04.

Yeah, a real bummer... but I totally respect your reason for having to back out, Mike! Nick - if you have time on Saturday and you're willing to drive in twice this weekend (once for the practice run, again for the actual event on Sunday), I'll be happy to do a practice run with you of the whole thing. I can always lead if need be, but I really would prefer that an actual military vet (whether active or retired) leads. It just seems much more appropriate, as I have never served in the military. Working for a defense contractor really doesn't count.

Yep, we sure did. There are probably several local places that can help, both local MINI-related businesses and some individuals. The scariest part of the install is the holes that must be drilled in the bumper cover to accommodate the sport-link ports. Here's their own video demo of the install process for R56es - the two guys in the video are the owners, Russell Sr. and Russell Jr. Senior is also the one who narrates the video. Great guys, very honest and trustworthy people. I recommend calling them and talking to them directly if you have more questions.

If you're going to be working in Arlington, I strongly encourage you to try to find a place to live in VA, or at least very close to the river bridges if you choose DC or MD instead. DC-area traffic is one of the worst in the nation - you really want to try to optimize your commute as much as possible.

I have one on my R53, got it installed way back in 2005 when I bought the car. I later upgraded to a stainless steel version, just because. I honestly don't remember how much it cost to install originally, and it was dealer labor (at the time it was a bona-fide OEM dealer option), so I'm afraid I can't give you any valuable perspective on install price. The owners of Mini-Fini come to MINIs on the Dragon every year, and they do installs on site. I highly recommend you consider that option if you can wait until May. If you can't, give them a call and I'm sure they can offer you good advice on how to get it installed.

Welcome to the DCMM Forums, Scott & Eva... we hope you like what you see and consider joining the club! :top:

The only question is... whose panties are/were they?

Yes, we've tried that in the past - it's easier said than done. We actually had the police help us with that on the very first MTTB, but it was from a different start point and a different county (Fairfax County). Since moving the start to PMoA, I believe we've tried and haven't had much success with getting an escort for that... or we were told we would have to pay for the privilege, and obviously we want the majority of funds to go to the charity. That being said, if any Alexandria County residents (or people who personally know any Alexandria County police officers) would like to give this a try, it wouldn't hurt to try again.

We now use one lane in from the right. This is to make things easier for other cars that are trying to exiting or merging on. Also, as a very large caravan, we drive the speed limit (or close to it), so we don't want to use the left lane and frustrate other drivers there either. 1 lane in from the far right is therefore the most sensible lane for MTTB.

Beats me - I haven't opened the box, nor will I. The numbers came from Sony's website. UPDATE: You're right, that doesn't make any sense at all... I did more digging, searching the specifications online. I think the original Sony page where I got the numbers from had a misprint. The real info is: 39 lb 1 oz 17.7 kg I have updated both this for sale post and my Craiglist ad. Thanks for making me look at it harder! :top:

With little interest here (I know it's a "big ticket" item), I have gone ahead and posted it on Craigslist: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/3380828705.html

IMO, deer whistles only serve two purposes: Wasting your money Making your car look uglier The studies listed in the Wikipedia article that Laura linked to definitely show they aren't worth it. Ahem... except humans, I hope.

Carl and Mark just squeaked ahead of me... darn! Nice one guys - congrats!

Driving home late tonight on my summer tires is going to suck! Everyone - if you have summer / performance tires, remember that their performance drops off sharply at around 40 degrees or below, even on dry pavement. Be careful! I'm hoping this is an anomaly - I don't usually like to switch to my winter tires until early December.

This receiver is still available. I know it seems expensive, but it is vastly superior to any receiver you'll find in a standard "big box" store.

These seats are sold. Sorry folks - the quickest serious offer won!

Come one, come all! We need more blood donors! It's not too late! :top:

RSVPs are now closed. Thanks everyone! The final count is 41 people (including couples memberships where both people are coming). :top:

RSVPs had automatically closed earlier this afternoon. I have re-opened them until 11:30am tomorrow morning, then they will be closed. We need to be able to give Hard Times Cafe the final numbers by mid-day tomorrow.

A big Thank You to Laura for organizing a fun day out! My first time to GCF and I had a great time! :top:

Aww geeze... that's terrible. The nerve of some people! :motz: :security: :hmpf:

You'll have to ask my passenger that. A huge BRAVO to Nick, Bert and anyone else (Michael?) involved in planning the run, and Victoria for her perfect route and hazard-calling on the 2-way radios. You guys outdid yourselves - a really fun run indeed, and the picnic was awesome too (nice one PMoMC!). I'm really glad I made it to the event. :top:

A few months ago I bought a brand new receiver with the intention of using it as the foundation for a major home stereo upgrade. I have decided to alter my plans for the upgrade slightly, so I'm selling the receiver. For those of you who don't know, Sony has two model lines of stereo equipment - their "regular" consumer model line, and the "ES" model line, which is a much higher quality and better featured line of products than the typical consumer stuff. ES stands for Elevated Standard. Besides being far superior products to the regular line, ES products come with a 5 year warranty. The ES product line is not sold in regular "box stores" though - it is only available through specially authorized resellers, typically custom installers. I had to hunt around the DC area to find a vendor who would sell me this unit. This receiver is the Sony STR-DA5700ES. It is a flagship (top of the line) receiver in their lineup. MSRP is $2,000. I am selling it for $1,500. It is brand new, and the box has never been opened. Some main features of the Sony STR-DA5700ES receiver (there are too many to list them all): 7.2 channel A/V receiver (130w/ch, 8 Ohm 20-20kHz 0.09%THD) Built-in Internet streaming: Netflix, YouTube™, Hulu Plus, Pandora and Slacker Activity-based on-screen interface for easy navigation 3D pass-through over HDMI Integrated 4-port Ethernet switch iPhone/iPod touch/Android remote control app (yep, you can control this receiver directly from your smartphone!) 8 HD inputs (6 HDMI (2 are audio only), 2 component), 2 HDMI outputs 4 optical digital audio inputs 3 coaxial digital audio inputs 9 analog audio inputs (4 of them with composite video support) Direct iPhone/iPod input via front USB port 31-band Graphic Equalizer SIRIUS Satellite Radio-ready (just add a SIRIUS antenna) 5 Year Limited Warranty Dimensions: Height: 7-3/8" Width: 17" Depth: 16-1/2" Weight: 39 lb 1 oz Here's what the STR-DA5700ES looks like, front and back. Check out the ridiculous number of inputs and outputs on the back - plenty for any home stereo system: