cmcveay

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at MINI of Sterling from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 21826 Pacific Blvd, Sterling VA 20166 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at Passport MINI of Alexandria from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 5990 Duke St, Alexandria VA 22304 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at MINI of Annapolis from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 31 Old Mill Bottom Road, Annapolis MD 21401 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at MINI of Sterling from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 21826 Pacific Blvd, Sterling VA 20166 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at MINI of Montgomery County from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 1190 Rockville Pike, Rockville MD 20852 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

Sounds like you work for the government! Go, stay, go, stay....

They are legal. There are several different makers that are using pulsing brake lights as an OEM feature.

Welcome to the MINI community and we look forward to having you as a member of the club when you get back! Don't let Ali push you into anything too fast, she's like that (must be the New Yorker thing) so just figure it out once you get to know the car. Have a safe trip!

It's "Meet & Greet" time! This month, it will be held at Passport MINI of Alexandria from 9:30am to noon. The address is: 5990 Duke St, Alexandria VA 22304 Please come join us for a casual get together with new and old members. Non-members and soon-to-be members are welcome as well. The RSVP option has been added so we can better plan for the vent but if you aren't able to RSVP, please don't let that stop you from coming out to join us.

Cool! I wanna see the G-Men knock the Packers out of the running. Then, the Saint's can beat the other Manning brother to get to the Superbowl again!

Barry woke up to over 100 emails about registration. He's not sure what went on but the system opened registration in the middle of the night.

Whaaaaatttt? You got up before me today? Lona and I signed up for the welcome & farewell dinners and the Brew Swap. I think Mr. Merlin will have to be in the car show this year too.

I think I have a Bently manual at the house for the 2nd Gens. You are welcome to "borrow" it! Oh, wait, it's actually yours! The secret which has worked for me? Start the car and let it run for a couple of minutes before turning it off and then immediately start the replacement process. The 2nd Gen power bus stays active for up to 30 minutes after the car is turned off. Raise the hood and remove the black cowl cover over the battery (two 13mm bolts) and you can then access the battery compartment. Remove the battery hold down (I think it's 10mm). Here's the part that can be tricky and it may not always work. Loosen the battery terminal lugs and have the new battery ready to go in. Pull the terminals off, remove the battery, set it down and put the new battery in place and put the terminals back on. I've pulled the termials and had them off for a little while and I didn't lose my presets on the radio. That's actually about the worst that would come from having the battery out for too long. One "Plus" is that having the battery out for too long is that the ECU will reset itself. Over time, the ECU in the car "learns" and it adjusts the way it handles things. With the reset, it forgets those things and it starts the learning process again. Some people have indicated improved performance by doing the ECU resets. There's no dyno proof that I know of so it's all anecdotal. If you need a hand, I'd be glad to stop by with the aforementioned Bently manual and a tool bag or a chai tea if you just need someone to point and grunt.

Changing the battery on the Gen 2 isn't too hard and no radio unlocks are needed. If done properly, you don't even lose your pre-sets!

Read the linked document closely and it eliminates MOST tractor trailers but it doesn't get rid of all of them. Through trucks have more restrictions but local trucks can still be up to 48 feet long. I guess maybe the Dragon should be closed and drivers it should be certified to use it? If it's closed, it'll be a private road so there's no need for speed limits but of course, private roads aren't maintained by the state so someone would have to buy it and then they would have to charge to access it so it could be maintained for the select crowd who get certified for it. Seriously folks, it's a public road, paid for by the tax payers so it's open to "We the People" and not just "We the People that we think should use it". MOTD lasts for 3 days a year: Harley's and other motorcycles are on the dragon, spending their money almost all year. If they counted on us to keep their business going, they would starve... The road will be safer without a doubt and yes, I joked about mini vans but, again, it's a public road.

For commerce, it's not a great step. Look at the area and you'll see that HWY 129 cuts the distance dramatically. Yep, I'm glad they are banned but I'm sure there will be some economic impact as a result. Now if they could just ban Soccer Mom's in their Mini vans from the Dragon!

Makes me wonder if the Pep Boys (and other similar stores) prices are because a $20 filter and $30 in oil is still less than the $95+ most places charge for a MINI oil change?

Moss MINI and several other places have them for far less and with those, you usually get the O-Ring for the oil filter housing and a crush gasket for the oil pan drain plug. Team up with someone and buy a 1/2 dozen and they work out to be 6-8 bucks each. Pep Boys and other places can be ridiculous in what they charge for them.

Same here Ryan but I'm lucky to have access to the auto hobby shop at Bolling or Ft. Belvoir. The downside is that the car is so hot by the time I get there. Now that we are moving and I'll have a garage to work in, I'll go back to doing my own oil changes in both cars. I keep an eye on the OEM filter sales and get the filter, filter canister O-ring and drain plug crush washer pretty darn cheap. The last time, I bought a complete set if 6 and Jim Carman and I split the costs and filters for a great deal. Once we are moved in and I've got the garage set up, we can discuss opening the MINI DIY in Fairfax...

Yep, that was a good time.