cmcveay

I swapped a couple of emails with Dan at Mach V and they are willing to "host" us for a little detailing party. They've got at least one spigot and he'll clear the parking lot in that area if you'd like to meet up out there. I can provide a couple of 5 gallon buckets and a cordless random orbital buffer with spare batteries that'll keep it going for most of the day. Laura, you can borrow it anytime you like if the POS isn't moved soon. May I propose an event with RSVP's and such? Saturday, April 24th from noon to 5 at Mach V in Sterling? If you can bring things like a hose (or two), a vacuum, extension cords etc., etc., we'll know have a good idea of the tools on hand. Craig

If you guys want to meet up, count me in!

+1 For Mike at AC. He takes grief at times but he's a one man show that's super busy. His products are American made and of great quality! Looks great Jay.

Remind me to keep you in front of me with those things turned on!

That looks GR8!

+1 for no rain! I want to get the bike out for a ride!

Jay, Thanks for posting the info so folks know! I'm sure there will be someone to take you up on it.

Since I would have to carry a spare inside the car and lose that limited space, my "spare" is a bottle of slime, a 12v compressor and a AAA card. This past winter, I found out that "fix-a-flat" doesn't work at/near freezing temps. Thankfully, it wasn't my flat that needed to be fixed. Anyway, with that small kit, I can quickly "fix" a flat and get myself back on the road if needed. The change in the ride and noise when I switched to non RF's was like night and day!

I'm looking for another harness, just like the one you have except for the passenger side!

Any DCMM drivers with experience at autocross? I think I'm pretty well set up for it but now it's the "tuning and tweaking" part. On my very first attempt, I managed to cut time off of each run and I didn't take advantage of all of the offered assistance (in car rides and all - shame on me) but That's how I learn. Next time, I'll take a ride along just to learn. What I'd like to see is if anyone here in DCMM land has some experience and would be willing to have a go with my car to see what I can do to make it work a little better. Different sway bar setting, adjustable links, air pressure in tires.... Anyone out there up for it? Thanks, Craig

I haven't read anything about the SPT XRP but I did make the leap away from runflats and I went with the Kumho Ecsta ASX - their extreme performance all-season tire. I haven't looked back. They worked well in the snow and they worked great on the fall colors run last year with the wet leaves and I can't complain about how they worked at the autocross yesterday. 215/45 shouldn't be a problem at all, I ran that on mine after lowering it without any issue. I went to 225/50's and got a little rub and now, I'm running 235/40's with minor rubbing when I'm at a full turn. I do like the Kumho's!

Autocross was great! Just before the afternoon runs started (while we were doing the drivers meeting), a line of MINI's came rolling into the parking lot. Everyone stopped, turned and watched. I swear, I think you could have brought in a parade ele

I want to go watch in the morning and I may sign up for the PM runs.

Anyone interested in meeting up and motoring over together? I plan on leaving the Annandale area, taking the beltway, at about 8 a.m. Seems like a perfect excuse to get out and drive in awesome weather and go watch cool car tricks! PM or Email me if

Consider it a practice run! You didn't mess up the dates, you were simply checking the route and the traffic so you'll have it down next weekend! See? Easy!

Tim, I like it! I'll take a picture of one more piece of vinyl that would be awesome for you and I'll send it. Nope, I won't give it away, I'll just put it out there for you to see. Here's a picture of Kooper and other than a potential hood scoop change, I'm pretty sure I'm done. Look forward to seeing both cars at MOTD! Craig

Saw a Black MCS in Burke last Sunday. They were stopped, waiting to turn left. I got a HUGE smile and a double handed wave as I went by them. It was great!

I forgot to mention the rear seat delete. I did it and I'm glad I did! If I really need the rear seats (our other "Primary" car is also a 2 seater), it takes about 10 minutes to put the seats back into the car. I'll look and see if I can figure out which kit I used to do it but it's just as you mentioned, a large flat area that really cleans up the back of the car. I carpeted mine so things don't slide around on it and I've also got two pillows under it to cut down on the amount of noise that came from the empty cavity. With the rear seat delete, I was able to fit a 44 bottle wine fridge in the back - in the box - and drive home with both of us sitting IN the car. It's pretty darn roomy back there without it! Craig

+1 for the +45 offset which is what my Rota Torque wheels have. I'm running 235/40R-17's non run-flat Kumho's on them. I went with the Ecsta ASX which is an extreme performance all season tire. Can't help on the brake pads as I went with a Wilwood brake kit up front and the rear is still OEM. There are a few threads on NAM regarding 2nd Gen's having the strut towers deformed. The day I lowered mine, I put STD's and a cross brace on it. At one point, I was running 225's and my speedo was within 1mph of being accurate (according to a couple of GPS systems I have) but now, I'm back to the OEM diameter and it's off by the same amount as it was. To be honest, if I had to pick something that bugs me the least, that would be it because I don't think I've ever owned a car that was correct. My 04 VW is off by that amount, the spouse's 350Z is off by just a little less and I drove a CJ-7 for 5 years that didn't even have a speedo that worked! Good luck with the mods!

Tim, They came from GearJammin Accessories. I actually found them on Ebay. I also found a set of black mirror caps and put them on today. We've had a couple of days of sunshine so I washed both cars and ran the cleaner/polish over them yesterday and I made it out today to actually wax Kooper for the first time in months! I'll have to wax Lona's car if I'm not careful... Here's a picture for you. Hope to see you guys up there. Looks like a good size group from up here coming down that way! Craig

Tim, Nice job! Are you taking either/both of them to MOTD this year? Mike from AC will be there and he might be able to get you a pair of the MINI badge covers in time for that! Here's a picture of the new lights in my side scuttles. LED's with no "bulb out" light, they flash amber and are nice and bright. The "S" on my side scuttles will be getting cleaned up in the near future as they look a little "rough" right now. Craig

One of our HR MINI cousin's has a body shop and can probably answer your questions. I'm willing to bet he works with insurance companies daily. I for one would not want a place that's just a body shop doing any work on the engine or steering of my car. Dale is his name and maccodale is his screen name. Really nice guy so I'm sure you'll be able to get some good info from him. Craig