Bert

I think you should check with your dealer. I'm not sure who and what it applies to. I don't know if they are revising all maintenance warranties or it is as sold. It would be worth a call.

Just an FYI, if you don't already know and I don't know if this applies to everyone ( it should be everyone). I was going through the paperwork and documentation for Ernie and the oil change mileage has been changed back to 9K miles. I guess MINI has been listening.

I've seen the crash videos and know that they are safe for MoCo driving. I agree that the engineering on the tridion (sp?) body cage is impressive. We have driven them here and in Europe and she can rock Smart's version of the trip-tonic (sp?) transmission, but I do agree that it sucks in automatic. I don't know which has a worse transmission, the Smart or the Scion iQ but the iQ color selection is definitely the worst. As for the Fiat 500, she doesn't like the shape of the exterior and didn't like test driving it. We visited 13 or 14 dealerships in NoVA and MoCo one saturday in late February before she saw that the MINI was best for me, and would keep me sane.:motor:

Well... she is in a Volvo XC90 now (a tank), and she'll be keeping that for the family drives and highway driving. She says that she feels bad driving that big SUV around MoCo all by herself and only getting 20 to 22 mpg. She says she only wants it for local, non-highway driving, which she does a lot. It is probably a year or more out so if we can find a 2008 or newer MINI or Countryman in purple we might be able to convince her. I would love to be a 2 MINI family.

My wife has fully branded me a MINIac. She loves the term and says it fits. She is favoring a "smart" car :dontknow::ahhhhh: but I think we will have some time to turn her away from the dark side. I my need some help at some future gathering.

I think that you are correct. There are a lot more MINIs around, and it is not just that I just got mine. The parking lot for the building I work in went from 3 to 7 MINIs over the past month and I am definitely seeing more on the my commute each day (only 18 miles each way). And the Countrymen and Coupe are making more appearances.

I'm not able to attend MOTD this year but I am reading all the posts and taking it in for when I am able to participate. This is all excellent advice! You people are a great crew and mentors.

If you are out visiting MINI of MoCo way there are two Flagship Car Washes (http://www.flagshipcarwash.com/) with 6 to 8 bays for self washing (open 24/7), with multiple setting pressure wands, industrial vacuums, and other things at each bay (besides the normal car wash building). They are set up pretty well with the vacuums outside (before) each wash bay to give you something to do if the bay is being used, then large wash bays, and enough pull-off slots outside each bay to let you chami and/or dry your Mini. One (North Bethesda) is about a mile south of the MINI dealership just off Rockville Pike (355), behind the Bagel City on the east side of the Pike. The other (Rockville) is about a mile or two north of the dealership, just north of the Rockville Towne Center, also on the east side of the Pike just past the Giant, turn at the light at the Seven-Eleven. You need to use the token machine to exchange cash for tokens but you can get a good deal if you time the cycles right. All the bays at both locations have the multi-function power wand, a powered wheel and tire brush, and then a powered soap brush (I don't like using the soap brush since I think it has a lot of grit stuck in-between the bristles). I usually use the soap functions on the power wand instead of the soap brush. I have seen enough people bring their own bucket and sponge instead of using the soap brush. I just used the North Bethesda location yesterday to power wash my Jeep Cherokee ("Jake") before my daughter takes it back to college. I have never had to wait for longer than one person in front of me to finish. As for Arthur Treachers... there is still one in DC on Florida Avenue, NW but the Fairfax Circle one does sound good with the Citgo wash and Advance Auto close by. I'm always one for combining trips.

Even your local Advance Auto Store has the Castrol Full Synthetic SAE 5W-30 for around $9.25 per quarter, which is less expensive than Mini Mania. Let me know about any future group buy for filters, crush washers, and anything else. I'm always up to saving a few bucks.

Thanks. That is great info. on making sure that they don't reset the oil change indicator. Also, I have heard about them eating oil, because of the oil cooled turbo. All great stuff and very informative. I used to change my own oil too. I really miss the old days with a timing light/gun and a screw driver. What I would give to have one of the original MINIs as a fun car. If only I had hit the Mega Millions....

I don't know about the surrounding counties but in MoCo they have oil recycling at the county transfer stations (dumps). You just bring your oil and pour it into the special tank near the car battery and tire recycling. It is not the cleanest process but if you are a DIYer it is an option and can save you a few bucks. I'm not sure about everyone else but 15,000 miles does seem to be a long time between changes, especially since it wasn't long ago that the change interval was 12K. Is this BMW/MINI just trying to save a few $$$? My research trolling on the other boards and blogs shows that this is a hot topic and many people question going longer than 10K or 12K. I know that I am getting 3 or 6 years of service with Ernie but I am thinking of changing it myself in between the standard schedule services. Thoughts?

Laura and everyone else, Thank you for making me and the 3 other newbies feel welcome at the happy hour. It was great meeting everyone and seeing your beautiful rides. Onwards and upwards to the upcoming 1,000th DC Metro Mini member. :congrats:

Welcome Nick, I'm new to the site too and still learning the ropes. There is a lot of information here. As for VWs... I've had a good history with them (Fastback, Jetta, and Golf) so no bashing from me, but people could bash the Fastback.