GBMINI “in bed with the flu”

Posted on by Ian C.

Last night heading home from work, GBMINI suddenly did a strange sort of “engine kick”. Immediately after the “EML” and “Service Engine Soon” lights came on, and there was a very noticeable loss of power 😦
Stopped as soon as safe, then restarted – the “EML” light was off again but the “Check Engine” was still on. The engine sounded fine, and drove fine on the way home.

So today I stopped in at MINI Peabody, since I was meeting Gavin & Chris there for lunch anyway. When I described the symptoms, Gary immediately diagnosed an out-of-spec throttle, and a check of the diagnostic logs confirmed this.
So GBMINI is at the MINI Peabody hospital tonight, having minor surgery – hopefully tomorrow all will be well once more!

Another MINI site discovered

Posted on by Ian C.

Recently I discovered the Madison Mini Group web site – there are many links to interesting MINI related information both on the main page and on the links page. I particularly like the way that the link descriptions pop up!
Interesting links include the Flashing Third Brake Light article and this MINI Cooper trivia quiz. If you want some non-MINI content, check out the revorg home page with its fading background.
And thanks to Scott for this “mini write-up”:
Your webmaster enthusiastically recommends Ian Cull’s Mini Circuit for auto-up windows! This is a great mod for summertime driving, allowing you to quickly close your windows without requiring three hands. MMG contacted Ian and requested a circuit. As soon as Ian had received his newest batch from the factory, he notified MMG. Money was quickly transferred via PayPal, Ian mailed the circuit (on Wednesday [June 16]), and the circuit appeared in MMG’s mailbox (the following Saturday). Installation takes about ten minutes (even in a misting rain). Ian sends ten pages of instruction, detailing everything. Check out the whole process online at Ian’s web site.

MINI service experiences

Posted on by Ian C.

Gabe Bridgers MotoringFile reported yesterday about the JD Powers Customer Service Index Study, where MINI service was ranked very low – 8th from bottom!

There has been some active discussion in the comments revealing horror stories from some MINI owners …
It is clear from the comments that combined MINI/BMW service departments can be bad for MINI owners – when MINI came to USA I thought their intent was to clearly separate MINI and BMW; obviously this has not always happened and perhaps it should have.
I am very pleased to have MINI Peabody as my local dealership. Their separation from BMW is almost 100% and their customer responsiveness is excellent.

When I bought my (second) MINI from them I had zero issues with the sales people – Joel made sure I was kept aware of status at all times, and even found time to photograph the delivery of my MINI to the dealership!
My service experiences have always been perfect; Gary (lead technician) cares to make sure the customer remains happy and strives to have all issues resolved. The other service techs, including Brian who did my JCW upgrade all do excellent work. There have been a few different Service Advisors (first contact for most service customers) including Kevin, Dave and now Chris – all great at their job!

Also helping to make my MINI experience such a pleasure are the Parts people, Scott & Tom, quick to obtain any part needed (even the obscure parts that only MINI fanatics know about!) – I believe they will even ship parts across country for a MINI owner who suffers from a less responsive dealership.
I cannot imagine suffering a bad MINI dealership as described in some of the comments on Gabes site – I am certain it could make the experience miserable and I expect I would not still own GBMINI in that case.

MINI USA needs to actively respond to the service suffering of some MINI owners and strive to bring their experiences up to the level of dealerships like MINI Peabody. I wonder if they are listening …