Auto up windows – the continuing saga

Posted on by Ian C.

So I decided I would no longer sell the auto-up-windows MINI circuit due to the time involved, but I happily discussed & worked with Aaron at OutMotoring for him to sell the circuit – I started the process by ordering parts.
Then, the MCAW appeared. In further discussions, we concluded that it would not be viable for OutMotoring to sell the MINI circuit with this new competitive product on the market – Aaron would have needed to charge more than I used to sell for, and my price already is a little higher than the MCAW.

So I had a problem. I had parts to build a batch of (128) MINI circuits, but it would cost me even more to build them – and then I would be back to selling them myself. I also had no idea if all future auto-up-windows customers would buy the lower cost MCAW. But I decided to complete the build, which leads me to:

I received this batch recently, let the waiting people on my email list know, and told them also about the MCAW. I don’t know if people prefer the “original” and proven (1000+ installed) MINI circuit, or if the price difference is not too significant, but either way I have received nearly 20 orders yesterday & today.

So the MINI circuit is once again available, for now at least.

More from MINI UK

Posted on by Ian C.

I received a couple more “collectibles” from MINI UK via eBay seller BMWpitstopshop recently, but I think these will come in very useful – giant beach towels! They come in either a “checkered roof” or “Union Jack roof” design, and “roof” is the right word because they are as big as a MINIs roof! I am not a small guy, but the towel reaches from under my shoulders to my ankles, and wraps round me about 1-1/2 times!

Minolta DSC
Minolta DSC

The towel quality is not fabulous, but for an “everyday wear” beach towel it will be perfect (if the quality was too good you wouldn’t want to use it!)

Won’t get lost again …

Posted on by Ian C.

… I hope! Finally decided to dump some $$$ into a navigation unit; after lots of online reading I chose the TomTom Go – it seems quite popular and has no more downsides than most of the other GPS units … I also quickly discovered that it can be customized (slightly!):

Minolta DSC

So far I have only been testing it on my route to & from work – but even here there are minor errors: at one junction the TomTom thinks that route 22 continues into route 133, while the reality is a STOP sign and right turn. Nearby, to make up for it, TomTom thinks I have to turn left to stay on route 133, but of course I just keep going.
With only the GPS to track position, there is also one place where TomTom always thinks I take a side road instead of staying on the main road – but it catches up with me again after a few seconds.

My main puzzlement so far has been the time it takes to find GPS satellites after it has been turned off for a few hours. I thought it would be almost instant once it “knows where it is” yet it repeatedly takes a few minutes! The GPS status display might give me a clue, except I don’t understand it – I can understand the blue bars indicate received signals (presumably their height indicates signal strength and the little numbers tell me the satellite number – and signal strength again?); but what do the grey bars mean? Expected signal strength? Signal but no data? When TomTom claims no satellites, it still shows grey bars …

Minolta DSC
Minolta DSC

 

Anyway, here is an example of TomTom doing what it is supposed to do – routing me from my house to MINI of Peabody (which of course is another route I know quite well!), and an example route instruction – the turn onto route 128 at “my local roundabout”:

Minolta DSC
Minolta DSC

 

TomTom comes with a number of navigation voices – I am enjoying the instruction of GB Jane at the moment 🙂