autoitalia/fiat uk....are you watching?

[Jai]

same with original beetles, if you every get a chance to go down to terrys in hanwell, an air cooled specialist, you'll see some of the cool cars he's working, one last year was close to be finished, the owner had poured £15k into it so far don't get me wrong, lovely car, and always had a soft spot for them, mum and dad had one or another for decades, but thats insane

 

[claymore]

but it is!!

I was in a BMW mini garage a month or so back with a mate, who like me agrees the new ones are overpriced gash. while we were there a women turned up with bf in tow, saw the first mini cab in whatever colour there was, test drove it to the other end of the carpark and back, then bought it

it was 18months old, and bodywork looked like it had been washed with a scouring pad, plus a number of door dings, yet she paid almost new price (twas like £1500 less than they are new ).

I find it unusual that the bf didn't say to his gf once, "you are sure you want this car? After all it's condition isn't great."

I can earnestly believe that anyone will buy a mini like that even if it comes with no history, has been stolen twice, is close to be written off and has a C4 explosive that will go off if driven under 50. Just for kicks it will be priced higher than a new model.

 

[cheeqic_nto]

I've had quite a few 'old' minis in my time, I love driving them, they're ace. Each time someone I know gets one I have a drive of it and instantly fall in love with it, then I have to go away and have a serious talk with myself so that I don't end up buying one again. They're great fun to drive but tortuous to work on, and work on it you are certain to have to do.
New mini is in no way the spiritual successor to the name, it's just a callous marketing strategy by bmw to cash in on an iconic brand and as such they should all be stripped of anything useful,:chin: erm, supercharger.. and the remains shipped back to germany.
Rant over.

 

[chaos]

and the remains shipped back to germany.

Even though they weren't from Germany in the first place. They're built at Cowley, aren't they?

 

[cheeqic_nto]

Even though they weren't from Germany in the first place. They're built at Cowley, aren't they?

Not sure, but I'm sure after BMW hijacked rover to strip the rights to the mini name off them a huge pile of 'minis' turning up at their German headquarters minus the superchargers would be retribution wouldn't it?

 

[french bean]

Thought the BMW Mini had a Chrysler 1600 engine in it. So not only are you paying over the odds for a small cramped ego trip but it hasn't even got a BMW engine, that really is being ripped off.

 

[maddogmorg]

i've heard the new mini was a rover concept which bmw stole before discarding them. though the source was biased but he claims to of seen some plans. hmmmm.

anyway the reason the old ones are so pricey is cos they need to be welded up every year for the MoT! as well as all the other work to keep 'em going i still want one!

 

[SeicentoS]

I've driven my m8s 1.3mini turbo (1989) I can't stand the thing, the seat doesn't go back far enough, its uncomfortable, noisy and it can't put the power down and its only 95bhp!