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Car Forum / MINI / January 2004Passed my driving test in my mini!!
Hi Everyone Just wanted to say a big thanks for your all your advice about a month ago regarding whether to take my test in my own mini or to go through a driving school. The test went really well, it is so much easier when you're comfortable with the car, and she drove beautifully. I'm not sure if anyone has any advice on this, but I was considering taking out some breakdown cover. AA/ RAC/ Green Flag are the obvious ones, but does anyone have any recommendations. I don't use it to commute- more for evenings and weekends. Looking forward to many years of mini driving! Will > Hi Everyone > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Will Hey Will Firstly, congratulations on your passing into the world of solo motoring! Many insurance companies offer breakdown cover as an incentive to buy their product. It may be worth looking at that option depending on when your insurance is due. There isn't much to go wrong with a well maintained Mini though. Most 'call outs' are for electrical faults, so if you give the car a full electrical service every year, you shouldn't have too much trouble. It never ceases to amaze me how many customers look at a set of points after a year and decide to put them back in! For all the cost, it is better just to throw a set of new ignition parts at it every year. I usually suggest to do this in October or November, just before the bad time of year (northern hemisphere...... before anyone comments from down under!). Most other failures can be treated with a good kick and off it goes again! You should carry a basic tool kit and a few spares (fan belt, bulbs, wire coat hanger.... yes seriously, you'ld be amazed how many things you can fix temporarily with this!).  SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk >> Hi Everyone >> [quoted text clipped - 41 lines] > fix > temporarily with this!). Thanks Steve. I actually "broke down" on Sunday on my way home from my parents' where I've been leaving the car in Surrey. There was the biggest shower I've ever seen-for 2 minutes it really rained/ hailed. Unfortunately I was trying to navigate the North Circular at the time (one of the most congested roads in London for anyone unfamiliar), I had just left it to queue to cross it again (a pretty badly designed junction) and she started to splutter. As soon as I got to the front of the queue she died completely. Needless to say I incurred some considerable embarrassment (sp?) sitting there with my hazard lights on for ten minutes or so! Anyway, I decided that the "L" plate I thought I had removed from the grill for good on Friday might have actually been doing a worthwhile job of protectiong the distributer/ HT leads from the elements, so I'm going to look into a replacement. Ideas I've picked up from here include an ice cream tub lid mounted on the inside or a washing-up glove with the leads threaded through the cut-off fingers. I'll experiment anyway. As far as breakdown cover goes in case anyone in the UK is interested in my research-the cheapest no-frills (roadside assistance & tow to nearest garage within 10 miles if unable to fix within 1 hour, >.25 miles from home) is the RAC at £36. This surprised me as I anticipated them to be the most expensive along with the AA. In terms of mid-level cover (includes towing to final destination) Britannia do this for just under £80. Home start is more still, and it gets complicated from here up, including overnight accom and European cover if you're really feeling rich. I like your reasoning though Steve-electrics are probably the main issue, and they are the easiest to look after/ dry out (not meaning to tempt fate though!). I'll probably go for the £36 job for my mother's peace of mind (which is priceless of course <g>) but thanks for the tips. Will PS does anyone know of a North London/ London mini club out there? SignatureUsing M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ Congrats BTW, I have found that the most valuable part of AA cover (or whoever) is the tow you there bit. When you do something silly like smash your diff pin you wont get a local garage within 10 miles fixing it!! Don't say "It'll never happen to me" as it does - as I found out ;) If you blow a core plug, lose your fuel pump, try fixing your own clutch and find that a year later you have no drive etc etc etc (all things that have happened to me or people I know in the last year - mine was the bust diff ;) they will get you to your favourite garage or home. By way of example, I was pillion on a motorbike when we smashed lots of spokes in the rear wheel on a service station speed bump with no warning markings or signs in the pouring rain. Green flag took us all the way from Cambridge to Newcastle no questions asked ;) The Muffin Man > >> Hi Everyone > >> [quoted text clipped - 81 lines] > -- > Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ > Don't say "It'll never happen to me" as it does - as I found out ;) If you > blow a core plug, lose your fuel pump, You must be more careful where you put it then :-) Hope you found it quickly! > By way of example, I was pillion on a motorbike when we smashed lots of > spokes in the rear wheel on a service station speed bump with no warning > markings or signs in the pouring rain. Green flag took us all the way from > Cambridge to Newcastle no questions asked ;) Where's your sense of adventure, Muffin Man?! No, you are right of course. Peace of mind is worth a few quid each year. SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk If I didn't have a sense of adventure I wouldn't drive a 1970 pickup as my daily driver ;) The Muffin Man > Where's your sense of adventure, Muffin Man?! No, you are right of course. > Peace of mind is worth a few quid each year. > If I didn't have a sense of adventure I wouldn't drive a 1970 pickup as my > daily driver ;) > > The Muffin Man lol... point taken! SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk > PS does anyone know of a North London/ London mini club out there? Hi Will, If you've got an internet connection (which clearly you have!) then you could check out www.minifinity.com. It's an international online club, but they have lots of meets all over the UK, including London. Plus it's free! Matt > There was the biggest shower I've ever seen-for 2 minutes it really rained/ > hailed. Unfortunately I was trying to navigate the North Circular at the [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > embarrassment (sp?) sitting there with my hazard lights on for ten minutes > or so! Ah yes! I had to rescue a friend who blew up a clutch in his MG Midget on Mill Hill roundabout (that's the North Circular, isn't it?) some years ago. He just about managed to coast around and into a petrol station. You can imagine the blowing of horns and gesticulation as he cruised round at 5mph! > Anyway, I decided that the "L" plate I thought I had removed from the grill > for good on Friday might have actually been doing a worthwhile job of > protectiong the distributer/ HT leads from the elements, so I'm going to > look into a replacement. Ideas I've picked up from here include an ice > cream tub lid mounted on the inside or a washing-up glove with the leads > threaded through the cut-off fingers. I'll experiment anyway. The final evolution from Rover seems to work OK. About ?25 for the kit. Part number BHM1675 from your local main dealer or Mini parts suppliers ;-) > I like your reasoning though Steve-electrics are probably the main issue, > and they are the easiest to look after/ dry out (not meaning to tempt fate > though!). I'll probably go for the ?36 job for my mother's peace of mind > (which is priceless of course <g>) but thanks for the tips. Never had breakdown cover on any of my old cars. We did get cover with a brand new SEAT which proptly broke down twice in two weeks when only 6 months old. In fact, I had to tow it home with my 20 year old Land Rover (not covered!) on one occasion because it was too close to home for Green Flag to come out!! SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk > Ah yes! I had to rescue a friend who blew up a clutch in his MG Midget on > Mill Hill roundabout (that's the North Circular, isn't it?) some years > ago. That's roughly the area. > He just about managed to coast around and into a petrol station. You can > imagine the blowing of horns and gesticulation as he cruised round at > 5mph! I know the feeling. What you soon realise though is that you stick out amongst the other motorists purely because you are in the minority of actually having gone to the trouble of gaining a driving licence and picked up some etiquette/ consideration for other road users along the way. The number of blatantly illegal drivers around here is frightening. > The final evolution from Rover seems to work OK. About £25 for the kit. > Part > number BHM1675 from your local main dealer or Mini parts suppliers ;-) Thanks Steve, a gracious offer, although having just paid over £600 for third party F&T insurance, I think I'll try and get by on a home made jobbie first! > Never had breakdown cover on any of my old cars. We did get cover with a > brand new SEAT which proptly broke down twice in two weeks when only 6 > months old. In fact, I had to tow it home with my 20 year old Land Rover > (not covered!) on one occasion because it was too close to home for Green > Flag to come out!! I'm still undecided about this. I'm thinking of the adding final destination option actually just for the hassle factor of being so far from family that could help (no local friends with Land Rovers (or even jump leads for that matter!)). I'd need to get the car back to Surrey to work on her properly. Thanks for everyones input. Will PS is anyone here a member of London and Surrey Mini Owners Club? Any feedback? They seem to only meet south of London... SignatureUsing M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ Hey Will - congrats on passing the test. Whichever rescue option you decide to subscribe to, make sure you check out the catches: My wife asked if I could add her to my AA cover last year (roadside/relay/home start). I was advised I'd need "Family Cover" at something like £180. After five call-outs on both the Min and her Freelander over the course of the year, we were sent a nice letter from the AA saying that under Family membership we'd have one more callout before we got charged £40-odd for the callout plus any recovery charges thereafter!! After a bit of checking on their website, I've also noticed that we could have had "Joint Membership" at a saving of about £30 (if I remember rightly)!! As it is, my membership is now up for renewal and I'm shopping around for alternatives as I've been a bit hacked off at the AA at their attitude this last year - especially as I've probably only called them out about 10 times since 1989!!! Cheers, Colin > > Ah yes! I had to rescue a friend who blew up a clutch in his MG Midget on > > Mill Hill roundabout (that's the North Circular, isn't it?) some years [quoted text clipped - 38 lines] > PS is anyone here a member of London and Surrey Mini Owners Club? Any > feedback? They seem to only meet south of London... Colin, !! I would hazard a guess ,, and say the Freelander has had more breakdowns than the mini, Oh, yes, my wife passed her test in a mini back in 1970,,, and what a gorgeous site she was :-) wish I still had the mini though Fitzy > Hey Will - congrats on passing the test. > [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > > > > > The final evolution from Rover seems to work OK. About ?25 for the kit. > > > Part > > > number BHM1675 from your local main dealer or Mini parts suppliers ;-) [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > PS is anyone here a member of London and Surrey Mini Owners Club? Any > > feedback? They seem to only meet south of London... > my wife passed her test in a mini back in 1970,,, > and what a gorgeous site she was :-) > wish I still had the mini though You've still got the wife and I'm sure she's just as gorgeous in another Mini! > > my wife passed her test in a mini back in 1970,,, > > and what a gorgeous site she was :-) > > wish I still had the mini though > > You've still got the wife and I'm sure she's just as gorgeous in another > Mini! Yep,, and Yep,, ;-) Fitzy > Hey Will - congrats on passing the test. > [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Cheers, > Colin I think this is quite common practice in the small print. The Green Flag cover only allowed a few call outs before starting to charge. However, on a car that is still under warranty you can often get the dealer to pay for it. Not relevant to many 'proper' Minis, I know! Ah... the 1800 K series..... what a wonderful beastie. Or is the Freelander a diesel? SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk It's the 2 litre diesel in the Landi, and it's actually been the better-behaved of the two cars! The Min died twice on my wife when she was out with our daughter, so a call to the man in yellow was the only option available to her, and it died on me once when the rotor arm failed whilst out in the sticks (and yes I always carry a spare now!!). When I called the AA to enquire about the "one more call and your overdraft is ours" attitude, the nice lady in customer services didn't seem bothered about how little I'd called them out in 14 years, or about the frequent 1 hour plus waits for them to arrive (including a marathon five and a half hour wait on the A3), or about them sending a tow truck for my Porsche 944 when I'd told them it couldn't be towed, or about the driver who finally shuttled it from Newcastle to Solihull who basically spent the first hour and a half F-ing and blinding about all the dozy C's who he'd dealt with over the years... Anyone to recommend the RAC before I finally renew?! Cheers, Colin > > Hey Will - congrats on passing the test. > > [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > Ah... the 1800 K series..... what a wonderful beastie. Or is the Freelander > a diesel? > Hi Everyone > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Will Will, Congratulations and good wishes for years of happy motoring. Joe. |
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