Ode To Mini Coopers

Original Little Red

This isn't really an Ode, just my rambling on and on about Mini Coopers and other cars I have come across in my lifetime up to this point. My Original Little Red was a 2010 Mini Cooper. It came with a 4 cylinder engine. Unlike, my current Little Red (Mini Cooper), it didn’t have all the bells and whistles. The 2010 was as plain as you could possibly get in that Generation model, it considered the 2nd Generation under the BMW banner.  It is hard to believe that the Newer Little Red (Mini Cooper) comes with a 3 cylinder twin turbo engine and I would've thought she would be slow off the line and have issues with straining to go up a steep hill but, no. She will take off like a scared rabbit. The 2015 Little Red (Mini Cooper) isn't the fastest car but, she isn't the slowest either. Just fast enough for me to get out of trouble if I ever need to. That is something my Dad used to say. The engine type in Little Red is the BMW 1.5 liter B38. If my information is incorrect, please let me know. I am happy to be given the correct information if I happen to be wrong. I strongly believe that you do learn something new every day.

Anyway, I found a couple of few interesting articles regarding the engine.

Wards Auto Article, click here.

Auto News article, click here.

Anyway, I have to admit with the 2010 Mini, it took me some time to figure out how to use the various controls of the heating-A/C, the windows and the radio-cd player. I am probably one of the few that LOVED the huge, round speedometer that was dead center of the dashboard and didn't really seem to serve a purpose as opposed to letting my Co-Pilot, the Queen (Wife) the ability to see if I was speeding or not. Every time, she would see it go over the speed limit, she would nudge me and yell, "Aren't you driving too fast?!"

Mini of Irvine

The 2010 Mini was a leased vehicle and I had to keep it under 30k miles even though I lived in South Riverside County and commuted to the Lake Forest area of the OC. What I would do is drop down the rear seats and cram my bike into the 2nd Gen Little Red (Mini Cooper), drive to the train station in Corona which is about 33 miles from my home, and park her in the train station garage. Yank out my bike and take it on board the train with me and ride from Corona to the Irvine Station. It was actually kind of nice riding the train. Simply store the bike in the back, plop my butt on of the seats and take a bit of a nap or read a book depending on my mood. When I arrived at the Irvine station, I would scramble off the train, jump on my bike and ride for about 3 miles, maybe a little more to work in Lake Forest. I loved the bike ride early in the morning and I ended up losing a lot of weight. On rainy days, there was a bus I would ride to get to work. After work, I did it all in reverse to get home. It all worked out because, when it came time to turn over the lease, the Original Little Red (Mini Cooper) still had less than 30k miles. It was around 28k miles. I was thinking about purchasing her at the time of turning the lease over; however, the Irvine Mini Dealership was asking too much money for it. I loved the car but, not that much.

2002 Chevy Impala

Right after I turned in the 2010 Mini Cooper, I found a 2012 Nissan Versa (Ol'Gray) for sale, (this was the year of 2014), with only 9k miles and for only $11k, I couldn't pass up on that deal. I was in the market for a Versa or a Honda Fit. I don't know why but, I like the look of the Versa and the Fit. They are Geeky Sexy to me.  I didn't think of getting another Mini because, at the time I wanted something with a little more room and still get great gas mileage. Yeah, lame excuse. I should have gotten another Cooper. Whatever... But, Ol'Gray is turning out to be great little car. She has over 130k miles and still runs like a charm. Unlike, my old 2002 Chevy Impala that started giving me problems a month or two after owning it. What I loved about the Impala was how roomy it was inside the cabin and trunk area. At the time we had two babies and I could fit two bulky car seats in the back seats and a large double stroller in the truck and still have room for playpen and other baby things that were needed when on a road trip to somewhere. The Impala served its purpose. What did I name it? That is one car, I never gave an official name, just Impala. Yeah, pretty boring. I called it the Tardis every once in a while because it was blue but, that nickname never stuck. For those of you who are saying, Tardis? What kind of name is that? Click here to learn more. The Impala did get good gas mileage for a V6. The day it died, I was a bit relieved. I spent too much money on repairing the thing. I should have gotten rid of it a long time ago. Compared to the Versa, the Impala wasn't a very reliable car.

Enough about the Impala and Ol'Gray, more about Mini's. Throughout my travels or just by running around town, I am always on the lookout for Mini Coopers and at the Marconi Automotive Museum  the had a 1961 Morris Mini Minor. This little car's top speed was 73 mph and can do the 0.25 mile in about 24 seconds. I love this little car, I just had to take some pictures. If you have never been to the Marconi, I highly recommend checking out this auto museum, there are cars everywhere it seems. Our company had its 50th Year Anniversary Party there back in May. I definitely want to go back there again. I spent several hours and I feel like I didn't get to see every car on display. But then again, I didn't spend too much time going from car to another to gawk and drool. I was also mingling, dancing and eating since it was a company party. Not only did I love seeing this little Mini, I also enjoyed the DeLorean as well. Yeah, I lived through the '80's so, I have an appreciation for the DeLoreans. As a matter of fact back in the day when I was in high school, a neighbor of ours had one. I don't think he ever took it out for a drive, it was stored in his garage and I was fortunate enough to at least look at it up close. I've heard the Delorean may make a comeback a while ago and there is a website, Delorean.com, I haven't been paying too much of attention to what the status is or of the details but, I hope they do make a comeback.  Another Auto Museum I recommend is the Petersen Auto Museum.  I attend a cigar dinner at the Petersen Auto Museum many years ago.

There as a time a few months back, I needed new visors for the Ol'Gray (Nissan Versa) but, purchasing them online or thru a local dealer they are expensive. So, I took a trip to LKQ Pick Your Part, the local junkyard.  I love walking around in junkyards, whether I need parts or not. I had my two youngest kids with me looking for a sun visor. We kept finding Nissan Sentra's and Altima's but, not one Versa and then I found few Mini Coopers that were wrecked and picked through for parts by other people. I just had to take some pictures of the cars. If you haven't figured it out by now, I am obsessed with the Mini Cooper, no matter the year or model. After I snapped a few pictures, we were back on our quest to find a Nissan Versa with sun visors still available. I noticed most cars we looked over especially on the Nissan's, the visors were missing. But, before I could give up hope, we did finally stumble upon a Versa with the driver and passenger visors attached. I immediately surgically removed them from the wrecked Versa and paid for them. Mission accomplished.

Mini Cop Car

A few weeks ago or so, I ran into a little Mini in Escondido painted up like a little cop car. Very Cool! I am just guessing and I am probably incorrect in my estimation but, I believe it is a Mark V or VI. If you know exactly which one it is please let me know, I am very curious. I wish I could have located the owner to find out more about the car. I am still fascinated by the vehicle.  I remember a half dozen years ago or so, I attended the Murrieta Father's Day Car Show and spotted an older, I forget which year, Red Mini. By the body shape and interior it wasn't created under the BMW banner and again I forget which year it was made. I could have sworn I took a picture or two of the little car but, I can't locate the photos. Every year I go back to Murrieta Car Show and the Murrieta Hot Rod Run in October but, I haven't run into that car ever since that day long ago. Sucks. I remember the owner was a young college kid and he claims he always wanted to get a Mini, he found his back East somewhere, I don't recall where, he purchased it and had it hauled to California on a trailer. He couldn't stop talking about how much he really enjoys his little Mini.