Today was the day I had finally been able to find the time to get my long-overdo Mini service. I was about 1000 miles behind needing an oil change, and was not looking forward to having my Mini serviced at the dealership. I like my Mini dealership a lot, but I can’t stand the hassle of making an appointment which ends up being an entire day of waiting. Also, it seems that the dealerships charge a LOT to do simple service.
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Chris spends a rainy day showing you some bits on his 68 Morris Mini, Henley (the color, I think, is Henley Blue), and chats with his buddy from the Poland, Filip Krzanowski (who drives a VW GTI for some reason), they talk about the new iMovie, Chris’ forthcoming smart car, and well not much else really going on here. Good thing it’s a short one! Ugh! 
Windsor, CA – January 19, 2008
The Redwood Empire MINI Enthusiasts and 1st Class Auto Glass got together last weekend for a “windshield repair, replacement, detailing party and BBQ” to fix rock chips, replace broken windscreens, make the cars pretty inside and out, and grub down some yummy BBQ served up by club founders Norman Nelson and Peter Ziedrich.
On the lunch menu were hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad, chips (no, not those kind, that that’s “crisps” to you UK folks), sodas, waters, buns and fixings, man I am getting hungry just typing this up!
1st Class Auto Glass is known for their hand wash & wax services, and many of the club members have taken their rides in for paintless dent removal, window tinting, and other services. They use the latest in window technology, specially-designed PPG windscreens which block IR radiation, keeping your car cooler as well protecting the interior better than the OEM windscreens.
As if the donuts in the morning and BBQ all day wasn’t enough, hungry REME members set off from the windsheild shop to go on a short impromptu run towards Santa Rosa, where dinner was reserved at Papa Lido’s Pizza, 90 Mark West Springs Road. Now we know why REME is the biggest MINI/Mini club in Northern California (just kidding!)
Well hey, for all of us that didn’t make this one, we missed out on a fun day, but club member and talented photographer “VitaminC” posted up pictures here for your viewing enjoyment!
If interest persists (and we know it will, given the squarish angles of the MINI/Mini windscreens where road debris is concerned!) REME will have another one of these events in the near future.
Meanwhile, you can contact Barry over at the repair shop by ringing (707) 836-9770, and make an appointment, or just drive down in person, they are at 7677 Bell Road, Suite 102-E in Windsor — right, that’s in California.. yeah.. not Windsor UK!
Here’s a really nice vid of the MINI press conference at NAIAS, uploaded by avingusa of AVINGTV. Hear BMW AG guy Stefan Krause talk about sales, model line up, etc. There is full text for this speech in an earlier Miniology post HEY IS THAT DJ DAV’S ELECTRO TRACK FOR HIS INTRO? how cool is that.. our music at NAIAS Detroit! Anyway, nice little chat, it’s just like being there LOL..
Some videos we saw on YouTube, since we don’t live anywhere near Detroit and didn’t go to yet another auto show to see the same cars we did in LA and SF, here’s one worth looking at. It was done by Kelley Blue Book (uploaded by blearvanderyacht) and has MINI’s chief designer Gert Hildebrand talking you through the features of the MINI Clubman. Nice insights..
My favourite part is where he says you can fold down the back seats to put your dog or mother-in-law in the back! LOL!
Tshirts! Going fast!
We haven’t printed up new shirts for 2008 yet, but this is what we have left for the original Miniology design:
Black, shortsleeve, Gildan T-Shirts:
Women’s M (2)
Men’s M (2)
Men’s L (1)
Men’s XL (2)
My cost to produce the shirts are $9 each. I can give you shirts on one of the runs, or can mail them to you, generally around $3-$4 unless you want them FAST hehe..
I am happy to take cash (if you see me at a MOASF or REME run, I frequent these two clubs the most, though have been known to appear at NorCal MINI or Maverick runs!) or.. you can use PayPal (I give out a special email address for this, privately) Just use the comment link on the bottom of this post to let us know you need your Miniology swag!
Cheers!
Christopher ‘StarLord’ Calhoun
It always seems shocking, sometimes sad to let a car go. You pour your heart and soul (and several thousand dollars) into it, but after awhile, you know it’s just time to move on, or you want a new car, or you need to pay off the mortgage, put the money into another car, something.
Last year, we acquired the fading teal blue project car from a hayfield in Redding, California. The owner already had several Minis on site, and was putting his love and attention into a nice traveler that he was restoring, having just finished a sporty yellow Mini for the concourse, but not having the garage space or wife’s approval, he couldn’t hang on to the 2 rolling shells any longer. (yeah, I said 2– there was a white car that never made it to Miniology, unfortunately, he hauled it off before we could rescue it!)
Ideally, we wanted sponsors to come forward and offer help with the project, parts, repair work, paint, mods, etc., however, response was a bit less than what we expected.
Anyway, some $10,000+ later, the project car’s owner, David, has decided he doesn’t have the resources or time to put into restoring this car to its original beauty, so is reluctantly selling it off for someone else to take over. You can see pictures and videos of Bonnie here on Miniology, simply by searching for her name in the search box. There’s been a lot of goodies and work done since we last saw her, but in a nutshell he will let the car go to the best offer. You can reach David simply by commenting on this article, and your comments will be forwarded to him.
More details about the car will be posted to Miniology, MOASF.com forums, Mini Mania private sellers list, and to our photo albums on Flickr. If the new buyer is interested, we will continue to follow her history through Miniology Podcasts (or not..) 
Update 3/2008: Dave decided to hold onto Bonnie after all (yay!) we will see more of her soon.
[Transcript from BMW Group, Speech by Stefan Krause, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Sales and Marketing, MINI Press Conference, 2008 North American International Auto Show, January 14, 2008.]
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Welcome to MINI!
I have some very good news about MINI to share with you today. This auto show early in the year is great for a manufacturer when there are excellent retail figures to announce for the past year. This is the case with MINI. And we are pretty confident that next year will be the same too.
I would now like to present the models which will make that happen, as well as our plans for the future.
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[BMW Press Release]
Premium quality, racing know-how and MINI feeling are now even more closely united: John Cooper Works continues success story with extended product range and new brand identity.
Munich. The roots shared by the names MINI and John Cooper Works reach back almost 50 years. Now a new chapter of their success story has been opened. Under the roof of MINI the entire product range designed for the driver with a specifically sporting ambition will bear the John Cooper Works label. Consequently, John Cooper Works will in future become an integral part of the MINI brand and represent more than ever before the epitome of ultimate driving fun for all MINI enthusiasts.
A visible sign of this repositioning is the newly devised brand logo which will be seen on all future John Cooper Works products. It is the guarantee for exceptional racing know-how, for an avid aspiration to achieve peak efficiency as well as for a deep understanding of the unconventional character and the outstanding quality demands expected of MINI. All John Cooper Works performance components are perfectly adapted to suit the MINI and are developed and manufactured at the highest premium level. They fulfil the high BMW Group standards with regard to reliability, workmanship and authenticity and are therefore also subject to the warranty conditions applicable to MINI.
MINI and John Cooper Works – an alliance with tradition.
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Yep, it’s true.. selling off Mindi to get a new car.. here’s the post on www.moasf.com forums:
http://forum.moasf.com/index.php?topic=2567.0
Selling?! Why?!
It’s time to buy a new car so somewhat reluctantly selling this one 
I’d trade it in, but rather sell it to a good home instead.
