Delivery Stories

Storing a chassis for two months? Sounds fishy. Why wouldn't they reallocate that painted chassis to ICE production?

 

I’ve heard they are snowed under at the factory and quite stressed. Perhaps not worth the admin to try reallocate a bunch of chassis to other builds, especially when they will need them again in a month or so.

 

Certainly feeling sympathetic towards the factory team. The supply chain and operational strain must be extremely tough at the moment. I imagine that the production line is not setup to handle anything near the level of disruption they are experiencing. Unprecedented times!

 

Hello Everybody. Glad to be here. I had been searching Mini forums and picked this one. One of the reasons was Kyle Connor's video here which I had seen on youtube. (Kyle, Mini owes you a commission on every SE sold; your enthusiasm for the car is outstanding.)
Anyway, I have a question. Yesterday I emailed my nearest Mini dealer (Tom Bush in Jacksonville, FL). They told me the the soonest car that would be available will be a 2021. Ok, an understandable development with Covid and Oxford being shut down until recently. They told me to submit the $500.00 deposit and when they get a car they will let me know, and if I didn't want it they "are required to return it to the manufacturer." What? Is that right? Why not just make it available to the next person on the waiting list? Also, I didn't get any answer about specifying the model/equipment I would want. Anybody have any info about what they are telling me. Maybe I should check with another dealer?

 

I ordered mine on Friday. Here was my experience:

• I contacted my local dealership directly.
• They said I had to submit the $500 deposit online (and specify them as my dealership) first, then they could take my order.
• I did that, and the dealership contacted me as soon as they got confirmation of my deposit.
• I went to the dealership, and the sales manager took my order, where I specified the trim, color, and wheels I wanted.

The printout he gave me shows a model code of 21M9, so that confirms the 2021 model year build.

The sales manager said he expected a 3-4 month wait, but I won't be surprised if it's longer. He also said they were supposed to get a tester, but that was cancelled once the pandemic complicated things. I got the impression my dealership will only receive custom-ordered SEs rather than an allocation of pre-configured cars--at least until supply catches up with demand.

Times are strange and supplies are tight, so I suppose it's possible MINI has enacted some policy to ensure unsold SEs don't sit on lots...but sending them back to the manufacturer seems dubious. <shrug>

 

Thanks, MichaelC. I visited the dealer today and they told me essentially the same thing.

Thanks, MichaelC. I visited the dealer today and they told me essentially the same thing. They were straightforward and helpful and emailed me a couple of pdf's w/info. iirc all cars being manufactured in Oxford now will be 2021's.

 

Thanks for the reply, insightman. I went to the dealer today and got my questions answered. I'm not frantic to get a SE asap; I am concerned about getting the car I spec. If you're willing to wait, it will eventually get here. Thanks again

 

FWIW: my dealer told me on Thursday (6/11) that from the time they put my order in it will take 2-3 months for the car to be delivered to them baring any more unforeseen interruptions.

 

Ooh I like those silver hood stripes! Subtle but very good.

 

The dealer had three in stock! It's a 2020 and the Canadian "Premier" trim (middle trim). I didn't want the Premier+ top trim because I did NOT want a black headliner or a black dashboard, and I really wanted the tweedy fabric upholstery instead of the solid leather. Fabric is so uncommon these days, and I like something a little different!

All the ones they had on the lot came with black wheels (which I also hate), so I had them repaint them the normal silver colour - muuuuuuch better. And this is my first electrified-anything car - I went straight from ICE to EV. (My first Mini too!)

I'm in Vancouver, so I'm not worried about the cold too much - and the fact that these guys have a heat pump is a nice bonus. My "big travel" days are only 63km round-trip between charging, so any winter range drop isn't really a concern for me. I can only charge at work - no ability to charge at home - but I'm not concerned in the least. And my parking at home is in an underground parkade, so even in the dead of winter it doesn't get that cold under there.

I got into the back seat for the first time last night while I was detailing it - it's surprisingly big back there for the size of car! Actually getting back there isn't the easiest, but it doesn't matter - nobody is ever going to be back there (and if they don't like it, then they're welcome to use their feet and/or bus pass!)

Mini tax:

 

I was shocked at how inexpensive it was for all four wheels (even though the dealer ate the cost as part of the deal)...it was only $450 for all four wheels to be painted! So if I get attacked by one of those wild curbs, it's not the end of the world to undo the damage

 

Seriously, black wheels are the WORST. I hate the way they look, and they're also a complete PITA to keep looking nice too...I had a Nissan Rogue as the predecessor to the Mini and it had silver wheels with black-painted insets, and it was so hard to keep the black looking nice. Even waxing the black parts didn't stop them from looking full and scratched after only 2 years of driving!

One small annoyance about the Mini so far is a picky little detail, but: there's no good place to hang the charge port cap when you're plugged in. You'd think that Mini would've made a holder on the inside of the charge port door to hold the actual cap, but all there is is a shallow detent in the hinge where I try to hang the strap holding the cover. It's not the most elegant design. :/