UKPylot’s MINI Blog

Validating my guess that the stuck passenger window is due to heat, a late night drive to pick up some munchies found the passenger side window working again. I do need to get the motor replaced but I’ll do it in the spring together with a bunch of other stuff.

Been thinking about putting a satelite radio system in the MINI but some research has shown that it’s impossible in a 2002 MINI as it has no aux input. My only option is to replace it with a non MINI radio which seems like it would spoil the look. Something to look into though.

Just back from a few days in San Francisco where I think I walked the entire city, or at least it certainly feels like that in my legs. In the three days I was there I saw 8 MINIs and one classic Mini that had its original Brit plates on. I saw a couple of pepper white’s and I really do like that colour.
Need to drive my Sarah this weekend, get the cobwebs out of the system that have built up whilst in the garage. I might contemplate the first coat of wax too, but we’ll see about that.

Got pulled over by the CHP today for not having a CA legal front licence plate. There are plenty of vehicles in town that don’t have the right front plate but I guess my car is more worthy of close inspection than those boring pick up trucks. So I have 30 days to get it fixed or face a fine. Very annoying.

My new plates came yesterday and I think they look rather good:

After reading many excellent guides to installing the stripes I bit the bullet today and stuck them on. I think I did alright, they don’t look obviously mismatched though I am sure a tape measure would tell the truth.

Turned out to be really easy, if you fancy doing it yourself the best advice I can give is use plenty of soapy water on the vinyl back, and the paintwork. I squeezed out the soap with the squeege naked, not wrapped in a cloth as suggested, and it worked out fine. I can’t see any air bubbles and have already done a few miles with them on and they still look attached. Its like my already super car got even super-er!

Well, the pictures are ok, I guess. Click here to see Sarah’s adventures in the high desert of Joshua Tree N.P.

New Stripes! New Stripes! There Will Be No New Stripes… Or will there (with apologies to Strictly Ballroom)?

The new stripes are here and they look great except… that they aren’t quite long enough. They don’t go from the top of the bonnet to the grille, there is about a half inch missing. I’ve read that this is ‘standard’ but I am not sure what I should do. Do I have a gap at the top? At the bottom? Both? Or just give up on the whole stripe fiasco?

Spent the day in Joshua Tree National Park today, Sarah got her first off-roading experience including almost getting stuck in some sand. I tried to take a few arty pictures – MINI meets desert, we’ll see what they come out like tomorrow.

The final concorde landings took place at LHR earlier today, I had meant to get up in time to watch them on BBC America but totally forgot 🙁 But you can watch the first two landings on the BBC website. A sad day for aviation and Great Britain, I think.

So after waiting excitedly for my stripes I’ve now decided not to use them. I think they look cool on the base Cooper but I’m not sure I like the way they go around the scoop on the MCS. Then I watched the Italian Job movies and decided that I wanted my MINI to look like a traditional one, with the traditional short stripe. So… I’m selling the Shelby Stripes – email me if you’re interested.

The stripes arrived last night and I can’t wait to get them on. But, after looking at it for a while I think I will have a professional install them. I have so little talent when it comes to these kind of things I don’t want to ruin Sarah’s look by screwing it up. There are a couple of promising looking companies to do it in the phone book so I shall see if one of them can fit me in early next week.