I picked her up yesterday: my new 2009 Mini Cooper S. She only had 6 miles on the odometer. Brand new.
I was actually not too optimistic about the whole process, but the folks at Mini of South Atlanta, including my sales guy Terry Huddleston, were able to work it out. I wasn’t worried about the tag price of the Mini nor trade-in value of the CR-V; I was just concerned with keeping the monthly payment at about where it already was. After a bit of negotiating, we pulled it off. I went in with this attitude: if they can’t get the price I want, then I have a great Honda that I’ll drive for another year and try again. This allowed me to stick to my guns, so to speak.
My new Cooper is red with a black top. It has the sports package, including Bluetooth and an iPod connector. It’s a six-speed manual (an automatic was not an option — sorry, A) and includes ride-flat tires, a bad-ass computer, cool cabin lights, and a ton of other features that were obviously designed by folks who understand that the details are important. I can’t say this was true about the Honda.
For example: the CR-V had an audio-in jack right below the stereo. It was a standard headphone plug, so a double-male cable would allow me to plug my iPod in and listen to it. Cool, but not really. Yes, I could listen to the iPod, but I had an ugly looking cable strung down my console and I actually had to control the iPod by picking it up. Not only that, I had to have a separate cable for power. Inelegant and inconvenient. The Mini’s is a USB plug that’s hidden at the bottom of the console, behind the shifter. Everything goes through the cable to the computer — playlists, artists, albums, track info — everything. I can actually use the Mini’s stereo to control the iPod without ever even touching the iPod. Awesome.
OK, the best part: it is a fuel-efficient sports car. So. Much. Fun. Need I say more?
You can check out my Mini gallery on Flickr.
Congrats on the new ride!
Oh, that is sweeeeet! Love the hidden USB plug, too! Enjoy your new ride
Congrats, Boo.
xo.
congrats…I bumped into your stream yet again. They are really cool little cars.
I got racing stripes added to the bonnet yesterday. Check ‘em out in my Flickr gallery.