Ivor newish car!!!
Discussion
Well then, some of you might know me from my thread about my obsession with Fords and Focuseseses in particular, https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
A lot of you will either, a) not know me at all, b) not care in the slightest, or 3) be just a teensy weensy bit interested in my newish car.
So then, after owning mostly Fords for the past 30 years, I had a mildly modified Ford Focus estate, see other thread, which I'd had a lot of fun with, but had arrived at a point where I either continued spending money on it, or, tried something different.......
Well I did try something different, very, very different, a 5.0L n/a Jaguar XF Premium Luxury, which went like a scalded cat, sounded absolutely epic and was indeed a very luxurious place to be, what it didn't do was inspire confidence in its handling, which it appears is quite important to me!!!
I looked at Fiat Abarth 595's, yet more Focuseseses in the form of ST estates, very expensive, and even a Skoda Octavia VRS estate, again expensive unless you accept high mileage, then I went left field, really left field.........
And this happened yesterday lunchtime......
*Adopts best announcers voice, In the blue corner we have Rio the Rioja blue racing slug.......in the white corner we have, Ivor the Mini Cooper S Clubman....no scratching, no gouging, no punching below the wheel line, I want a good clean fight......
And so for your delectation/ridicule/adoration/pity I give you my newish car......IVOR, the ivory white Mini Cooper S Clubman, he is a 14 plate, had just 57k when I picked him up yesterday lunchtime, full service history, one owner, huge spec including, sat nav/media centre/Bluetooth/DAB stereo, twin electric pano sunroofs, heated screen, cruise, reverse parking sensors, JCW bodykit/wheels/steering wheel, half leather with heated seats, auto headlights/bi-xenon, black pack interior, and I believe the sports handling pack!!!
I've never owned a Mini, in fact I swore I'd never own a BMW, but here we are, I am absolutely smitten with the little car!!!
Some pics from the listing.
So what do you do when you pick up your newish car???
That's right, you fill it full of luggage and drive it from Southampton to Lostwithiel for your holiday the day after you get it!!!
Journey down was actually quite pleasant, yes it is stiffly sprung, but it's actually pretty comfortable on a journey, cruise is a god send, and the sat nav works well and is quite funky looking in the middle of the Speedo!!!
So what are my plans?
Well if you've read the other thread then you already know I have form for playing with my car's..... and this one is going to be no different!!!
First things first, he is really nice, but , he's not perfect, so I will be putting him into a specialist Mini place and having a bumper to bumper check done, if that doesn't throw up any issues, it will, it's a Mini, and I already think the clutch/DMF isn't great, then I will be putting him into a body shop to have a few bits rectified, then, the fun may begin.........
A lot of you will either, a) not know me at all, b) not care in the slightest, or 3) be just a teensy weensy bit interested in my newish car.
So then, after owning mostly Fords for the past 30 years, I had a mildly modified Ford Focus estate, see other thread, which I'd had a lot of fun with, but had arrived at a point where I either continued spending money on it, or, tried something different.......
Well I did try something different, very, very different, a 5.0L n/a Jaguar XF Premium Luxury, which went like a scalded cat, sounded absolutely epic and was indeed a very luxurious place to be, what it didn't do was inspire confidence in its handling, which it appears is quite important to me!!!
I looked at Fiat Abarth 595's, yet more Focuseseses in the form of ST estates, very expensive, and even a Skoda Octavia VRS estate, again expensive unless you accept high mileage, then I went left field, really left field.........
And this happened yesterday lunchtime......
*Adopts best announcers voice, In the blue corner we have Rio the Rioja blue racing slug.......in the white corner we have, Ivor the Mini Cooper S Clubman....no scratching, no gouging, no punching below the wheel line, I want a good clean fight......
And so for your delectation/ridicule/adoration/pity I give you my newish car......IVOR, the ivory white Mini Cooper S Clubman, he is a 14 plate, had just 57k when I picked him up yesterday lunchtime, full service history, one owner, huge spec including, sat nav/media centre/Bluetooth/DAB stereo, twin electric pano sunroofs, heated screen, cruise, reverse parking sensors, JCW bodykit/wheels/steering wheel, half leather with heated seats, auto headlights/bi-xenon, black pack interior, and I believe the sports handling pack!!!
I've never owned a Mini, in fact I swore I'd never own a BMW, but here we are, I am absolutely smitten with the little car!!!
Some pics from the listing.
So what do you do when you pick up your newish car???
That's right, you fill it full of luggage and drive it from Southampton to Lostwithiel for your holiday the day after you get it!!!
Journey down was actually quite pleasant, yes it is stiffly sprung, but it's actually pretty comfortable on a journey, cruise is a god send, and the sat nav works well and is quite funky looking in the middle of the Speedo!!!
So what are my plans?
Well if you've read the other thread then you already know I have form for playing with my car's..... and this one is going to be no different!!!
First things first, he is really nice, but , he's not perfect, so I will be putting him into a specialist Mini place and having a bumper to bumper check done, if that doesn't throw up any issues, it will, it's a Mini, and I already think the clutch/DMF isn't great, then I will be putting him into a body shop to have a few bits rectified, then, the fun may begin.........
DickyC said:
Bobberoo said:
...if that doesn't throw up any issues, it will, it's a Mini, and I already think the clutch/DMF isn't great, then I will be putting him into a body shop to have a few bits rectified, then, the fun may begin.........
Huh? Finding stuff to fix or improve is the fun.
Well, I'm about 300 miles into ownership of Ivor, we're currently sat in a very nice pub having a roast after visiting St Michaels Mount and Lands End, where we apparently purchased a parking space, or at least that's what I'm telling myself after paying £7 for 4 hours as that's the minimum amount you can purchase!!! 
He is proving to be huge fun to drive, and surprisingly comfortable too!!!
Parked up as we head to the pub!!
He is proving to be huge fun to drive, and surprisingly comfortable too!!!
Parked up as we head to the pub!!
Mr Tidy said:
Ivor looks great. 
Mrs Tidy bought a Mini One in 2003 and replaced it with an R56 Cooper in 2006 that she still has.
I used to love borrowing them as they handled brilliantly!
Genuinely surprised at how well it handles, i've come from a Focus estate on Bilstien B4's, Eibach springs and Goodyear EfficientGrips and the Mini feels much more sure footed!!!Mrs Tidy bought a Mini One in 2003 and replaced it with an R56 Cooper in 2006 that she still has.
I used to love borrowing them as they handled brilliantly!
QBee said:
I did follow that thread for a while!!Jhonno said:
Like it! Done quite a few miles in Mini's and they are very fun.. I'd have a Clubman like that too!
Cheers! 
mac96 said:
Scrump said:
Looks like a fun car, why ‘Ivor’?
Ivory White?Nice little car.
Thanks, it's a fun car to drive!!
Shappers24 said:
Always liked the clubman.
I’ve been put off the R** period minis due to the dreadful PSA engine… which is a shame as a the car as a whole fun package they’re great
There's a lot of doom and gloom about the engines, but i know a couple of people who have them and they've told me the pitfalls, and also their experiences of them, i came into this with my eyes open.I’ve been put off the R** period minis due to the dreadful PSA engine… which is a shame as a the car as a whole fun package they’re great
I can report that just as i was told the noisy start up would go with use and it has, i'm continually impressed with just how much tech the car has, i'll preface the next bit with an admission that as i've already stated, i've never owned or driven one before test driving Ivor, and he is the most powerful car i've owned to date, but by christ when you push on in him he's an absolute riot to drive!!!
Edited by Bobberoo on Monday 11th September 16:09
What ho one and all!! 
We are returned from our rambling and visiting, Lanhydrock was really worth going back to as they've opened some more rooms to show how the childeren were bought up, schooled and looked after, then we visited The Duchy Of Cornwall nursery and cafe, very good food, then Resormel castle, now a ruin but once a hugely impressive castle!!!
Also finally met Peanut the wallaby, he's lovely, very friendly, loves having his chin and belly rubbed, and is bigger than i thought!!!
And i thought i'd share our reaction to yesterdays expensive visit to Lands end, when you do get to the post, you're not allowed near it anymore without paying an extortionate amount for a "professional" picture with it!!!!
Byker, those pics are great!!!!
We are returned from our rambling and visiting, Lanhydrock was really worth going back to as they've opened some more rooms to show how the childeren were bought up, schooled and looked after, then we visited The Duchy Of Cornwall nursery and cafe, very good food, then Resormel castle, now a ruin but once a hugely impressive castle!!!
Also finally met Peanut the wallaby, he's lovely, very friendly, loves having his chin and belly rubbed, and is bigger than i thought!!!
And i thought i'd share our reaction to yesterdays expensive visit to Lands end, when you do get to the post, you're not allowed near it anymore without paying an extortionate amount for a "professional" picture with it!!!!
Byker, those pics are great!!!!
-Cappo- said:
Scrump said:
mac96 said:
Scrump said:
Looks like a fun car, why ‘Ivor’?
Ivory White?Nice little car.
So a couple of things I've noticed which I can't work out, the air vent direction is with sending the air flow to the footwells, or occasionally to where I've selected (windscreen/dash vents), and the start/stop isn't working, anyone have any ideas???
mac96 said:
Bobberoo said:
-Cappo- said:
Scrump said:
mac96 said:
Scrump said:
Looks like a fun car, why ‘Ivor’?
Ivory White?Nice little car.
So a couple of things I've noticed which I can't work out, the air vent direction is with sending the air flow to the footwells, or occasionally to where I've selected (windscreen/dash vents), and the start/stop isn't working, anyone have any ideas???
DickyC said:
Bobberoo said:
So a couple of things I've noticed which I can't work out, the air vent direction is with sending the air flow to the footwells, or occasionally to where I've selected (windscreen/dash vents), and the start/stop isn't working, anyone have any ideas???
New car won't start or stop. I see.
It just won't stop and start!!!
Well now then, we're home from our holiday and have put around 900 miles on Ivor in a week!!
He's averaging around 40mpg which I'm very impressed with considering I had a few foot down having fun moments!!!
Still thoroughly enjoy driving him, he's pretty responsive, pointy into corners, holds the road well and just a little bit bump steery!!!
Nothing to report on issues other than the random air vent direction thing, he's a little shunty downhill with the cruise on, and there are some "noises", which aren't great but don't sound terminal!!
With the back seats down you can get a surprising amount in the back!!!
And I discovered that if you hold the unlock button down both windows drop and the sunroofs pop up!!!
I think he has the bi-xenon headlights, when they come on, auto lights, they auto adjust, and are both very good and a bright blue/white?
And now to give you all a good laugh, I pushed the button on the end of the wiper stalk, a warning sign came up on the display with a windscreen and wiper in it, I arseummed it was warning me it was low on washer fluid so bought a 5L bottle........ guess what?
Yep, it was pretty much full, took me ages to work out that the symbol means that the auto wipers are engaged!!!
Have a couple of pics of him when we arrived home today!!!
Dirty bum!!
With Peanut!!
He's averaging around 40mpg which I'm very impressed with considering I had a few foot down having fun moments!!!
Still thoroughly enjoy driving him, he's pretty responsive, pointy into corners, holds the road well and just a little bit bump steery!!!
Nothing to report on issues other than the random air vent direction thing, he's a little shunty downhill with the cruise on, and there are some "noises", which aren't great but don't sound terminal!!
With the back seats down you can get a surprising amount in the back!!!
And I discovered that if you hold the unlock button down both windows drop and the sunroofs pop up!!!
I think he has the bi-xenon headlights, when they come on, auto lights, they auto adjust, and are both very good and a bright blue/white?
And now to give you all a good laugh, I pushed the button on the end of the wiper stalk, a warning sign came up on the display with a windscreen and wiper in it, I arseummed it was warning me it was low on washer fluid so bought a 5L bottle........ guess what?
Yep, it was pretty much full, took me ages to work out that the symbol means that the auto wipers are engaged!!!
Have a couple of pics of him when we arrived home today!!!
Dirty bum!!
With Peanut!!
So here we are, 3 weeks into ownership, over 1000miles done, really enjoying it still!!!
Answered one of life's perennial questions last night, that being "can you fit a full sized hybrid mountain bike into the back of a Mini Clubman"?
Why yes, yes you can, sort of, mostly, pretty much!!!
Front wheel off, passenger seat all the way forward, and it does just about fit!!!
Delivered Ivor to Minitopia in Swanmore, spoke to Ray the owner and told him of my concerns, unsurprisingly his immediate response was "timing chain and tensioners for the rattle, dual mass flywheel for the judder" some sharp teeth sucking, a head shake and a sigh after I told him about the air vents and "bugger, if it's doing that it's a dashboard out job to get at the motors!!"
Oh well let's see what he says tomorrow!!!
Answered one of life's perennial questions last night, that being "can you fit a full sized hybrid mountain bike into the back of a Mini Clubman"?
Why yes, yes you can, sort of, mostly, pretty much!!!
Front wheel off, passenger seat all the way forward, and it does just about fit!!!
Delivered Ivor to Minitopia in Swanmore, spoke to Ray the owner and told him of my concerns, unsurprisingly his immediate response was "timing chain and tensioners for the rattle, dual mass flywheel for the judder" some sharp teeth sucking, a head shake and a sigh after I told him about the air vents and "bugger, if it's doing that it's a dashboard out job to get at the motors!!"
Oh well let's see what he says tomorrow!!!
Thanks chaps, T6Vanman, it's a Mini, not a BMW 
.................or at least that's what i tell myself to sleep at night!!!
Turn7, oh don't worry, even if i have to throw a couple of grand at it, i'm sticking with it, i absolutely nailed it on the way to Minitopia, it is a lot of fun!!!!
.................or at least that's what i tell myself to sleep at night!!! Turn7, oh don't worry, even if i have to throw a couple of grand at it, i'm sticking with it, i absolutely nailed it on the way to Minitopia, it is a lot of fun!!!!
Mr Tidy said:
Bobberoo said:
Thanks chaps, T6Vanman, it's a Mini, not a BMW .................or at least that's what i tell myself to sleep at night!!!
Turn7, oh don't worry, even if i have to throw a couple of grand at it, i'm sticking with it, i absolutely nailed it on the way to Minitopia, it is a lot of fun!!!!
Sorry to potentially spoil your sleeping but it is a BMW really! .................or at least that's what i tell myself to sleep at night!!! Turn7, oh don't worry, even if i have to throw a couple of grand at it, i'm sticking with it, i absolutely nailed it on the way to Minitopia, it is a lot of fun!!!!
Mrs Tidy bought a new R56 Cooper at the launch event in 2006 with enough options ticked to add 50% to the list price, but she still has it now and it's a hoot to drive.
The place doing the inspection are a Mini specialist, that's all they do, they're very well respected in the Mini community, and luckily not too far from us, whatever he comes back with today will either be put to the warranty company or be prioritised for a schedule of repairs, I knew when I bought it it was potentially going to be a money pit.
Cheers Earthdweller!!
Well I've heard back about the health check...........
It's good news!!! The rattle isn't the timing chain, apparently there's nothing wrong with that, it's the water pump tensioner, but the DMF is fooked, and the air vent issue appears to be the controls for it and not the motors!!!
Well I've heard back about the health check...........
It's good news!!! The rattle isn't the timing chain, apparently there's nothing wrong with that, it's the water pump tensioner, but the DMF is fooked, and the air vent issue appears to be the controls for it and not the motors!!!
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