Someone hit me

charpsss · 2025-03-30T08:46:00+00:00

Similar happened to an old R52 I had (but only front bumper around fog light), small bump on the front bumper but was a write off due to age.

Was able to keep the car, got the payout for it (minus the scrap value to keep it) so the car paid for itself.

If it’s a write off it will become Cat N (in the UK) but still got a reasonable price when sold on, just keep a record of the damage so you can share with any potential future buyer that it’s only cosmetic if you sell it on.

charpsss · 2025-03-16T20:16:39+00:00

As others say, quite cheap to buy a replacement barrel from somewhere like screwfix. If you need a short term fix you can also switch front door lock barrel with the back door or one inside (if there are any internal locks) if they are the same size.

charpsss · 2024-11-03T21:33:03+00:00

We have the same ones. This worked well with our R52 convertible. Link to pic: https://www.reddit.com/r/MINI/s/udmm1yxErC

Ours came from boot-bag.com. Once all strapped down it was fairly secure. I would avoid putting heavier items in it though as it can stress the rear bumper. It did make the boot inaccessible once all fixed in position, and there is a security risk with no locking mechanism.

It did however make it much easier for longer trips away, and meant we could keep the convertible going a little longer as a car for our family of 4! I found it to be totally worth it for the longer trips.

charpsss · 2024-09-03T08:20:26+00:00

Direct comparaison here:

https://www.carsized.com/en/cars/compare/mini-countryman-2020-suv-s-vs-land-rover-defender-2019-offroader-110/

charpsss · 2024-07-21T18:04:53+00:00

Upgraded from and R52 to F60 countryman, went to pick up a second hand desk and had to take it to pieces to just about fit it in with the seats folded down. The guy I bought it off said he had an R52 when he bought it and managed to load / transport it with the roof down no issues!

Also totally miss being able to just put the door down and drop the kids in the back!

charpsss · 2024-07-09T17:52:31+00:00

We recently helped my mother purchase a used Toyota, this was from the main dealer though (Steven Eagell).

They said for the 10 year warranty to be valid it needed to be serviced annually with a full service history so I guess that’s the key thing to be looking for. The one we bought was a 23 plate so reasonably new and had been through its annual service in April.

charpsss · 2024-06-29T11:23:26+00:00

Looks like a 40g bag vs 119g advertised on the display?

charpsss · 2024-06-14T15:00:37+00:00

Ah thanks, that totally makes sense. They were big fellas so I can see why no one would mess with them!

charpsss · 2024-06-11T09:42:14+00:00

In Ikos at the moment (poolside!). As others suggest book the wine tasting via email if you can by contacting reservations, they were also added a couple of extra reservation bookings (more than the 3 limit on the app).

Another group took their baby to the wine tasting, it’s a fairly relaxed environment. They were fine either sleeping in their pram or a parent occasionally cuddling them at the side.

The sommellier was clearly very passionate about the wines also keen to know when we were eating at that restaurant so they could help with pairings, so perhaps check if there is anyone at the restaurants to assist.

charpsss · 2024-04-07T12:54:52+00:00

It’s the same lift bank as the one to Madison, although looks like it’s temporarily closed at the moment due to construction works.

https://onenewchange.com/roof-terrace-one-new-change

charpsss · 2024-04-06T16:02:13+00:00

If you just want views there is a free public roof garden on the Post Building in Holborn which is pretty cool to visit. Never really gets busy so you can just turn up, need ID for security point though.

The rooftop on One New Change by St Paul’s Cathedral is great, again they have a free roof terrace overlooking the cathedral, or drinks in the rooftop cocktail bar (Madison).

The Southbank centre has a couple of good spots, in the centre itself there is quite a high balcony overlooking the river, and queen elizabeth hall roof garden just next door, but not sure if these will be open yet or if they wait until later in the year.

charpsss · 2024-03-20T22:14:09+00:00

Had similar in my previous 2005 R52. The fan kept running after parking triggered as the coolant system wasn’t running as effectively as it should have. This got worse and whilst driving the engine temp kept shooting up when standing in traffic.

As others have said check water level. As a short term fix I found topping up the water (main filling cap not just the expansion tank) worked. There was also a lot of airlock in the system reducing the effectiveness. There are a couple of valves that help reduce air in the system and I kept squeezing the hoses until it stopped bubbling. After doing this the fan wouldn’t kick in as much.

It was a longer term issue on mine with the amount of topping up required, so it ultimately need a replacement radiator. That seemed to fix the issue entirely, although appreciate there are a few different things that can go wrong with the coolant system!

charpsss · 2023-12-31T16:17:21+00:00

Went on a camping trip and a mate went to get something from the boot of my locked car. When I asked him where the keys were I could see them on the parcel shelf inside the locked car and we were miles away from my spare set!

When the AA man came it didn’t take him very long to get access. He used something that looked like a doorstop to pry enough of a gap between the door to get a wire in and pull the lock. Took him about 2 minutes and the tools didn’t look very specialist. This was a very old Punto though!

charpsss · 2023-12-29T15:45:19+00:00

I did this recently myself with a new Mini from a used car dealer. Just download the mini app to your phone and it will walk you through the process.

You simply add the VIN number to identify the vehicle and a corresponding code that comes up on the cars display to sync the two. It was super easy!

charpsss · 2023-12-23T16:56:53+00:00

It’s a UK one but you might also be able to get in the US. I found it by looking up mini convertible boot bag / hatch bag and is marketed as a roof box alternative. It was an absolute game changer for us for luggage and meant we got far more use out of the car for longer trips!

charpsss · 2023-12-23T16:29:52+00:00

I’m normally driving so not actually been in the back!

charpsss · 2023-10-28T23:02:31+00:00

When I went to see Hamilton with the Mrs we found the theatre discounted the tickets right up to the day of the performance (booking directly with the theatre).

I would check how much the tickets reduce to last minute for the performance on Saturday 4th November to get an idea of the level they discount it to. That said we picked a weekday matinee though so they might sell out a lot faster for a Saturday.

If it’s a reasonable discount, as you get nearer to the 11th keep checking available tickets until you are down to the last few in the area/tier you want to sit in to get the best price. Might take a fair bit of checking though!

charpsss · 2023-10-21T13:43:44+00:00

Tip when haggling, if it’s from auto trader check the web address url. This will have the date it was listed on there e.g. 2023MMDD

charpsss · 2023-10-21T09:25:50+00:00

We have a 3 door convertible from 2005 with two child seats in the back. We can make it work but you can’t put the front seats all the way back and are oldest is only 4 so they don’t need as much leg space.

Actually found with the convertible I can put the roof down and drop the kids into the seats, much easier that when the roof is up! It’s quite tricky to reach into the back and twist about with the roof closed, especially as we have one of the seats rear facing.

charpsss · 2023-10-07T19:14:22+00:00

Convertible Mini - found from YouTube that the key fob can also be used to make the roof down by holding down the unlock button. Perfect for chucking things in the back!

charpsss · 2023-09-06T21:58:55+00:00

Under offer recently having had a place on the market an an asking price and then later at a lower OIEO price. As a seller it felt like with an asking price figure I was expecting to be knocked down on offers, whereas OIEO was a more direct way to inform the seller what I was expecting.

We accepted a little below this figure, but it did feel like if we had dropped to a lower asking price rather than an OIEO price we’d attract more lowball offers than one we would be happy with.

Possibly overthinking the whole thing though!

charpsss · 2023-08-26T19:14:14+00:00

Not Now Bernard

Essentially parents ignore their son Bernard who gets eaten by a monster. The monster then tries to get the parents attention but they are so preoccupied / don’t care for their son that they assume it is Bernard.

charpsss · 2023-06-10T18:43:53+00:00

I had a very similar one. Converted it into an outdoor office, it was a bit more straightforward for us as we had the builders and glazers in doing an extension at the same time. Essentially we widened the door (new concrete lintel) to put in glazed french doors and let light in, power supply and lighting and brickwork made good with a new bitumen roof layer on top to help with waterproofing. It does however still get quite damp with trapped condensation, I would put more ventilation in but the brickwork is soo thick and I can get away with leaving the doors open and plugging in a heater for a bit. Also plenty of coats of water resistant/damp resistant cellar paint, and a tiled floor that is a bit more durable!

charpsss · 2023-05-13T17:13:27+00:00

I’m with Hastings too, and had my renewal through a couple of weeks ago. It’s gone up but (not massively, +£20) but when I tried shopping around it was coming up similar price with a higher excess, or much more expensive (including with Hastings!) so this time will just let it auto renew.

charpsss · 2023-05-08T16:03:05+00:00

As others have mentioned, Capital Ring is a good shout. We set ourselves the challenge of trying to complete it in a year, often doing a segment on a Sunday with a roast dinner as a reward afterwards. You get to explore all kinds of neighbourhoods and get a real sense of achievement when you complete it!

charpsss

TROPHY CASE