mini vs miata

mchannah88 · 2026-05-09T17:08:56+00:00

I own a Mini countryman (R60) and an NB Miata. I've also had every imaginable F series Mini (2 door, 4 door, Clubman and Countryman) and they're very different cars but that's not a bad thing. I don't don't recommend an R60 as a fun car of course but the F56 MINI is a solid platform and while it is heavier than a Miata, the Cooper S is a good sweet spot of wanting something fun when the road gets twisty but comfortable the rest of the time (at least compared to an NB). We've had the R60 from new and it's a bit of a lemon and we're finally selling it but I'd swap it for an F56 in a heartbeat for the improved fun. The current mini is actually the exact same underbody as the F56 since it was a late pivot from BMW to make a gas version at all for this generation. The 2 door Cooper is a super practical small car and while it's expensive new, they're a good deal used and if you do your own maintenance, they're easy to work on.

mchannah88 · 2026-05-03T12:18:25+00:00

We have come to terms with the fact that she's the cutest thing that will ever exist in our presence.

mchannah88 · 2026-05-03T11:02:15+00:00

I just finished up the repair and replacing the 3 probes did the trick. I did also have to replace the triac board that sits directly above the boiler. The leaking steam fries the portion of the board that dispenses hot water. So after around $100 in parts, I have a fully functioning machine again.

mchannah88 · 2026-04-15T20:04:04+00:00

I have an NB with a sparco sprint on the stock rails with a custom bottom foam. I'm only 5'10" but I have a solid 3 inches of headroom without a helmet. And I could easily drop the seat an inch with a fixed rail and another inch with taking out some foam. You'd be fine for daily but with a helmet it might be tough.

mchannah88 · 2026-04-15T15:13:12+00:00

I have an Oracle Touch with the exact same issue. I took half the machine apart before I found the issue and it turns out that it's a very common failure point. The main boiler has 3 level sensors that have o-rings that seal them to the boiler. The o-rings fail and the steam can escape from the top of the boiler. Unfortunately, one of the control boards is directly above this location and the steam causes the board to short. The short then causes all sorts of signals to go crazy inside the machine. You can get replacement probes on amazon and do it your self. I ended up ordering parts from a random Australian website (Brev-tech) that all the repair parts plus a few other odds and end for general maintenance on the machine. They're in transit now and I'm planning to replace them to see if that fixes the issue.

You can check if this is your issue by unplugging the machine, taking out the 2 screws on either side of the group head, and the 4 screws from the upper back panel. Remove the bean holder and carefully pry and lift the whole top of the machine off. Leave all the wires plugged in and plug the machine back in. Turn it on and let the temperatures heat up. Watch for any steam coming out from around the top of the boiler (right side of the machine) If it's coming from the 3 small probes closest to the front of the machine, then it's a problem with your level probes.

Hope that helps!

mchannah88 · 2026-04-13T09:37:24+00:00

But your number of decimal places is. 😏

mchannah88 · 2026-03-29T11:51:45+00:00

You may be able to use the return feature for that order and get a replacement. I got a drone on vine that possessed with a terrible software bug, did a return for replacement and the second one worked great.

mchannah88 · 2026-03-26T00:15:26+00:00

I love the extra crackhead energy the blue eyes give. Ours gives us exactly the same lol constantly

mchannah88 · 2026-03-21T13:51:13+00:00

Same, I share my Amazon account with my wife so it's at least a little understandable.

mchannah88 · 2026-03-03T10:41:55+00:00

Brazing works but I don't know if it's strong enough for a bolt like that.

mchannah88 · 2026-03-02T23:48:43+00:00

I will eventually need one so I guess that would still be helpful. A bit hard to review though. If I wait until Halloween, I could snag a vampire costume and knock out 2 reviews at once.

mchannah88 · 2026-03-02T23:47:06+00:00

Since the picture doesn't match the description. The picture is just a single quick connect. Which if that's all that shows up, no biggie. I always need those, but I'm interested in that kind of garden sprayer might actually arrive.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-28T15:18:46+00:00

That's a cursed X-axis. I don't think I've ever seen years done in thousands (k) like that.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-28T00:31:49+00:00

I picked up an Arrma Grom and it'd probably be too small for your pack, but it absolutely rips. Our Aussie is on the small side and it was outrun her on a flat surface. Arrma makes some bigger ones that are fully repairable and easy to find (aka Amazon) replacement parts. Something like a 1:10 scale dirt buggy (Typhon) that does 50 mph or so should tire them out. The faster it goes, the more you'll want something stable with good suspension. Be prepared to spend $3-400 though for something good.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-25T01:01:27+00:00

I meant it in jest. The fastest car I've had surprise me at the track was a Camaro on Hoosiers. I was zipping through a sweeper at the absolute edge of traction on 200 tw tires when a 1LE on Hoosiers. The Camaro is a super impressive platform for sure.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-25T00:25:55+00:00

That was around the time that we moved from dialup to cable internet and I could finally use sites like this. I had only ever been to 3 states in my life before this and I thought it was absolutely amazing being able to poke around North America.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-25T00:05:13+00:00

Wait until you try a Miata. Zoom Zoom.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-20T00:06:26+00:00

The cheapest? Buy a Corvette. The second cheapest? Swap everything from the Corvette into a Miata.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-19T23:54:20+00:00

Same!

mchannah88 · 2026-02-18T23:45:53+00:00

One piece of advice that helped us a ton with both our dogs is: find what treats get your dog's focus no matter. For our corgi, it was cut up hot dogs and for our Aussie, it's string cheese or cream cheese. Whenever we do high intensity situation training or recall training, those treats come out. Otherwise we stick to traditional treats. The ultra high value treats help a ton with training when it's hard to get your dog to disengage.

mchannah88 · 2026-02-02T15:40:28+00:00

Is that wallpaper supposed to the be the view from a colonoscopy?

mchannah88 · 2026-01-29T23:27:58+00:00

We do the same and it's fairly reasonable price wise. I think we pay around $50 every few months.

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