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Posted by L. Marie Dubuque Aug 14, 2008 |
I never thought I could love a car this much. Not since I sold my 10 year old BMW 325I convertible in 2004 have I ever been this enthralled with a vehicle. Maybe it's the fire-engine-red color, or the zippiness of it's little engine. Or maybe it's all the gas I'm saving zipping all over town!
Whatever the reason, this is the car for me. When my husband told me last spring that he really wanted to sell our 2001 Jeep Wrangler, I wasn't overly enthused. The Wrangler never gave us a minute's worth of trouble. It was as cute as it was reliable. But ever the economist, he insisted on a more fuel efficient car. So off we went. The problem was, cars that were gas-saving, were nothing to look at. We wandered through dealerships and looked online. My ever-patient hubby was getting ansy. He knew SUVs were depreciating and we were no closer to finding a suitable replacement...until I came across a Money Magazine article on the most fuel efficent cars for the money. When I saw that cute little Mini, I was hooked.
When we got to the Mini dealership, we didn't see exactly what we wanted. But it didn't matter. We could order a car. Since they do not deal on price (they really don't) we could basically custom-order what we wanted. We had fun tracking it from the factory in Great Britain to the port in New York and on to our local dealership. And we actually saved money ordering because we didn't have to buy those bells and whistles we really weren't interested in.
And just like Jeep owners, Mini drivers wave when they see you. This is one club I like being a part of.