[jeremybingham]

I know I know we don't , but we should. I love helping people and love the questions and discussions we get on here-you can learn so much. BUT i do get a bit upset when in the 'things i don't like about the mini' thread people post statements when in actual fact, this thread should be about those annoying things it cannot do or you cannot get on with NOT things the f series can do but people haven't discovered yet!
Read this thread and outsiders considering a mini at first glance might think all sorts of things, yet in actual fact many many of them are simply misunderstandings.

Am i just a defensive silly mini fan who loves the f series too much? It amazes me the things it can do!

While i understand the manual can be a bit pedantic, i now have a pdf version on my screen thanks to this fabulous forum and the people on it and have been much better at answering queries! A lot however are misunderstandings from people who quite clearly havent read the manual-and DEALERS are the number one culprits!

Here we go-have a go at me i may well be setting myself up here but if we could encourage people to post a thread as a question rather than the 'things i don't like' i think it would represent the car better!

eg in my book a valid-i don't like might be the removal of the side sunvisor or the position of the fuel guage-almost an afterthought after the r series or perhaps that you are stuck with individual aircon knobs and can't link them (not that i agree- i am just grateful of separate controls!).

An invalid criticism, for eg and much better posted as a new question thread would be for eg why do my mood lights keep scrolling(you have the choice) or the recent thread on the event ring .

Am i being pedantic-i just feel sorry for my f54 when i see posts ' i don't like that is can't do........ when actually it can, it's in a menu somewhere. I suppose if you dont know you can't know if you get my drift but questions are better than the i don't like thread in my book. And first things first i really would recommend-when you get a car that is a new variety to you, have a read of the manual. you never know what you might find out!>

PLEASE NOTE this is not meant in any way as a criticism of any one or any thread-tried hard to choose egs that don't exist and as you can tell from many of my posts and i mean MANY, I don't read the manual either-but am trying to be better at doing so!!!!!!

 

[mikeswagon]

To the Moderators/Admins, can we get a new sub-forum, called "Ask Jeremy" please?


In answer to the original question, my manual is looking fairly well thumbed, it's in the house just now although I think that was trying to pinpoint an issue that somebody raised a few weeks ago.


I don't think it's silly, I get defensive too. I'm a new Mini newbie, coming from VW, and I tend to look at things being different, not necessarily right/wrong. It seems if you've come from an R series mini, anything different is often regarded as wrong/don't like. Don't get me started on the aircon knobs.....


I also think it would help if people would update their account with where about in the world they are, some things as we know are very region specific.

 

[jeremybingham]

Thank you; you've made me feel better-i felt a bit like sticking my head over the parapet and might get a good blasting for this thread; as i said i am as bad at reading manuals as anyone but i do like to sit in the car and make sure i can operate the gadgets i have specified-don't like it if i cant get it to work at least once! If i cant i go for the manual and then this forum!

 

[wwleone]

Thanks so much.
It is the spirit of the Forum.
Share and exchange information and experiences to each other.
And I by my distant Italy very much appreciate your answers. :x
I write, I read and reply to questions on another MINI Forum in Italy. 0

 

[Hat]

i think a lot of these questions stem from the fact that the car has a lot of features that can be altered to suit - far too many for the sales person to go through & far too many for an excited new owner to remember! they deliberately go through just enough to get you going.

plus there are people who don't care about all the flashy light shows (hard to imagine i know). There are people who will own a car for years & never know that certain features exist. By the nature of this forum we tend to be towards the geekier end of the owner spectrum.

 

[wwleone]

(IMHO) The first thing to do with one new car is to read the manual (and in my opinion not just one time ....). :nerd:

 

[jeremybingham]

Agreed Hat and WW! The car is very complex, the intro to the car; well let's just say a quick run through is soon forgotten in the excitement, and some aspects of the manual aren't too thorough and leave you to experiment a bit!
When we bought our caravan someone told us to video the run through on a smart phone -first time we'd had one-now there is a lot to learn with a caravan. It was a great idea and i then spent a really nice afternoon in the pub reading the manual and comparing it to what he had said! A couple of pints of Timothy Taylor Landlord and i was a master of the van without even having used it!

 

[Hat]

Agreed Hat and WW! The car is very complex, the intro to the car; well let's just say a quick run through is soon forgotten in the excitement, and some aspects of the manual aren't too thorough and leave you to experiment a bit!
When we bought our caravan someone told us to video the run through on a smart phone -first time we'd had one-now there is a lot to learn with a caravan. It was a great idea and i then spent a really nice afternoon in the pub reading the manual and comparing it to what he had said! A couple of pints of Timothy Taylor Landlord and i was a master of the van without even having used it!

a couple of pints of landlord will make you feel master of anything

 

[tennisbold]

I'm the kind of guy who reads the whole manual a couple of times before ordering the car But still I like the questions asked in this forum. The manual doesn't cover everything, I guess.

 

[jeremybingham]

Totally agree, that's why the forum is so good; I've learned so much!

 

[Davyboy]

I agree with you as well Jeremy, I always read the manual as in my view I paid for it so read it and find out exactly what the car will do or won't!

What does wind me up, mainly on FB, someone will post a photo of a warning light on and their speedo showing 70mph!

One never every use a camera while driving, two know what the lights mean, three well three is they get a mouth full from me and tempted to report them....

 

[KYDan]

I know I know we don't , but we should. I love helping people and love the questions and discussions we get on here-you can learn so much. BUT i do get a bit upset when in the 'things i don't like about the mini' thread people post statements when in actual fact, this thread should be about those annoying things it cannot do or you cannot get on with NOT things the f series can do but people haven't discovered yet!
Read this thread and outsiders considering a mini at first glance might think all sorts of things, yet in actual fact many many of them are simply misunderstandings.

Am i just a defensive silly mini fan who loves the f series too much? It amazes me the things it can do!

While i understand the manual can be a bit pedantic, i now have a pdf version on my screen thanks to this fabulous forum and the people on it and have been much better at answering queries! A lot however are misunderstandings from people who quite clearly havent read the manual-and DEALERS are the number one culprits!

Here we go-have a go at me i may well be setting myself up here but if we could encourage people to post a thread as a question rather than the 'things i don't like' i think it would represent the car better!

eg in my book a valid-i don't like might be the removal of the side sunvisor or the position of the fuel guage-almost an afterthought after the r series or perhaps that you are stuck with individual aircon knobs and can't link them (not that i agree- i am just grateful of separate controls!).

An invalid criticism, for eg and much better posted as a new question thread would be for eg why do my mood lights keep scrolling(you have the choice) or the recent thread on the event ring .

Am i being pedantic-i just feel sorry for my f54 when i see posts ' i don't like that is can't do........ when actually it can, it's in a menu somewhere. I suppose if you dont know you can't know if you get my drift but questions are better than the i don't like thread in my book. And first things first i really would recommend-when you get a car that is a new variety to you, have a read of the manual. you never know what you might find out!>

PLEASE NOTE this is not meant in any way as a criticism of any one or any thread-tried hard to choose egs that don't exist and as you can tell from many of my posts and i mean MANY, I don't read the manual either-but am trying to be better at doing so!!!!!!

Yes, Jeremy, but my memory is so bad it really seems pointless. The mechanical matters are easy as I have modified, built, and rebuilt a plethora of mechanical marvels over the years, but not anymore, points and condensers are long gone. However, I do retain some of what I read and that gives me an idea of where to look in the manual if I have a situation that merits attention out of the ordinary. Cars are better nowadays than in years past thanks to computers, but life is more complex because of them as well.

 

[jeremybingham]

Very true ky!