Magical Mystery Tour For Mini Parts
As a driver of a Mini I appreciate the maxim of aesthetics over functionality. Yes there are better cars out there, but how many have been in The Italian Job? It’s a flawless argument; the kind made by a person who loves cars, but has absolutely no idea how they work. Fortunately the makers of my car have thought about this before me and it lights up like a big idiot board letting me know what’s about to go wrong. It doesn’t mean I know how to fix it, but I know a man who can, and so begins a magical tour to find new mini parts.
Normally I head to my local garage, look forlorn, mumble something along the lines of: “car ill. Make better,” and vanish to the nearest hostelry to await the bad news. This, I realise now, having read various articles, is a risky move. First of all, my mechanic might be a crook. That’s possible. He does have a tattoo of his mother on his face, but perhaps that’s just stereotyping. But of much more concern, apparently, is the possibility that the mini parts he sources may not be up to the job in hand.
There are various reports around of a booming black market for fake car parts. The epicentre of this is apparently Asia where replica spares – some bearing realistic logos – are shipped out and sold at bargain basement prices to unsuspecting motorists. Even experienced mechanics have been taken in at times. It’s also a risk using Original Equipment (OE) standard materials. If mini parts are not one hundred percent genuine, you take a risk – that at least is the message given to me by the manufacturer.
Some might argue they’re biased, but I decide to give them the benefit of the doubt, risk an enormous bill and visit the official website to see how I can make sure all replacement mini parts are indeed the real deal. This is where is gets interesting. Car manufacturers, it seems, don’t know when to stop when it comes to designing their websites. It’s not enough to supply a quick bit of information and leave it at that. Now you need an entire cavalcade of animation, cartoons and puzzles.
It is all very impressive and I fight the urge to ‘pimp’ my car with the collection of fascinating accessories on offer. Nevertheless in the end I get what I need: genuine 100 percent real mini parts. A lifetime of trouble free motoring awaits. What could possibly.
Dom Donaldson is a motoring expert. Find out more about Mini parts and the services offered from Inchcape.
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