I headed over to Greasy’s Garage this morning to finally get a long list of overdue preventative maintenance done on the MINI. Good MINI friends just opened the shop a few months ago out in Worcester and the good company alone is worth the trip, as well as the experience of working on hundreds of minis. Some parts I had sitting around for years waiting to be installed, while others I had ordered back in May, but any way you look at it, at over 94,000 miles, my MINI was long overdue for a checkup.
Though Pete was impressed on how good shape my car was in, my suspension bushings were shot (thanks to daily repeated pothole torture of Boston’s roads), so we put in some nice Powerflex bushings. It’s kind of like getting glasses…you suddenly realize how much you’ve been missing in the steering over the years!
Other items included new accessory belt and tensioner stop; new plugs, wires, and coils; new brake pads, rotors, and steel-braided brake lines that I’ve had for years and always looked forward to the sharper pedal response. Also replaced my seized power steering fan and PCV valve.
By chance our friend Gavin was also in for his yearly service work, it was very good to see him. But it’s great to know I have a trustworthy mechanic that specializes in MINIs, and I no doubt will be back soon, perhaps just to visit while someone else gets some work done, as the MMC folks often do.
Similar list on my car, although my bushings were OK as Pete replaced them last year. Got pads and rotors in the back (as I was down to about 2% pad!), new coil, wires and plugs, filters cleaned or replaced, fluids replaced etc, etc…
Work well done at a reasonable price by great people. What more could you ask for?
Comment by Gavin — August 29, 2009 @ 7:40 pm
Had my bushings replaced yesterday. My old ones were almost non- existent. Massive handling improvement. It certainly is a great relief to know that you can go to a guy like that who is so knowledgeable and will telly take care of your car. He is a real craftsman and cares about doing a good job.
Comment by wade (MKIR53 on MMC) — August 29, 2009 @ 9:51 pm
It’s more than an hours ride for me to get there, but it’s definately worth the trip…. My MINI has never handled and driven so well. And it is mostly due to Pete, John and this Shop.
Comment by -=gRaY rAvEn=- — September 8, 2009 @ 10:59 pm