Since I've Been Gone: MINI Haters

In the past month my little MINI has been vandalized not once, but twice!!!

The first time it happened the passenger side view mirror was twisted/yanked off, and left dangling by its electrical cord from the side of the car without another scratch on it; someone had simply taken it upon himself or herself to “bash” the side mirrors of a number of cars on parked on Laurel (the truck behind me had been similarly defaced). Four hours, and $727.00 later it was all fixed, but what a truly great way to spend a day off work!!!

Then just this past Wednesday, some jackass tore off the fender trim from two of my wheel arches, again on the passenger side. This time however it wasn’t on Laurel when it was “bashed”, but instead parked just off of Wilshire and 9th in Santa Monica while running an errand. At least this damage it purely cosmetic and doesn’t require an immediate fix, which is good ‘coz so far I’ve been quoted $185.00 a piece (plus labor) by the MINI dealership. However I’ve also found one of the pieces on ebay for just $15.00, plus shipping (a big thank you to the stranger at the gym who suggested this).

I keep trying to tell myself that these recent incidents are purely coincidental, but a nagging little voice in the back of my head keeps telling me that my MINI (sadly oh-so distinctive with it’s Union Jack roof and GB sticker) has been targeted. Maybe it’s that fat homo with those two nasty little pugs who I had words with that time. Or maybe it’s the MINI people themselves so they can charge inflated prices for parts and labor. Or maybe I'm just unlucky these days!