So why did it go? Well, it’s a sorry combination of London’s ULEZ, plus the vicarage where I kept the car being put up for sale. The Mini’s new owner doesn’t have any low-emission zones to worry about and has a garage, so they will be able to use the car regularly while keeping it clean and dry.
I probably could have found a way to keep it but, truth be told, I’d scratched the itch of Mini ownership after a few long trips. It turns out that a soft-top Mini wasn’t my ideal daily driver.
Wherever I drove it, I got frustrated – not necessarily at the car, but everything else involved with driving. If I chose to avoid the motorway and drive through the lovely Kent countryside instead, the potholes would send shivers through the car. And if I took the motorway route home, I’d end up with a headache from the vibration and noisy high revs caused by the four-speed gearbox.
Whenever I finally found a smooth piece of asphalt on a good B-road, it was inevitably occupied by a Honda Jazz doing 30mph.
It got to the point where I couldn’t see the pleasure in driving around in an old classic: the roads are knackered and busy, and to get to any decent driving roads, I have to sit on the motorway for ages. A more modern, multi-purpose toy was needed.
On the right road, in the right conditions, the Mini has been a blast to drive, but it was too compromised to keep as my only car.
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