37 replies to this topic

[Big Man]

Totally agree, it does take all sorts and for me neither magazine ticks the boxes so to speak.  :)

 

Although do admit to having a hoard of mags covering five or so years form the 90's as the technical bits are well written and easy to follow....much better than Haynes and I keep a pulled out page on how to set the tappets with my feeler gauges lol

 

Don't get me wrong not knocking anybody for spending that which they can afford ..were all on the same side...keeping the mini alive and strong :)

[Paulwhitt20]

I am new to minis and mini magazines so all the articles are new. I notice there seems to be a lot of space devoted to upgrading engines, restorations and the like with no mention on how this affects insurance. Most of the technical articles are above my amateur abilities anyway so I would not attempt them. Forums like this are better for technical advice. It is as though all mini ownership is about is to upgrade the engine and get rid of rust. Perhaps it is. However I am not sure what else you can put in the magazines. I do enjoy the articles about the owners and the adventures they have made in them etc. I also look at the advers to see what is available and what companies are out there doing stuff. I would be interested in articles about the different types of mini and specifications too but most of that is on the Internet already. The beauty of a magazine is you can take it with you and don't need Internet access to read it.

Just my thoughts.

[tomb1992]

i completely agree with the adverts and running out off material !

 

 

allot off mini Magazine articles seem to have changed from interesting unique builds to 4 page articles on some bloke who's had a mini in a shed for 10 years and done hardly anything except strip it and leave it on a spit jig,   with a load of quotes like as "he plans to do such and such", complete waste!! want to read about a complete or at least near complete build! not some dreamer with half a body shell!  

Rant over lol 

 

canceled my subscription last year only have a quick skim through if i'm in Whsmith 

[OhDear]

Who needs a mini mag when we've got the forum!!!!! Damn side cheaper too! Photos, restorations, tech help, opinions....... need I say more

and it cheaper at only £5 a year membership to keep the site going  (free plug to gain members.)  whats a magazine these days £6?..no idea last time i bought one was in 1998 ish.

[HarrysMini]

 

Who needs a mini mag when we've got the forum!!!!! Damn side cheaper too! Photos, restorations, tech help, opinions....... need I say more

and it cheaper at only £5 a year membership to keep the site going  (free plug to gain members.)  whats a magazine these days £6?..no idea last time i bought one was in 1998 ish.

 

It costs £4 something, or I paid £35 I think for a year sub with TMF+ discount.

 

Some of the articles and help guides are very interesting and useful, and it does make a nice change to be able to read on actual paper rather than an

electronic screen.

[roberts]

In my opinion it has more to do with the feature cars than anything else, that's why I bought the specialist mags. And by mags I mean all the mags, Redline (gone), MaxPower (gone), FastCar (still going), Mini Mag or Mini World.

•  10 to 12 years ago (when the magazines were at there peak) there was a lot more money around - meaning every cover car was a unique Mini that had seen thousands and thousands spent on it to make it unique. You wouldn't get a feature in the mags unless your styling, performance and interior stood out from the crowd (unless it was a mint MK1). These days you can pretty much get a feature by having a respray, installing some sportpack arches and a fitting 1380 engine.
   
• Another problem is that nothing in the Mini world is ever new anymore - no one is pushing the boundaries of what is possible (largely because of money). This means that nothing these days is really a "first", 10 to 12 years ago every mag cover car was a first, that being either, the first v-tec conversion, the first red top conversion, the first zeemax bodykit, the first Alfa Romeo front seat conversion etc. etc.

The state of the magazines these days sadly reflects the UK's modified car scene of the past 8ish years. I have found myself buying AutoCar and Evo more regularly, as I find reading about new cars more interesting than reading about the same classic's and/or modified cars (which is what a lot of people are saying is the problem).

 

The car scene in general is starting to pick up at the moment (particularly the modified car scene and I have started to buy FastCar again)... so fingers crossed the Mags also start to pick up.

[Black.Ghost]

 

 

Who needs a mini mag when we've got the forum!!!!! Damn side cheaper too! Photos, restorations, tech help, opinions....... need I say more

and it cheaper at only £5 a year membership to keep the site going  (free plug to gain members.)  whats a magazine these days £6?..no idea last time i bought one was in 1998 ish.

 

It costs £4 something, or I paid £35 I think for a year sub with TMF+ discount.

 

Some of the articles and help guides are very interesting and useful, and it does make a nice change to be able to read on actual paper rather than an

electronic screen.

 

This is a bit off-topic, but I do actually agree about reading paper. I like the digital world, everything is conveniently there (there are a lot of problems as well, but for me this is mostly the abuse of advertising, spam, malware and crap like Facebook rather than forums or other parts of the net). However, reading paper is the reason I have not bought a Kindle and have no real intention of doing so. I was tempted by the paper white one I think it was, but I just like having an actual book. I am getting back into reading at the moment - its all about spies and espionage today.

[mab01uk]

What about 'Love Mini' magazine which is only available online or downloaded as a PDF file?

 

Its free which means even if your not interested in the additional New MINI content and ads there is is little to complain about. Also contributions, photos and articles from readers are welcomed.

Details and back copies are here for those who have not seen it:-

http://www.love-mini.co.uk/issues

 

MC2 magazine in the USA also covers both classic and modern Mini's and is available paper or electronic:-

http://www.mc2magazi...Back_Issues.cfm

 

Mini Experience magazine in Australia has now become BMC Experience:-

http://www.bmcexperience.com.au   

 

I personally still like to read a paper magazine rather than electronic but that maybe an age thing?

 

Edited by mab01uk, 17 October 2014 - 11:59 AM.