Mini Spares

[finchy533]

Just to give a slightly more positive experience - I had a couple of orders that were affected, but they were delivered over a week ago now (a week or so late) without any further prompting from me. I also received an email explaining there were problems while I was waiting for them.

Anyway, if I try to imagine restoring and/or running a Mini without Mini Spares it makes me realise we are very lucky indeed to have them, and I'm prepared to cut them plenty of slack as a result.

[Lakeland997]

Ordered yesterday, shipped today.
Looks like the guys down there have got something working. All credit to them.

Andy

[AndyPen]

Got to chat to Rich myself yesterday - soon guessed who it was as he knew all about the 1071 and 970.

I thought I was getting a (paid for) next day delivery so waited in until 4 - he was really friendly and explained the problems so no harm done and it arrived today.

I did speak to a London guy at one point who was helpful too, but unfortunately as it turned out, he sent a small bore gasket for my 970S. Whoever packed it put two boxes of nut and bolts on top, so its going back looking a bit bent I'll admit. I haven't actually taken it out of the box it came in, and will return it as is.

There is so much more available now then in the 90s when I first wanted to rebuild the car - so very thankful all round

[Twincam]

The folks who were directly affected by the computer issues were overseas shipments through DHL. Apparently MiniSpare's - DHL interoperability went to crap. I think there's plenty of evidence that UK shipments weren't affected in the same way. Testament's from UK customers are not representative of the worst of the situation.

[mk1coopers]

Placed an order last night, got a confirmation this morning so things seem to be moving up there, I'm sure they are doing all they can to sort any problems

[mk1]

I think there's plenty of evidence that UK shipments weren't affected in the same way. Testament's from UK customers are not representative of the worst of the situation.

This isn't the case. The DHL part was one aspect of the problem, but it was just one aspect of a massive IT meltdown. All customers have been affected to one extent or another, as I have said they are working unbelievably hard to fix all the issues & get back on track. Saw Rich yesterday & they seem to be making good progress now. Although there will inevitably issues that drag on.

[GeorgeA]

Apparently MiniSpare's - DHL interoperability went to crap.

I wish they would sack off DHL tbh as deliverys can randomly go to shit when you least want it to. If you live out side of a city in the UK in a area that DHL deem to be "rural" even if its a town they will not deliver to you unless they have enough on the van for that route even if you have paid extra for so call guarantee next day delivery.

This is the only delivery company in the UK that i've found not to deliver the next day service as promised. Never had this issue when minispares used UPS.

Other suppliers that dont use DHL that i've paid for next day delivery with have always turned up

Worryingly a amazon prime delivery arrived the over day by DHL i'm hoping that its a sign of they have sorted their shit out as apposed to a sign of things to come.
Now that DHL has purchased UK mail and re-branding it to DHL that might be the case as UK mail have always delivered next day.

NOTE this is not a dig at Minispares just the shit show next day service that DHL offer's
When i've ordered parts from minispares north that can be sent via royal mail next day delivery they have always arrived next day no problems at all.

[trevorhp]

Apparently MiniSpare's - DHL interoperability went to crap.

I wish they would sack off DHL tbh as deliverys can randomly go to shit when you least want it to. If you live out side of a city in the UK in a area that DHL deem to be "rural" even if its a town they will not deliver to you unless they have enough on the van for that route even if you have paid extra for so call guarantee next day delivery.

This is the only delivery company in the UK that i've found not to deliver the next day service as promised. Never had this issue when minispares used UPS.

Other suppliers that dont use DHL that i've paid for next day delivery with have always turned up

Worryingly a amazon prime delivery arrived the over day by DHL i'm hoping that its a sign of they have sorted their shit out as apposed to a sign of things to come.
Now that DHL has purchased UK mail and re-branding it to DHL that might be the case as UK mail have always delivered next day.

NOTE this is not a dig at Minispares just the shit show next day service that DHL offer's
When i've ordered parts from minispares north that can be sent via royal mail next day delivery they have always arrived next day no problems at all.

Quick note on DHL
DHL.....Buyer beware......... they informed me that in their reams of conditions they are 'under no obligation to deliver any parcel'
Urgent shipment to Japan so used 2 day deliver at £168.00
Just look at the cr*p I had to put up with
Whats missing from this timeline is the fact that they lied to me about an attempted delivery at the consignee premises, which they said were closed
How do I know they lied
Their CCTV proved no delivery was attempted and they removed this item from the timeline.*****here they also adjusted some of the dates.

How difficult can it be?

Tuesday, May 07, 2019 Location Time Pieces
17 Delivered - Signed for by: B ITO AYASE 09:40
1 Pieces

16 With delivery courier YOKOHAMA - JAPAN 08:26
1 Pieces
*****
Thursday, May 02, 2019 Location Time Pieces
15 Arrived at Delivery Facility in YOKOHAMA - JAPAN YOKOHAMA - JAPAN 08:26
1 Pieces

Wednesday, May 01, 2019 Location Time Pieces
14 Departed Facility in TOKYO - JAPAN TOKYO - JAPAN 13:42
1 Pieces

13 Processed at TOKYO - JAPAN TOKYO - JAPAN 13:07
1 Pieces

12 Clearance processing complete at TOKYO - JAPAN TOKYO - JAPAN 09:25
1 Pieces

11 Arrived at Sort Facility TOKYO - JAPAN TOKYO - JAPAN 09:15
1 Pieces

10 Customs status updated TOKYO - JAPAN 08:33

Tuesday, April 30, 2019 Location Time Pieces
9 Departed Facility in LONDON-HEATHROW - UK LONDON-HEATHROW - UK 04:46
1 Pieces

8 Processed at LONDON-HEATHROW - UK LONDON-HEATHROW - UK 03:17
1 Pieces

7 Arrived at Sort Facility LONDON-HEATHROW - UK LONDON-HEATHROW - UK 00:25
1 Pieces

Monday, April 29, 2019 Location Time Pieces
6 Departed Facility in EAST MIDLANDS - UK EAST MIDLANDS - UK 21:48
1 Pieces

5 Processed at EAST MIDLANDS - UK EAST MIDLANDS - UK 21:33
1 Pieces

4 Arrived at Sort Facility EAST MIDLANDS - UK EAST MIDLANDS - UK 20:44
1 Pieces

3 Departed Facility in LIVERPOOL - UK LIVERPOOL - UK 18:44
1 Pieces

2 Processed at LIVERPOOL - UK LIVERPOOL - UK 18:44
1 Pieces

1 Shipment information received LIVERPOOL - UK 12:26
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[Twincam]

DHL has been golden for me. Of the 3 weeks my last order took, DHL only took 3 days (over weekend) to get from UK to my US doorway. That's been the case for every order I've placed. I guess the UK to Seattle (via Los Angeles customs) pathway is well oiled. As I've mentioned, MiniSpares does a great job packaging and DHL seems to handle the packages delicately. From my experience, FedEx, UPS, and the standard Postal services are great destroyers of packaging. DHL to Seattle seems like white glove service in comparison.

[Twincam]

I think there's plenty of evidence that UK shipments weren't affected in the same way. Testament's from UK customers are not representative of the worst of the situation.

This isn't the case. The DHL part was one aspect of the problem, but it was just one aspect of a massive IT meltdown. All customers have been affected to one extent or another, as I have said they are working unbelievably hard to fix all the issues & get back on track. Saw Rich yesterday & they seem to be making good progress now. Although there will inevitably issues that drag on.

I don't wish to extend this discussion but I have to disagree. It's pretty evident from this thread that International customers were subject to much greater processing times than UK customers. In fact most of the UK posts to this thread stated they saw no recent delays. Whether that was because more international orders are made through the internet vs phone sales [my conjecture}, or the IT person at MiniSpares was also the main international order taker and he was slammed having to perform both duties [also conjecture]; or international orders are shipped from only one of MiniSpares stores vs UK orders where sales are distributed across multiple stores and therefor greater man-power [again my conjecture].....I don't know.

Glad they're making progress. I hope they can claim they're back to normal in the very near future.

[mk1coopers]

Although I've had my first order confirmation email I've not had a dispatched follow up yet, I'm sure they are working as hard as they can to resolve issues, we are all very dependant on computer systems these days and when something happens it always takes time to unravel the mess.

[croc7]

Although I've had my first order confirmation email I've not had a dispatched follow up yet, I'm sure they are working as hard as they can to resolve issues, we are all very dependant on computer systems these days and when something happens it always takes time to unravel the mess.

Sounds like Mini Spares might have a handle on the problem. A phone call revealed that my order had been shipped and tracking showed it to have arrived in the US. Now if only the USPS can manage to get it out of San Francisco enroute to Tacoma......Congrats to Mini Spares for all of the hard work.

[mk1coopers]

The dispatch email has arrived parts on the way

[davidnutland]

Well done Minispares, ordered on Thursday 23rd arrived Friday 24th. You can't get much better than that, unless you could come and fit the parts.

[minimad]

Yes , l emailed them about a new flywheel l had bought from them that failed and never got a reply , a supposedly EN24 flywheel the boss stretched alowing it to move forward thus jamming the primary gear .

[mk1]

Yes , l emailed them about a new flywheel l had bought from them that failed and never got a reply , a supposedly EN24 flywheel the boss stretched alowing it to move forward thus jamming the primary gear .

Very, very unlikely that it "stretched".

As Minispares sell literally 100's of these a year it is unlikely that the one you bought is suffering a unique problem. Probably best to pursue them direct.

[minimad]

Yes , l emailed them about a new flywheel l had bought from them that failed and never got a reply , a supposedly EN24 flywheel the boss stretched alowing it to move forward thus jamming the primary gear .

Very, very unlikely that it "stretched".

As Minispares sell literally 100's of these a year it is unlikely that the one you bought is suffering a unique problem. Probably best the pursue them direct.

Take it from me number 1 , it stretttttttched , moved forwards on the nose of the crankshaft and jammed the primary gear which meant of course that l could not work the clutch and thus not drive the car, and yes there was clearance when l assembled it all on the stand . After l stripped it again and re-fitted the flywheel and tightened it up you could actually hear the flywheel as it moved up the taper ...........l do my flywheels up to 160 foot lb plus . l'm not bagging minispares , l've bought thousands of pounds worth of bits n pieces off them over the last 8 years and their service and quality l have found to be excellent . l emailed them twice about flywheel but never recieved a reply so just gave up and bought a replacement one off MED.

[Supersonic]

Yes , l emailed them about a new flywheel l had bought from them that failed and never got a reply , a supposedly EN24 flywheel the boss stretched alowing it to move forward thus jamming the primary gear .

Very, very unlikely that it "stretched".

As Minispares sell literally 100's of these a year it is unlikely that the one you bought is suffering a unique problem. Probably best the pursue them direct.

Take it from me number 1 , it stretttttttched , moved forwards on the nose of the crankshaft and jammed the primary gear which meant of course that l could not work the clutch and thus not drive the car, and yes there was clearance when l assembled it all on the stand . After l stripped it again and re-fitted the flywheel and tightened it up you could actually hear the flywheel as it moved up the taper ...........l do my flywheels up to 160 foot lb plus . l'm not bagging minispares , l've bought thousands of pounds worth of bits n pieces off them over the last 8 years and their service and quality l have found to be excellent . l emailed them twice about flywheel but never recieved a reply so just gave up and bought a replacement one off MED.

I don't understand what you mean? When you add the primary gear thrust washer, fit the primary gear, primary gear backing ring and primary gear C ring and check the standard gap 4-6 thou for me, the flywheel will only meet the C ring & backing ring?

I'm lost here honest

Alan

[Andrew1967]

Not sure it would stretch the flywheel, more likely the threads in the crank and bolt but the flywheel torque setting is 110-115 ft/lbs not 160+

[dklawson]

Very, very unlikely that it "stretched". ...

Take it from me number 1 , it stretttttttched , moved forwards on the nose of the crankshaft and jammed the primary gear ...

I don't understand what you mean? When you add the primary gear thrust washer, fit the primary gear, primary gear backing ring and primary gear C ring and check the standard gap 4-6 thou for me, the flywheel will only meet the C ring & backing ring?
Alan

I suggest an alternate problem. If the bore of the new flywheel is not made to spec (just a few thousandths too large in diameter) then the flywheel will crawl too far forward on the crank tail. I agree that this probably won't jam the primary gear but it can cause the ring gear to contact the aluminum housing. This happened to my car years ago when a lot of lapping was done to clean up both the crank tail and the flywheel hub bore. I ended up needing a new flywheel hub to move the ring gear away from contact. Again, it didn't jam the primary gear but jammed the ring gear.