Paul Rossman

MINI is at it again with their decoder ad campaign. Put those decoder glasses on and check out page 11 in the February 5 2007 issue of AutoWeek. With this ad, I think all three of my decoders have been put to use.

I received an email last week from the publisher of MINI International Magazine in Germany. They received my subscription payment! I’m all set for a two year subscription.

While not an earth shattering event, especially for those living in Europe, this wasn’t an easy magazine to subscribe to. Let me rephrase that. Subscribing was easy, sending in my payment proved otherwise. The publishers of do not accept payment via credit card. They only take transfers or bank drafts. So my eight issue subscription totaled about $60; €16 per year and $20 for the euro bank draft from my local Amex travel office.

It’s all worth it though. The magazine is a great read with terrific content and layout. Each issue also includes a CD with music and other media on it. Oh, I should mention, you can request a free copy.

I won last May during MINIs on the Dragon (MOTD) 2006. I know, that was way back in May. The important part is that it’s now installed!

The install was painless and took about 30 minutes. I probably could have installed the ARC in under 15 minutes, except that I had the factory MINI armrest to remove first. Has anyone else has gone from a factory armrest to an ARC armrest in a MINI? The instructions, by the way, were spot on!

So how’s it functioning? Absolutely perfect! After just two days I’m really regretting not having done the swap sooner. I see three big wins with having the ARC arm rest… four if you motor around in a cabrio.

1. If you’re like me, you probably removed the US spec cup holder right after delivery. This leaves the rear for holding anything larger than a can of soda. Except that you can’t even do that with out raising the factory armrest upward. The ARC places the ‘hinge’ in front of the cup holder, not the other way as the factory armrest has it. This lets you put anything you want in it with out sacrificing the armrest.
2. The ARC is really, really, comfortable. It’s at the right height; the factory armrest was a bit too high. And the padding is nice and soft, perfect for resting your elbow on during long trips.
3. The sliding cover on my factory armrest was always loose, sliding back when setting your elbow on it. Plus the cover is easy break; I’ve had it replaced once already. There’s no sliding cover on the ARC to break.
4. And last, if you have a cabrio there is no built-in storage in the ARC armrest. This is great if you want to remain open when parked.

I’m not generally one to overlook factory options. However when I buy my R56 MINI, if Aaron has an ARC armrest available, you can bet the factory version will not be on config list!

Thank you Aaron and Out Motoring!