In this episode of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship and his trusty sidekick Producer Kodi Monster(who still doesn’t have a speaking role) take on one of the trickiest challenges every MINI event organizer faces — Route Planning. If plotting a great drive for your club feels like herding cats with a GPS, don’t worry — we’ve got help. Dale reveals a simple mapping resource filled with pre-planned routes that’ll save you hours of frustration and get your next run rolling in no ti...

Host: Dale Blankenship | Producer: Kodi Monster (silent but deadly… cute) This week on The Cooper Cast, Dale dives headfirst into MINI’s latest attempt at fashion-forward motoring… and let’s just say the results are about as exciting as a beige wall in a blackout. First up: the new Paul Smith Edition MINI Cooper — the long-anticipated, high-fashion collab with the legendary British designer himself. Sounds colorful, right? Well… not so much. Turns out when you think “Paul Smith,” you m...

Host: Dale Blankenship | Producer: Kodi (silent but scruffy) This week on The Cooper Cast, we hit the brakes (briefly) to wrap up Hampton Roads club MINI’s 22nd Annual Fall Colors Run — 436 miles, 4 states, 49 MINIs, and not a single drop of rain. (We’re not saying Dale has a deal with the weather gods, but we’re not not saying it either.) Then we hop on a virtual flight to South Korea, where MINI is celebrating 20 years in the Korean market with a full spread of special editions:...

In Episode 94 of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship and everyone’s favorite silent sidekick, Producer Kodi, take a quick pit stop in Austin, Texas, where MINI USA joined forces with Sports Illustrated for an electrifying display at the U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. From the Club SI lounge to MINI’s motorsport roots, it’s a fun look at how MINI continues to show up in style at the world’s biggest racing events. Then Dale shifts gears with a few ramblings from the Face...

In Episode 93 of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship and trusty sidekick Producer Kodi (who finally gets a speaking part!) dive into what might’ve been the coolest, neatest, most sought-after MINI ever — the one that sadly never made it past the concept stage. Then, the duo shifts gears to the MINI Domination Car Show in Georgia — a big event with an even bigger question: why don’t we have more MINI-only shows here in the States? Finally, Dale wraps things up with a few bits of C...

In Episode 92 of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship and his world-famous producer, Kodi (who’s still holding out for a kibble sponsorship), tackle another round of MINI mayhem and feel-good moments. First up, the latest Cooper Cast Question of the Week — and this one had the MINI community absolutely cracking up. Let’s just say, if you thought you’d heard every possible answer by now… you haven’t. Then, Dale shares a heartwarming, tail-wagging, faith-in-humanity-restoring story st...

In this episode of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship (with Producer Kodi Monster loyally standing by) takes aim at the chaos that gave the car scene a big black eye in Gatlinburg — and why the rest of us are not impressed. Then we shine a well-deserved spotlight on a MINI club doing it right, earning praise straight from the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation. From there, Dale breaks down MINI’s Q3 sales surge — with most models skyrocketing while the beloved two-door Hardtop quietly ...

In this week’s episode of The Cooper Cast, host Dale Blankenship and trusty sidekick Producer Kodi Monster dig into some big shifts that could shape MINI’s future. First, BMW has announced a brand-new direct sales model rolling out in Europe for 2027 — will MINI follow suit, and could this model eventually cross the pond to the U.S.? Then we turn to the European Union, which has quietly relaxed its strict EV mandates, meaning the internal combustion engine (ICE) will be sticking around long...

🎙️ The Cooper Cast – Episode 89 Host: Dale Blankenship Producer: Kodi Monster (faithful sidekick, still no speaking role 🐾) In Episode 89 of The Cooper Cast, Dale kicks things off with the ever-popular Cooper Cast Question of the Week — and this week’s question doesn’t disappoint. The answers from the MINI community are as fun and quirky as the cars themselves. From there, we head into the world of Facebook MINI groups. Dale shares his own investigations into how and why scammers set up fake ...

Welcome to Episode 88 of The Cooper Cast Podcast, Hosted by Dale Blankenship with Producer Kodi Monster on guard duty 🐾 In this episode, we take a look back at MINI’s short-lived Countryman Hybrid — a neat little stepping-stone into electrification that just didn’t stick around very long. Then we turn our attention to MINI’s new adaptive headlightsrolling out overseas. They’re impressive, but of course, U.S. drivers will have to wait a little longer before we see them here. Next up, Dale sha...

This week on The Cooper Cast, Dale dives into some big news — MINI’s amazing uptick in reliability ratings. From being at the bottom of the charts to climbing into the top tier, it’s nothing short of remarkable. We’ll also shine a light on yet another scammer making the rounds in the MINI community (because they never seem to quit), and share the story of a fellow MINIac dealing with a tough problem. Plus, for those who love eye candy, we talk about a gorgeous MINI JCW Coupe that’s up for gra...

In this episode, we’ve got a little bit of everything from the MINI world. First up, MINI Global has yet another new leader. At this point, I’m convinced they just keep the boss’s name written in chalk on the office door — makes for quicker updates when the next one rolls in. Next, we head to India, where one of the newest MINI owners just celebrated his 7th birthday. Yep, you heard that right — MINI fever starts early! (And honestly, what were the rest of us doing at 7 besides building Lego ...

In this episode of The Cooper Cast, host Dale Blankenship and his trusty sidekick Producer Kodi Monster (who, as always, has no speaking role but lots of opinions) bring you another motoring mix of MINI news and community fun. 🚦 Safety First: The brand-new MINIs score five stars in the latest Euro NCAP crash tests — proving once again that small and mighty can also mean safe and sturdy.🏁 Concept Dreams: Out of Munich, MINI drops two flashy new concept cars at the annual auto show. They’re r...

In this info-packed episode, host Dale Blankenship and Producer Kodi dive into a few hot topics for MINI owners! First up: protecting and maintaining your MINI’s graphics. Roof stripes, bonnet decals, side graphics — they aren’t “set it and forget it.” With a little TLC, your vinyl can stay looking fresh and sharp for years. Next, we tackle the dark side of Facebook groups: fake, scammer-run MINI communities. One new group in particular is popping up, run by fake admins and moderators, with M...

In this episode of The Cooper Cast, host Dale Blankenship and his trusty sidekick Producer Kodi (still silent, still adorable) dive into the Officially Unofficial Rules of Motoring—the essential code every MINIac should live by. Think of it as the “MINI Driver’s Handbook,” only with a lot more fun and a lot fewer DMV lines. From there, we take a trip to South Africa, where the MINI community is alive, well, and apparently very hungry—because MINI of South Africa has not one, but two breakfast...

In Episode 82 of The Cooper Cast, host Dale Blankenship and Producer Kodi Monster (still silent, still stealing the show) dig into some surprising MINI news—Mercedes wants to use our engines in their future models. That’s right, the three-pointed star is turning to our trusty little motor. Kudos, MINI! From there, we roll through the MINI-related Facebook groups—where the questions are sometimes familiar, sometimes fresh, and always entertaining. We also catch up on the latest from MINIs on t...

This week on The Cooper Cast, Dale Blankenship and his trusty (but still silent) producer Kodi Monster wade back into the wonderful, wacky world of MINI Facebook groups. Some of the same old questions keep popping up (yes, again), along with a few new ones to keep things interesting. Spoiler alert: the answers are just as “creative” as ever. After that, we turn to our own Cooper Cast Facebook page for the Question of the Week. Let’s just say MINIacs never fail to deliver—sometimes thoughtful,...

In this episode of The Cooper Cast Podcast, host Dale Blankenship and his trusty sidekick Producer Kodi (he’s a dog, you know) bring you a full MINI-flavored weekend recap and a few surprises along the way. We start with a wrap-up of this year’s MINI at The Glen at Watkins Glen International Raceway. The event kicked off at Torrey Ridge Winery, followed by a scenic backroads drive to the historic race track where MINI treated us to lunch, live music, and the main event — three laps arou...

This week on The Cooper Cast, Dale Blankenship (and Producer Kodi Monster, who’s still refusing to speak on mic) tackle a mix of MINI topics worth tuning in for. First up—dipsticks. Yes, the kind for checking your oil, not the ones posting bad advice on Facebook. Then we chat about why a dash cam might be one of the best investments you can make for your MINI. We’ve also got some new videos coming soon to the Cooper Cast Facebook page showing off neat little MINI features you might not even k...

In this episode, Dale and Producer Kodi take a scenic detour through the MINI world, starting with a shoutout to a seriously cool Facebook group: MINIs & Murals — where creative MINIacs pair their rides with eye-popping street art. It’s worth a scroll, trust us. Then, Dale grabs the mic (again) to tackle two recurring mysteries in the MINI community: Why do so many folks ask for help but never tell us what kind of MINI they drive?Why are people asking for parts without realizing they’re b...