What happened this morning? The Car Talk guys called the MINI a "little cracker box", and felt in great peril while test driving the MINI on the highway. They test drove a MINI convertible, and did not recommend it for highway driving.
Why do people automatically feel that small cars are unsafe, even though the MINI is more responsive, and less likely to roll over or blow around on the highway than many larger cars? In comparison to the RX8 that the caller referenced, the MINI safety ratings were virtually equal.

http://www.cartalk.com/piplayer/cart...lay=08smil.xml

 

That website is registering as a page of ads on my pc so it won't load.

But anyway,

The alignment of their test car might have been off. If properly set, MINIs can be rock solid and track perfectly on the highway.

 

Hmmm... haven't heard it yet. I'll catch it tomorrow.

When the 1st generation coupe came out, they loved it!

http://www.cartalk.com/content/testd...mini-2003.html

 

Maybe they're just not convertible guys so all that open air scared the hell outta them.

 

Tommy drives a Fiat 124 Spyder as his daily driver....

 

And on top of that, I don't think they get out much...........

 

 

Reviews of the 1st gen were unanimously positive. 2nd gen... not so much. There is a reason for that.

 

But to be fair, when the r53 came out, there was nothing to compare it to besides the classic. That would be like comparing an xbox 360 to an atari 2600. Of course, its gonna get rave reviews since its so far advanced and removed from the classic model. Now the r53 to r56 is similar enough that when people compare them, there's gonna be nitpicking like if you compared the new Halo 3 game to Halo 1. What would you think would have happened if the r56 came out first and then the r53? It'd probably be the same complaints except at opposite ends. "Geez, this new r53 is so uncomfortable to drive." "I don't like the lousy gas mileage." "Why'd they go backwards with this CVT instead of the Aisin tranny?" "Well, at least it doesn't have that much of a wheel gap." "I like the supercharger whine, but miss that turbo growl and ooomph."

 

I too thought their remarks were off the mark. They complained about noise but only drove the 'vert. Duh. And, the caller was concerned about back seat space (for possible future infant seats) yet no mention of the Clubman!

 

I heard it too. Usually they are better than this. I think you New Englanders need to pay them a visit. With a camera and mic.

///Rich

 

I've never been a big fan of Car Talk or Click and Clack. I find their advice is often wildly inaccurate, and designed primarily to be entertaining, although it's feeble entertainment. They are certainly not experts when it comes to doing car evaluations and reviews. I wouldn't give their opinions any weight at all.

 

BIG +1. If anyone took Car Talk seriously, they would have expanded outside radio, and wouldn't only be broadcasted on NPR.

As for the comments about the Mini next to big semis on the highway, hell, I feel somewhat uneasy next to an 18 wheeler even when I'm driving my F-250 crew cab 4x4. It isn't only restricted to one car. But the thing I appreciate, is that if I need to, my V10 truck is going to move it's *** out of there in a hurry if I really need to, and the same goes for the Mini. Don't like being next to a truck, speed up and pass them, because they are usually restricted to 55 or 60 MPH.

The other thing is that the Mini is supremely stable at highway speeds, and the steering is very, very, tight and communicative. It is very easy to maneuver where ever you feel fit.

 

What?! There was every other car in production at the time, which included some decent stuff. The only comparisons to the classic Mini I ever remember reading were on aesthetics. The 1st gen stood out from the contemporary crowd in driving dynamics. The 2nd gen blends in.

 

If you listen to the link (in first post), they end up recommending the MINI over the RX8 due to better coping with driving in snow.

 

I'm sure there were other very good cars out there at the time of the R53's release as there are now with the R56's, but that's not the issue I'm talking about. Maybe I wasn't clear with my analogy?! Maybe you were born after the Atari 2600? That's besides the point. When the r56 gets critiqued, its usually in comparison with its predecessor. But what's usually the complaint about? Supercharger vs turbocharger. R53 interior vs r56 interior. r53 ride quality vs r56 ride quality.

Alot of that was/is very subjective, imo, and it'd be interesting to see how'd it be if the R56 had come out first before the R53. Probably the same complaints, but just reversed like I said before. Don't get me wrong. I love the r53, too, but to say all the reviews were unanimously positive? What would have happened if Click and Clack had taken an r53 convertible out there at night with all those semis? Would it have been glowing reviews or the same,"I wouldn't take a Mini cooper out on the highway" review?

As for the r56 blending in terms of driving dynamics? Really? You think that?
Sure, it's a little more civilized, I suppose, from its r53 counterpart, but it didn't all of a sudden get a Toyota Yaris suspension. There's still people that think the ride in the r56 is too rough. Of course, there's ways of changing that as there was with the r53. I mean, when you talk about cars keeping up with the r56 in the twisties, do you think Corolla, Fit, Yaris, Prius, ForTwo? Not really, right? You'd most like be thinking Miata, S2000, MS3, GTI, etc...not a bad group of cars to still be grouped with.

And that's all I'm really saying. You really can't have a bad review of the r56 in terms of what Click and Clack were saying without it also be about the r53.

 

I really do. Especially the steering. Call me over-sensitive.

Not the group I would compare it with, for many reasons, including price.

Yes I would be thinking that, although I would drop the Miata and S2K, as they have only 2 seats and are RWD. And that is exactly what I mean. The R56 very much falls into this group, and driving it back to back with a GTI or MS3 definitely reveals differences, but they are not dramatic. That is all I'm really saying.

 

I guess I'm the only one here who enjoys Car Talk, and I listen fairly regularly via podcast. Well, I just listened to this episode, and I think some of you are way too sensitive about perceived "bashing" (seems to happen often in this forum). I don't feel they were being negative about MINI in general, and they encouraged the caller to get the MINI.

 

Agree with you - I enjoy Car Talk too. And I am not sure how seriously you are supposed to take their advice. They don't take themselves much seriously either. As for Mini 'bashing', I don' think they were overly negative about the Mini, Tommy just said he wasn't comfortable with driving it on the highway. It was a perspective. And yeah - they did recommend the caller buy it over the RX8!!

 

Car Talk is too much fluff and not enough substance. Mindless chit chat mostly. And I take much of their advice with a grain of salt. They tried advising some guy on motorcycle tires once and told him that motorcycle tires could be used either on the front or the rear and all you had to do was reverse the rotation. B.S. I wrote and told them so and suggested they never advise on motorcycles again. As far as I know, they haven't.

 

I heard that episode of Car Talk too. As far as I'm concerned, I feel very safe in my Justacooper on the highway. It feels, by far, more stable than any other cars I've had. I really don't feel scared by other larger cars and trucks - but maybe that's just me.

 

My MINI tracks better on the highway than the WRX it replaced and the RAV4 it complements. I felt far more scared in my Civic where I felt like a sheet of cardboard was all between me and the road.