Here's an interesting question: has anyone heard of the Chili Red colour affecting someone's insurance rates with a Mini? I know the legend goes that choosing red guarantees higher rates, but I wonder if that's really true with, say, a stock Mini Cooper. You can only be so reckless in a 115 HP car.

 

If anything, I would think red would REDUCE your rates, since it's so easy to see - you'd have less chance of being hit. Of course, you'd also be more noticeable to the police, which is why I didn't opt for CR....

-Cor.

 

No difference for me with State Farm. Even if their was I would think it would be low. Are you getting a red one?

 

My MINI is Pepper White, and my last insurer(Progressive) insured it the same as my old car (Eagle Talon) when I first got it in 2002, then proceeded to raise the rates every six months until my last renewal when it came in listed as a "High Performance" vehicle, with another increase in rate. My question was "how can you call a 115 HP car that gets 28 mpg a high performance vehicle? The answer...that's how our underwriters have classified your car !

Needless to say I shopped around and found a better rate with another company and no "high performance" classification.

 

Color has nothing to do with insurance rates. Your age, driving record, car, and locale determine the rate. I got CR because it looks good dirty and it's high viz. I could care less what color attracts cops.

Oh yeah Progressive is pure kaka. State Farm considers the MCS a "3-door hatchback." My rates are very reasonable, under $1K/year, zero deduct glass. Jimbo

 

I've heard that same rumor. It is true that red is harder for the human eye to pick up than some other colors (i.e. red lensed military flashlights we see in the movies and army/navy stores). On the other end, yellow I believe is the easiet (not 100% sure). However, that said, I don't think it is a significant factor in most insurance. They have 1000 other stats which are likely more important. My insurance company even takes local into consideration. When I moved from one town to another 10 miles away, my insurance went up due to statistics which showed more accidents/capita in the new zip code. The best thing to do is to ask them. Insurers are generally happy to tell you substatiative ways to lower your costs (defensive driving course, good student discounts, driving record, alarm systems, air bags, etc.) and some states require them to by law.

 

High perf vehicle? A Cooper??? Find a new insurance co!

 

And don't forget, some people can't even see red AT ALL!

 

In which case they just see chrome bling, wheels and maybe a roof whizzing by.

 

Urban legend... I have never once been asked the color of any of my cars by my insurance carrier.

 

Good to hear that red probably won't affect the insurance rates of a Mini. :smile:

Anyways, I'm not immediately in the market, but if I were toget one I'd really want red - not because it's the classic Mini Cooper colour, but because it wouldn't feel right to be a Canadian without a red-and-white Mini.

 

Exactly!

However, this might indirectly be true. It might be that red cars statistically have been cited more. This would increase the insurance of red car owners ...

 

Actually, there are more white cars that were pulled over more than red

from some data I saw a few years ago. Not sure about 2003/2004.

 

Everyone knows that red is the fastest color Even insurance crooks

 

and you could put a big red maple leaf on the top

 

Sorry off topic... But the reason you see red lights, like the flash lights and even red lit dark rooms in movies is because it shows up on camera film better. I have never seen a red light in an actual dark room. And... The first filter you take out of your mil issue flashlight is the RED one. Red light is a VERY bad thing to use around night vision goggles... speaking from experince.

Back on topic.. I have never had an insurance company ask the color of my car. 3 of my 5 cars are RED.

 

Last dark room I was in had a red light

 

Well, it was in college about 15 years ago, but I sure don't remember it being red.

 

That may well be true. I certainly don't spend much time peering through night vision goggles. But those flashlights have been around a lot longer than night vision goggles, and I would think that any light, regardelss of color, would be apparent with a light enhancing apparatus.

 

I'm not sure they would have to if they have your VIN #. I think the VIN # has the color of your car as a number.??

 

Nope

http://www.misterfixit.com/vin.htm


http://www.sjbaker.org/telamom/vin.html

 

You definitely need to find a different insurance co. When my husband bought his Evo in March, State Farm insured it as a regular Lancer!

 

Nope. Color is not an underwriting pricing factor.

 

I have a Red MCS and my insurance broker said it doesnt make a difference. The MCS has a higher insurance due to its "Performance" category.

 

Actually, almost all black and white paper is blind to red light. This is why Red Light is used in Darkrooms (this is not true of a color darkroom, or if you are using certain papers meant to make B&W from color negatives (Kodak Panalure).

As far as the flashlight goes, the use of red light (with other than night vision assist) actually allows your eyes to adjust rapidly. Red does not "burn out" your eyes, and allows you to quickly adjust to night vision. You use it, for instance, in astronony.:

From the website spracht.com:
[font=Arial]The human eye has two types of sensors — rods and cones. Cones provide the best visual acuity (focus and fine detail), but require good illumination. By contrast, rods are very sensitive at low lighting levels, and hence provide a person's night vision. However the rods which impart night vision take over 30 minutes to adapt fully to the dark (think about how long it takes for your eyes to adapt when you enter a dimly-lit restaurant or dark theater). Just a brief exposure to a bright light can "bleach out" the rods and wipe out a person's night vision for many minutes. Rods are insensitive to red, though. So by using red light, one can provide enough illumination to see fine detail (for tasks such as reading) — without compromising night vision.[/font]
[font=Arial][/font]
[font=Arial]OK this may be too much information, time to go drive.[/font]