I guess I'm used to those kind of comments, having ridden motorcycles for 30 years before buying the MINI. When I started riding bikes I couldn't walk into a cafe without it going deadly quiet. Many motels didn't accept bikers. And on and on. By the way, it wasn't my appearance, I'm not some menacing evil doer, it was only because I rode a bike. I always made it a point to be polite, tip well, and people usually warmed up. And for every bad experience there were many memorable ones.

 

None taken...but there is a difference in being ignorant and being moronic. If the statement were to the degree of "I just don't feel like those cars are safe." or "I wonder how safe that car is?" that is ignorant (not knowing). To automatically call a VERY safe car a "death trap" is moronic. It's just plain stupid. DO the research...hell ASK someone. Jumping to ridiculous conclusions will always be moronic no matter where you are from.

 

MINIs are very safe in single vehicle accidents; that was what the F150 article was about.

However, a MINI vs. an F150 is a different story.

Large cars on the road make it more unsafe for the smaller cars.

 

We are not going to go into this discussion again....http://https://www.northamericanmoto...ighlight=f-150

And no, large cars do not make it more unsafe for smaller cars.

 

Every morning after waking up I have the same dilemma:
With which group I am going to deal today? MORONS or IDIOTS...

.... then again, sometimes I belong to either group myself, but thank God it's very rare

MD STREGA2

 

Tarzan,
There was no passenger and I thought the same thing myself about the airbags. Since the airbags are usually what drive the cost of repair into the totaling range only the ones necessary should pop. The two fronts were the only ones to deploy as far as the seatbelt tensioners go, I have no idea. The windows did go down.

As far as some of the other comments about safety go, I myself have often wondered what would happen to a rear passenger in a rear accident involving a large vehicle. There just does not seem to be enough crunch room there to save someone. If the vehicles bumber is above ours what would happen.

 

I'd be interested in seeing this kind of accident tested with some dummies myself :P

 

In 1965 I enlisted in the ARMY and signed up for Armor. When I told my dad he said tanks were a "death trap". Gee, times sure have changed.

 

The American Insurance Institute ran many tests and reviewed many accidents from across the country. Analyzed the information with regards to the claimed safety of the SUV/large pick-up and found an alarming fact. They just weren't any safer, in fact they were more dangerous.

SUVs and Pick-ups are involved in many more rollover accidents than any other category of vehicle. There were more deaths associated with those rollovers than any other class of vehicle. The car makers ignore the evidence and continue to promote the popular myth that larger is safer.

The safest vehicles were the vehicles in the Toyota Camry/ Honda Accord size range. Even among that size vehicle there was a dramatic difference between brands.

Interesting addition to their findings. In the hands of younger, less experienced drivers, they were significantly more dangerous and significantly more likely to rollover. Their conclusions lead them to state that it was the reaction speed of the younger driver and their inexperience that caused them to swerve more suddenly and then over-correct that lead to the rollover.

So, parents, beware. Bigger is definitely NOT safer.

 

That's probably one of the sad things about owning a MINI...that
you have to literally explain to people for them to get past this
'tiny car = dangerous, small, weak' they have in their heads.

Not that I really care what they think.

 

Oh you think so eh? I was in a head on collision with a Ford FULL SIZE pickup truck. I take offence to that. My mini's frame WAS NOT EVEN TOUCHED. If it werent for the mini i would've had way more serious injuries. I escaped with a small bruise on my knee and minor whiplash.

Pics:




Link if pics dont work:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/in...?id=4286677623

Notice the passenger compartment has absolutely no intrusion at all. Its as if the force of the impact was dissipated (sp) around it.

 

I wonder how superior some of you will feel the day you collide head-on with something like a Ford Excursion.

The "we're better than them" attitude seems a little too popular here lately.

 

At least this gentleman shows an ounce of insight. I'd be very tempted take this statement as a supreme compliment, "Yes, it is...it is a glorified go kart!!! Very glorified!!!"

Maybe he was with his wife and wasn't in a good place to contradict her (like 6 hours ahead in the car w/ her). Did he have a far away, longing look in his eye as he said this while looking at your MINI? Just offering an alternate interpretation to consider.

 

Maybe he was with his wife and wasn't in a good place to contradict her (like 6 hours ahead in the car w/ her). Did he have a far away, longing look in his eye as he said this while looking at your MINI? Just offering an alternate interpretation to consider.[/QUOTE]
JDS- what a "glass half full" interpretation! I love it!

Dave
Sunny San Diego where the weather is so bad my neighbors all seem to need Hummers, Land Rovers, and all sorts of large SUV's.
2003 DS/B MCS

 

I think that the point is that the SUV driver is more likely to be in an accident due to the behemoth's inability to change direction/handle like a passenger car mated to the SUV driver being too insulated/less aware of things and having major visibility issues. Yes the 'we are better then them attitude' can be a bit much, but it seems to go both ways as the owners of huge vehicles have a false sense of invulnerability because the things are just so big and heavy. And, of course, due to the sheer size if they do stray off course and/or have to do any emergency moves they are more likely to cause accidents from that as well.

So a car, esp one as maneuverable as a Mini, is much more likely to avoid that head on collision with the Excursion and be much more fun on a real excursion to boot :smile:

 

While I expect our attitudes towards SUVs are frequently somewhat overstated (and even tongue-in-cheek). I think it's also perfectly acceptable for us, especially on a MINI-enthusiast's site to think we're better than them. Seems to me the physics of mass, interia, etc (okay I'm not a scientist) would indicate that this at least partly is so.

Issigonis himself thought a car's maneuverability was it's best defense, right?

 

"You want to prevent the accident, not survive it" - Phil Wicks

 

Hmmmmm........

 

The comment I hear is "for that price you could have gotten something bigger" or " thats all you get for $26,000"

This country is so focused on quantity instead of quality. I suppose thats the reason why fast food and **** water beer is so popular.

 

A few years ago the Detroit News ran a story on a hot-shot lawyer and she talked about why she got a Hummer H-1: "I'm on the phone a lot and I find myself not paying attention so I want to be safe." This idiot needs to be b-slapped and put in a Geo.

 

I got a "for that?! " face quite a number of times.

 

H1, H2, now the H3 (chevy truck), what will the H4 be? A tuff looking MINI, or Scion?

Or will 'Hummer' just go out of business when gas hits $3 a gal.

 

Actually this beotch needs to be taken along with her cell phone and forced to ride a tricycle in highway rush-hour traffic. While on the phone. In fact, if this person was involved in any accident, the victim should be made aware of this statement as an admission of poor and potentially deadly driving behavior and sue this woman into nonexstence.

This particular statement is most likely the hidden truth of a majority of people's reasonings for buying such behemoths for solo, daily commuting. Prying them out of SUVs and into a small car would not do much if anything to prevent their propensity for accidents, but it at least might lesssen the collateral damage they cause.

 

^^^^^
I agree....and I'll bet the opposite is true, too. One of the things I really love about my MINI...well all MINIs...is the fact that it totally engages me...pulls me unto....the motoring experience. I don't even (can't even) bother w/ beverages. I feel so connected w/ the road and every slight maneuver (and deriving great enjoyment from the same) that I'm sure it dramatically heightens my overall awareness as a driver....thus becoming a far-safer motorist.

 

You're point of view is correct for some poeple, but not all. My family is a different story. My dad is into real estate, and we have a house in Nantucket-- but we will in PA (nantucket is in Massachussettes). If we didn't have a Range Rover, there would be no way possilble to bring the amount of stuff we do from home. Also, as far as big cars and small cars go, is it true that more mass is always safer. But the MINI is such a great car, that it is very safe for it's size (and performance is great, and looks, and economy, and... I could go on forever)!:smile: