Clarification on my previous posts:

I forgot to mention that I do not consider any of my traffic (near miss collisions, rudeness, etc.) encounters as the result of driving a Mini. In fact, I've had no more "no respect" instances while driving a Mini during the past four years than any other car.

I do see (on a regular basis) rude SUV & Pickup truck drivers who bully their way through traffic, but they are not picking on Minis, per se...

Note-- I did not say that all SUV and Pickup drivers are bullies! However, I have noticed that some of the aggressive Pickup truck drivers do have racing numbers in their rear windows. Since I don't follow Nascar, I can't be sure if the numbers represent some of the star drivers, but I'm guessing there might be a connection. I could be totally wrong, though. My these numbers may actually be jersey numbers of someone's favorite NFL linebacker.

 

(oh no, Chows has an SUV...)

 

All the times I've taken the MSF course on military installations, I've had to provide my own bike. I think it's because although the installations are willing to provide space for the course, as well as instructors, they're not interested in owning/maintaining/insuring bikes. Not too shabby though, considering the courses are usually free of cost through the military.

Around here (coastal Virginia), if you take the course through the local community college, the bikes and safety gear are provided for you.

 

Yep, military posts have their own rules. In the sixties and early seventies motorcycles were not allowed on my post in Arlington VA., and it wasn't the National Cemetary either. If you rode a bike you had to leave it at the front gate.

 

Live in Northwest Houston...home of the Expedition/Yukon/Full size pickup. Feel there are two reactions of drivers of these vehicles...and corresponding attitudes while driving my Mini. Half think my Mini is cute..they give me lots of room..they realize they're driving a large vehicle and account for it. Then the other half...they see the Mini as something that threatens fragile justifications of driving a 3 ton bus, and it pisses them off...so they cut you off..they get three inches from your back window at night.

Started reading this thread...and two of the latter 50% posted on this board..one bragged about putting his Ford label in back window to get people to pull over...the other how his/her Denali had people get out of the way...sad humans sad sad.

 

I am not getting in the middle of this but have to laugh since this was funny

 

If you thought that response was in anger, you totally missed the humor in it, friend.

I have to give it back to Mr Chows because he dishes it out so much.

 

Wasn't bragging... just making an observation about how other people respond to vehicular mass.... Oh, and I no longer own the Denali.... It got replaced with a Volvo XC90. But your post is a great example of how people can form a mistaken impression of what you are saying.... Which is why we all need to be careful that what we post is what we really mean to say....

 

Everytime I see this thread title UGH it pops into my head & I can't stop it...

R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me. R-E-S-P-E-C-T, take care, TCB.
sockittome sockittome sockittome sockittome
WOOT go Aretha, come on everybody...

 

IMO I think it's just the way that people drive, it has nothing to do with the size of the car. I've seen people with small car drive like thay don't have another day.

 

I have noticed this phenom too. Im just out of a Jeep Cherokee. I get cut off daily in my MINI!! This never happened before in my SUV. As for the tailgating, at night I have flipped on my rear fog and freaked a few people out. They tend to back off quickly :-)
2 weeks ago, this crazy woman pulled out right in front of me across 4 lanes of traffic. I had to jump on my brakes or I would have slammed right into her. Those 4 wheel ABS disc's stopped me right in my tracks :-)))) My coffee spilled :-(

 

First off, since when do you guys let ANYONE pass you that you didn't WANT passing you??

The other day, some "small-member-owner" driving a Hummer H3 tries to race me off of a light, so he can get out of the right hand lane, which was blocked about 100 yds. ahead by a delivery truck.

Of course, it was to no avail, as I, without so much effort, was able to "scoot" ahead of him with ease.

This pissed him off obviously, for he was trying for the next mile and a half to pass me up in two lane traffic, which was also made impossible for him by both my nimbleness, and his girth/breadth/width, poor handling and pickup.

Funny part: I pull down my street, which happens to be a dead end, and I see him follow. I was thinking "confrontation?? ugh" - but alas, as I pull into my garage, he passes my house, only to turn around at the end of the street, and park right across the street in front of the neighbors house.

After I get out of my MINI, I start towards my garage door, I wanted to know if he meant any harm. As it were, he was a friend of the neighbor across the street, and was just parking there to see my neighbor.

I am pretending to grab something from the boot of my car, keeping an eye on him from the corner of my eye, and I see him "sneakily" give me the finger (out of one of those gun-slit window-portholes).

I then, stand up straight and stare RIGHT AT HIM, and at this time, he has to get out of his "small-member-mobile" to greet my neighbor, at which time, he sees me staring, cowers, and says "NICE CAR!!!"

What a fool. So much for MACHO HUMMER DRIVERS!! LMAO!!

B

 

I had a Hummer H3 as a rental three times. In every case, I immediately got the urge to drive over something. Anything.

Have to admit, though, they're fun. Ponderous, but fun. Kind of a caricature.

The ironic part is that they have as much personality as the Mini. They are as much a compromise as the Mini. It's a different personality, but it's personality and a reasonable degree of originality. They say "I'm willing to compromise the usefulness of what I drive for a bit of style" - just like the Mini. (egads, now we'll get into "it's not a compromise, the Mini is practical" arguments, in which case why didn't you buy another hatchback for $5-10k less dough? "Style", right? Driving style, handling style, looks?)

And they have good radios. And poor mileage. BUT They can drive over things, and that is fun.

Now what was this thread about?

 

Wasn't about oversized bricks with wheels!

 

Let's see, people that drive suv's and pu's drive like they own the road because of their size and as such are jerks to little cars. People that own little cars and dart all over the road have an envy problem and as such are jerks to big cars. Humm, as I own and drive one of each, MINI & Suburban, I wonder if that makes me absolutely perfect or one big jerk. :impatient

 

Actually, it means you're possibly bipolar, have multiple personality disorder, or schizophrenic.

 

How much of this issue is due to poor or rude driving on the part of the MINI driver? Racing someone to cut them off, preventing them from getting out of a "dying" lane, hitting brakes to make people back-off, etc., seem guaranteed to create a problem!

Drive the car as if it were smaller than the rest (it is!), and might not been seen. Don't drive as if each mistake on the part of the other driver is cause for a vendetta. What's the point of road rage?

Be careful out there...

 

Ok ,I need my psycho analyzed here on NAM . I have 2 minis . 1 MINI MCSc and 1 mini-van Honda Odyssey ... what does that makes me? a schizophrenic mom-wannabe?

 

Before we can psycho-analyze you, we must know how many children live in your home. Anyone who drives a minivan with less than 3 kids is... well... I'll reserve that until you reply.

 

The other day, some "small-member-owner" driving a Hummer H3 tries to race me off of a light, so he can get out of the right hand lane, which was blocked about 100 yds. ahead by a delivery truck.


Funny part: I pull down my street, which happens to be a dead end, and I see him follow. I was thinking "confrontation?? ugh" - but alas, as I pull into my garage, he passes my house, only to turn around at the end of the street, and park right across the street in front of the neighbors house.

After I get out of my MINI, I start towards my garage door, I wanted to know if he meant any harm. As it were, he was a friend of the neighbor across the street, and was just parking there to see my neighbor.

I am pretending to grab something from the boot of my car, keeping an eye on him from the corner of my eye, and I see him "sneakily" give me the finger (out of one of those gun-slit window-portholes).

I then, stand up straight and stare RIGHT AT HIM, and at this time, he has to get out of his "small-member-mobile" to greet my neighbor, at which time, he sees me staring, cowers, and says "NICE CAR!!!"

What a fool. So much for MACHO HUMMER DRIVERS!! LMAO!!

B[/QUOTE]

 

Man You're crazy, that dude knows where you live ,if one day things happens you'll know where it came from..the H3 owner... If I get into a thing like that no way I'm putting my ID where my car is going to parked. One day you park your MINI outside and he comes in a different car and keys it... You won but you lost.... be careful ,just flash a smile from now on...

 

What on this planet could a small car owner possibly envy about PU's and SUK's?

If I tend to dart about, it's so I can safely see around those rolling walls on the highway.

 

No kids ,single divorced , I bought it to care for my parents ,dad past away mom lives with my brother now. I still enjoy using it to move things around ,but mostly it's a rental car for my friends and family...

 

Well then... that's useful information to complete our psycho analysis !

I'd say you are extremely caring and generous. The needs of others are above your own needs.

You are also business minded (if you're charging friends to use it).

 

All these threads on this subject ever do is convince me that it is the MINI people that have issues with smallcaritous....that it is the MINI people who think they have to prove themselves
Its really sad, and is very much like other groups of people who are so obsessed about being diffrent that they think everyone hates them, or everyone is oppressing them, or nobody wants them in thier neighborhood when 95% of people could care less and wouldn't even look at you if you weren't running around screaming about how you are diffrent