I can't believe it! I've been driving the same route for eight years I've seen deer but never even had a close call. The last time I had to repair a car was over twenty years ago. Our Clubman came in at then end of March. Here it is the middle of June and two repairs already. No chance to even hit the brakes this time. I can't tell you how disappointing this is.

Neither deer died from the hit. Visually there isn't much damage but a new hood and a bunch of painting to feather in the hard to match pure silver. I still don't hate deer but I sure am am a jumpy driver these days.

The Deer Man
Arthur

 

I know what you mean I live next to a forrest and seen them at noon...sometimes....they scare me to death :(

 

Wow sorry to hear that. I drove the Mini to work ( yes the wife let me this one time) and on the way home I saw 5 Deer all right on the edge of the road and one was about to cross. Needless to say it made for a white knuckle drive back. I feel better in my Tundra on nights like that, not to mention damage factor.

 

so sorry....i;ve never seen a deer in my area

 

I know people laugh at me all the time but I purchase a $6 set of deer whistles for every car I or my husband have ever owned. Deers stop and hear the noise and look, at least it give enough time for the driver to react. the only time my husband hit a deer was when he bought his brand new car and forgot to install them, guess what, hit one in 2 months of purchase! Since then i swear by them...

sorry to hear about your MINI!! hope it is feeling better real soon!

 

Sorry mate that is really bad luck.

It's pretty scary when you see so many dead deer on the side of the highway. I was driving to work along I84 in Danbury (i.e a busy road at 8:30am through a fairly big town) and the guy in front of me hit a deer. Two ran across 6 lanes of the highway - he just missed the first and hit the second head on - he tried to swerve and went staight off the road and down a slope. Scary stuff. Luckily he was unharmed, his car was not so lucky.

 

I think I'm going to do the same. How big is a deer whistle?

 

I had a deer whistle once.
It was about two inches max, the size of a pinkie finger.

 

they are not very big and pretty much can hide them under the bumper on most cars. When I finally receive my MINI, i will be putting them on, don't know where yet.
you can get them at any auto part store or walmart auto section. For $6 it is worth the money.

 

For the life of me...I still coudn't make out the exact tune.

 

Sorry to hear that you've had multiple contacts recently. I narrowly avoided a deer at 10:00 a.m. a week or so ago, aren't these supposed to be nocturnal animals??!! Too many of those damned 250 Lb. rabbits in my area too.

 

Sorry to hear of your misfortune Arthur. You could have some fun with it though. Get some deer silhouettes stickers and put them on the panel behind the front wheels! That'd be a great conversation starter.

 

UGH that seriously sucks. Glad you are OK, though!

 

make sure you put the whistles on the right way. If you get them backwards they attract the deer.

 

Do not waste your money on the deer whistles, folks.

The insurance industry has spent TONS of money on research (can you imagine how much they spend each and every year on deer claims??), and there is absolutely not a shred of evidence supporting deer whistles being effective.

Now, they just may stop a deer along the side of the road. OR... they may stop the deer dead in his tracks ON the road. Purely a matter of luck or bad luck, the same as if you did not have a whistle.

If anything, it just may lull you into a false sense of security and maybe you're not looking out for the deer as you normally would if you did not have the whistle. Your alertness and slowing down a bit when you are in an area inhabited by deer, especially at dusk and dawn, are still your best defenses.

 

Well, Arthuralda, I think you need to move. You obviously can't trust your MINI in that area....the deer like it too much.

Funny enough, I had the same problem, but with BIRDS. I had a really AWESOME twisty drive to work when I lived in Germany (think of those super twisty Mercedes commercials back in the 80s with hairpin turns!), and the freakin' birds would RACE the MINI, and try swooping in front of me just to show they were quicker. Some WEREN'T!!!

While there in Europe, I hit a deer at night with my '04 MCS. I am not prone to queaziness, but that was a REALLY gross accident. Poor thing died....but fortunately, the deer in that area of Germany were smallish. I didn't know I'd hit one square until the yuckiness hit the windshield! The only problem to the car was a punched-in license plate and I had to pop the grill mesh back into it's slots. Ever after I was known as The Bambi Killer, and my poor MCS had it's name: Deerslayer. I sold the car () to one of the NCOs in the area, and the name went with it.

 

that was a great answer!!

 

I have driven my Mini across the country a few times, and have lived in VA at one time where the deer are plentiful. I have seen hundreds of deer and have passed them on the side of the road in groups during EARLY morning drives.
I think they hear the whining of the "S", but my solution was to beep the horn when I saw there eye reflections. I-64 in VA is notorious for deer strikes.

 

About 50% of my 30 mile morning drive is on winding back roads. They can just jump right out in front of you. They don't see you and you dont see them. It's a little unnerving. I have looked into the whistles. The scientific look at them says they won't work. I've worked with some "Scientists", so they may actually work.

 

I live in CA, so I am not familiar with deer whistles. How do you know when you're supposed to blow them?

 

Look at the bright side. You didn't hit a moose!

 

After they give you a $20.

 

they mount to your car on, say, the grille and they whistle when you drive. it's like a dog whistle ,supposedly, so you don't hear it but the deer can.

 

Do they make those for slow drivers in the fast lane?

 

they don't make any noise for the human ear, but the deer (that have come close to my car) stop and look to see where the noise is coming from, giving me enough time to stop or get out of the way. It does not work for under 25 miles per hour.

For the skeptics, who cares it is only $6.00, might save you thousands worth of repairs! I have used them for about 15 years on every car I have owned and ... (I don't even want to say it)