So I was driving to work yesterday. A typical 50 mile drive to work on 95 going about 75mph when all of a sudden I see a bird to my left flying low and heading for my car. It seemed like everything slowed down and i am just watching this bird thinking, oh no please don't hit my car but sure enough BAM!!!! Direct hit. You think for a moment is the bird ok? Is my car ok? Feathers are flying but I manage to see the bird fly away to the right. I got off at the rest area to check for damage. To my suprise everything is ok. Excellent, maybe today will be a good day.

So I get off work about 9pm and I start heading home. Very dark night and the halogens are not very good so I usually worry I may hit a small animal but I never have but after hitting that bird I am now on high alert. All is good and I get off at my exit. Almost to the light when a possum is just sitting there and sure enough no time to react (halogens) and then, CRUNCH!!!! I feel the car lift up slightly and then again as the back wheel had its turn over the poor fella and I'm thinking no way did that just happen but it did. I pull into the gas station to check for damage and waiting for the tire pressure light to come on. However once again no damage. WOW.

A very lucky day for my mini but a sad day for the wildlife.

 

Those poor animals just wanted a ride in your Mini!

 

Cool anecdote and thanks for sharing. Guess this makes your MINI an animal magnet...

 

Recipes?


Glad the MINI was OK.

 

 

Good one NSX

 

They are building a monsterous stadium for the Dallas Cowboys down the street from me (along with road upgrades) and so we have more than our fair share of rock-hauling trucks going to and fro. Any time I encounter one of these blasted haulers and come off unscathed, I consider myself lucky. So far so good.....although I do avoid them like the plague!!!

 

That was a perfect thought NSX. But really can you blame the animals, they just saw a hot car and they were so entranced by your car they couldnt help but stand there and enjoy the most beautiful and horrible moment of their lives.

But at least they died happy

 

And all this time I thought Minis were babe magnets.

 

OR, your car is so shiny the bird thought it was another bird. I had problems with swallows trying to race my car in Europe -- I was driving my lovely (oh how i miss it!) twisty route up the mountain to work, and these swallows kept racing and diving in front of the car. One or two didn't make it, but that certainly didn't stop them from trying. Repeatedly.

My first MINI (an '04 MCS) was nick-named "Deerslayer" by my soldiers - I accidently hit a deer (in Germany) and didn't realize it until green gook splashed on the windshield. I felt so bad. But the only damage was a punched-in license plate.

 

birds and possums ain't noth'n, here in NJ we dodge'n deer and bears left and right. I can assure you, if you hit one of those there WILL be damage.

 

Yes the deer says, "Oh wow look at that bright light....let me go take a closer look"

if a deer hits my car it had better be dead. I hate when they just run away - I'll drive forward/reverse/forward/reverse as much as needed to kill the damn thing if it's lying there after hitting my car.

 

It's squirrels 'round these parts....rather, it's the squirrels that dodge the cars. Love (actually hate) that little back 'n forth dance they do when they're not sure what to do...

About a couple of months ago a sparrow swooped over my Mini (going about 60mph) and unfortunately miscalculated. Left a small blood smear on my windshield, poor lil' daredevil.

 

It might just be my luck, but it seems that birds intentionally aim for my MINI. I've had so many close calls over the past 6 years it's pretty much a joke now.

Sorry to hear about your luck!

Regarding squirrels, if you honk your horn they will make up their mind and pick a direction and end up getting out of the path of your car. It's just something I've noticed over the years.

 

Hmmmph... y'all are lucky! There are a couple of hawks nesting on a cell phone tower not 100 yards from my house and for a while there they apparently thought that my Mini was a public commode! Ask Uber Blue - Erika, she has seen them!

 

True...but did ya notice they NEVER bother Schultze? LOL

 

I seem to hit much more wildlife in the MINI than in my previous car. I have hit one bird in my old Protege, but that is because it was sitting in the grass and decided to fly away into my headlights (noontime, as well)!

In the MINI, I have hit several turtles that seem to like sitting in the middle of the road around bends. Also, in the middle of a freeway in San Antonio, I saw a large squirrel dart across the road and then turn around on the other side. I remember thinking, "How queer... a squirrel in the middle of this big city." He was watching the two cars in front me of me pass, and right when I came up to it, he jumped in front of my tire as if he was thinking of suicide.

I feel bad. I must have killed six turtles, two possums, the neighbour's cat (they still don't know about it... they neglected her), two squirrels, and billions of those damned lovebugs. I only have 3600 miles on this Cooper S.

How come I hit only one creature in the 40,000 miles of my first car, but half the damn forest and beach in this one? Jeez.

 

They are attracted to the beeeaautttyy and shininess of the MINI. You must keep your car nice and shiny.

 

I ran over a rabbit once and it was the sickest feeling/sound/crunch worse than any horror movie ive seen. yea, no thanks to that.

 

i drove over a bird just a few weeks ago. I was having a spirited ride down a nice backroad, i see a bird take off to fly across the road. It swooped down miss judged where I was, front tires squashed him into the road, all i saw in the rear view mirror were feathers.

 

There used to be a sailboat here in San Diego that attracted whales. Everytime it would go out when the whales were running it would get rammed. The boat is elsewhere now, and they never found the cause. The guesses ranged from engine noise, to something wierd in the electrical system. I also just heard of a baby whale that started following a boat after its mom was killed in a ship collision.

 

Oh, that would be a little scary - what if the baby whale was out for vengeance!? (Yeah, I've been watching too many Pixar / Disney movies...)

You know, the high-pitch electric noises or engine noises is a very good theory on why animals are attracted to it.... Hm.

 

Wow. Well, at least you dont have any damage! Thats always a relief.