Hello everyone,

My mother wants a Mini as an upgrade from her 95 525i. I think this is an awesome idea but my father feels that the Mini will be too dangerous for my mother to drive daily, and that she is a bad enough driver as is and she doesn't need a car that other people won't be able to see as well.

Well pretty much I need to prove that a 2003-06 Mini Cooper S 6speed is as safe, if not safer, than a 1995 e34 525i. I tried finding some safety ratings online but couldn't find quite what I was looking for. I have a feeling that even though the mini is smaller and lighter than the e34, its newer features and design may make it considerably safer.

If anyone could give a link to some safey ratings it would be great. Thanks.

the e34 have side head airbags?

Mini's have got real good crash ratings, the bigger bmw's do better though

google bmw mini crash test, most are sites you can compare different car results

http://www.ltsa.govt.nz/vehicles/ancap/bmw/mini-lhd-2002.html

I love this one

http://www.bridger.us/2002/12/16/CrashTestingMINICooperVsFordF150

but please note, this is not the real 2004 F150, it's a heratage which is the old ~96-2003 style they still make them

the real 2004 F150 scored the best pick frontal impact for 2004, the first truck ever, they are MUCH safer than the truck they tested against the mini

you can watch vids of them here

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ncap/cars/4267.html

that's the new f150, as you can see in the vid it does a LOT better than the old body style, still not as good as you would expect from a big vehicle, but there's a lot of weight that must be absorbed

Thanks, I showed the f150 versus mini photo to my father to show him that a smaller car can be just as safe as a larger one.

I think this weekend I will be test driving a mini with my mum.

Thanks, I showed the f150 versus mini photo to my father to show him that a smaller car can be just as safe as a larger one.

I think this weekend I will be test driving a mini with my mum.

i see your from the phila area...check out mini of the main line in bala...good folks & service

I will be heading over there Sat, thanks for the suggestion.

It seems that he is not as worried about the impact itself, but rather the increased likelihood of an impact because of the smaller car is less visible. Might I suggest a bright colour?

Yes your right that was half of the equation, with its diminshed saftey(because of size) being the other half. I think a bright color is out, I don't think I could dig the bright yellow mini look.

british green, or red with racing stripes ftw

Yea british racing green was my first choice, but I was also looking at the dark blue recently. I think it would be funny to outfit the car with the carbon fiber mirrors and hood accent and see what people think when they relize my moms is driving it. :eek:

A white roof will help make the MINI more visible to drivers of big SUVs and trucks.

You say your mom "is a bad enough driver as is." Put her in a good car and teach her to be safe. That includes staying out of other drivers' blind spots.