Guessing you've never been in a Mini, the tach is not very big at all. The speedometer on the the other hand is another story.
It's meant to be "retro" and pay tribute to the classic Mini. I personally don't really like it, but it's a novelty that people instantly associate with a Mini.
Woops, brain-fart there, I meant the speedo. It's comically oversized, and I know it's meant as a "tribute", but like everything else about the car, it's blown out of proportion. It definitely is associated with the Mini, but I have not met an central instrument display that I've liked yet. I understand that buying the nav system moves it to its proper place though, which is an awfully expensive way to fix a silly design foible.
For Europe it might be safe, but Europe isn't the entire world last time I checked. The Mini is sold just about everywhere. But with increasing safety regulations cars are going to be getting bigger and bigger, as well as heavier. The Mini still is one of the smallest cars in America (I can't find one smaller) and one of the lightest.
Woops, forgot. US = world. The triplets were designed to be sold in a variety of markets, although I will admit I don't really know how far that really panned out. Plus, you guys are getting the Smart soon, we've had it for a few years and there hasn't been anything terrible about its safety, even considering the giant SUVs that are so much more rare across the pond. It's entirely possible to design a better-packaged car smaller than the Mini. That rear suspension, while brilliant for spirited driving, is just one aspect.
I honestly do not understand how a Fiat 500 is going to make it on American shores. People already are oblivious while driving and don't pay any attention to small cars (like the Mini). I can't see this being an overly safe move. I have no qualms about the car actually being safe however, seeing as the Mini is fairly safe.
I suppose this really deserves a seperate argument, but drivers on the whole being stupid doesn't mean cars aren't safe. We just need better training at the wheel, something I definitely won't argue with. The average size of cars up here is noticeably smaller than south of the border (Civics and Corollas far outnumber Camries and Accords, for instance), so around here at least, the Mini may be small but it still is large enough for people to pay attention. Same goes with the Fit and Yaris, and especially the ForTwo because it looks so strange.
How did I ignore this? You quoted me saying that I thought the car was pricey compared to similar models. You are just looking for an argument here. I agree the car is way more expensive then just about everyone of it's other competitors.
I believe that you do get what you pay for with the car, it feels more solid and has add-ons that many other small cars wouldn't have. HID lights spring to mind as well as a six speed gear box.
"Just about"? Heh. It feels solid because it's heavy for its size. And having add-ons just increases the price further. It seems our market (North America) gets left behind with small car options though; HID lights and six-speed boxes are, again, pretty common over the pond. Spec-for-spec, as a small car, the new Mini is too expensive to be a really useful, space-efficient car for a small family. For a single person, and bringing sportiness up the desires list, yeah, it's great. But it's not the every-car the old one was.
Not true, go to
www.s10forum.com and you'll see a bunch of unhappy S-Truck owners. Granted they still buy the vehicles, but they will complain about them till no end. It's kind of how I picture an Xbox 360 forum.
I will give you that. But go to a Skyline forum, or a Supra one, or Camaros or Vettes. You'll always find a ton of pro-that car people.
All this said, I really hope that BMW brings over the Efficient Dynamics stuff for the Mini range. Well, that and the diesel. I really wouldn't mind one with Prius-beating economy, not to mention CO2 output.
:tup: One of those would be great.
