Crash Testing: MINI Cooper vs Ford F150

Sections: Uncategorized May 28th, 2004 9 Comments

The web can be a very is a powerful tool to get a point across – especially on a grass roots level. Back in December of 2002 I posted something on my personal weblog comparing the complete failure of the F150 in a recent crash test and how it compared to the just released ranking of the new MINI. I had always heard the (at the time current) F150 had horrible crash test ratings but never really took a look at the pictures. When I did I was so taken a back that I figured I had to let others know about this. Of course this was about the same time the IISH released crash testing data on the MINI. Well the lightbulb went on – what better way to demonstrate the failure of the Ford F150 than to compare it to the success of the MINI!

Over the course of a year and a half that single post has garnered more attention than all the rest of my personal blog combined. And lately the hit level has gone through the roof due to hundreds of weblogs linking to it. So I figured it was finally time to post about it on MotoringFile.

So here it is: Crash Testing: MINI Cooper vs Ford F150. BTW the comments are really fascinating. Enjoy.

Written By: MF Staff

Rodney

Strickly to play devils advocate… The new 2004 F150 is actually very safe. We keep getting larger and larger vehicles on the road every day. Despite high gas prices. The more large cars there are the more unsafe we are in a MINI. And cars and trucks just seem to get bigger and thirstier. I drive a MINI because I feel I can avoid accidents with it. I may be safer in a bigger car but I don't feel they have the active safety I am looking for.
http://revorg.org/mini.html Scott

There was an interestin story on CBSNews comparing the F150 and the Ford-owned Volvo. The story showed a side-by-side video of both rolling, and the results. CBS then asked a Ford safety engineer which he would prefer to have his family in. The engineer paused, and said, “the Volvo”.

I have no doubt that the Mini compares similarly to the Volvo in a rollover. When CBS asks me which I would prefer to be in, I'll reply, “the Mini”.
Monkey_Punch

Great article… I just wasted more then an hour reading it at work. I want my girlfriends brother to read the it, but I think it would hurt his feelings. He loves his F150 so much, he just installed some 22 inch bling blingers. Should I? or should i not?

MP
http://users.adelphia.net/~rocketboy/index.html Rocketboy

Yep, you've been picked as the Cruel Site of the Day, http://www.cruel.com, for 5-26. No doubt that that's a major source of hits, as being picked on Cruel is almost as traffic intensive as being SlashDotted…
2VIZLAS

The comments are fascinating from a sociological perspective. Like other divisive topics so many people approach such a discussion from an extreme viewpoint and end up appearing quite ridiculous when logic and their viewpoints go off in different directions. It is quite obvious which car has been engineered more safely.
mitch

i think that the mini is a great car and that size isnt a factor on the roads today, that was a great artical.
minime

I think there is a bit of darwinism at work here. The people who drive trucks and suvs for safety reasons are obviously quite stupid. Although the new ones are somewhat better, trucks and suvs are much less safe than most cars.

The vehicles with the lowest driver fatality rates are full-sized sedans, with the E-Class Mercedes being the safest. The vehicle with the highest fatality rate is the Chevy Blazer. The Ford Explorer also makes the deadliest vehicle list.

There are exceptions. Japanese and German suvs are often quite safe. In fact, there is a close relationship between safety and country of origin. Of the 14 deadliest vehicles, 9 of them are American-made. Of the 14 safest, only 3 are American-made…all of them luxury sedans.

These statistics were collected by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Jimbo

yeah! I drive an f150 and it’s not for safty reason. Mainly it’s just a 4×4 and like the look of the truck. We all got to go sometime right. But if I had a family I wouldn’t take them in my truck…
Trouble

Why is it so hard for a car company to make something affordable and has decent towing that doesn’t turn into a sardeen can when impacted? Come on people, make it and we will buy!

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