12 replies to this topic

[daveeeeee]

Hi,

Recent news of a teenager passing away due to a crash in a mini, raised thoughts I've had before about safety features that could be added to a mini, without necessarily straying too far from standard appearance.

I'd like to share a couple of thoughts and learn of any innovations you might have come up with.

I don't want to start a debate about defensive driving or similar, I'd much prefer this discussion to be purely about the car not the driver. Focusing on improving existing safety features or integrating features found in new technology.

So...
Side impact bars, I imagine the latest classic minis had them? But I havent found any for sale as an aftermarket part. Has anyone designed and fitted them? This exludes door bars on a cage, I'd be more interested in fitting some bars in so the glass can still operate, I remember my mk1 clio had a pair of very skinny bars.

Plastic or lined fuel tanks?

Moving engine mounts or adding a frame to encourage the engine to "submarine" in the event of a crash?

The addition of a crumple zone or reinforcement on the front end? (I'm especially interested in this as I'm going to flip-front my mini).


Thinking hats on,

Dave

[Broomer]

Just buy a modern plastic box on wheels.

job done.

no faffing about with this old rubbish.

[mk3cortina]

i have to agree here, you cant really add all of this modern safety stuff to a classic car whilst keeping it looking standard. it was not designed with crumple zones, so adding them wont work properly. buy a modern car if your that bothered about all of these things.

[Jacko-lah]

Put it in context. I spent my youth on a Z500 at 100 mph, once I'd passed my bike test at 17. A mini HAS to be safer than that ?

[daveeeeee]

I've been driving a mini for 2 years, and ride a cbr600fx - I'm perfectly happy to drive/ride without modern safety features as long as it's maintained properly, but I find this a facinating topic. This has been posted in the technical section for a reason so if you'd like to discuss it from a different aspect please start a new thread.

[danrock101]

as said before, the best saftey feature a car can have is a good driver.

[MiniLuke]

I would have though if the boffins at Rover could have done this sort of thing they would have. Instead the mini had to end production as it was not possible to do this effectively or to comply with the regulations as they got tougher.

I doubt anyone has devised after market safety solutions either through fear of being sued if they don't perform in an accident.

Good luck though.

[daveeeeee]

MiniLuke, don't think Rover had much money behind them for development, but to be fair they didn't need to change the mini it's one of the best selling cars of all time.

Very good point about liability, but I wouldn't sue myself if I made mods to my own car

[Timty]

The later models had side impact bars built into the doors is it possible to fit these to earlier models? and do they make any real difference? also i was talking to a gent who rallies minis with his wife and he welded reinforcment plates on his bulkhead where his subframe mounts go, his wife crashed into a tree at sixty miles an hour and he said that the shell was still straight after! bearing in mind it had a full roll cage as well though. I always wonder if things like this would really make a difference on a road car?

[Jacko-lah]

I've been driving a mini for 2 years, and ride a cbr600fx - I'm perfectly happy to drive/ride without modern safety features as long as it's maintained properly, but I find this a facinating topic. This has been posted in the technical section for a reason so if you'd like to discuss it from a different aspect please start a new thread.

I'm a contract engineer, and recently met 2 contractors (in separate areas of the company) who had worked at Rover. One worked on mini Occupant Safey in the early 90's, and they beefed up all sorts of things. I was asking him about the possiblilty of rear seat belts in a clubby estate, and he just laughed.

I'll ask him for a list of improvements made shall I?

The other worked on the MPI system in the Engine Development Department, and he laughed when I told him I was looking to buy a mini, and keeps laughing everytime I see him and tell him about my latest doomed viewings.

[R1mini]

This is only my opinion, so here goes, I always thought a mini should of had a proper UJ'd collapsing steering column wouldn't have been that differcult for a major manufacturer to do

The MPI door bars aren't much to look at, 1 inch tube at about the height of the door latch, can't see it doing much in an accident though, but you could fit them to any mk3 onwards door maybe without needing to reskin them depends on access for welding from the door frame side

Flush filler cap or at least a valve in the top of the tank to prevent the entire contents of the fuel tank flowing out if you snapped off the filler neck in an accident

Cheers
David

[mini93]

little things like the newer minis had, electric fuel pumps with inertia cut off's in the event of a crash you wont continue to pump fuel into a hazzardous area. You could argue that the mechanicle pump will also do the same, if the engine stalls/stops for any reason it isnt going to pump fuel

[daveeeeee]

r1mini - steering column... cant believe I forgot that one. I'm sure I've seen someone fit a modern (corsa?) collapsing column with electric power steering (on this forum), I don't like power steering but obviously this mod can be done... I'd be interested to know who's done it and with parts from what cars, I'll try find the thread at some point.

Flush filler cap is a good one also, can be done by moving the filler neck to inside the boot. If you weren't to move the filler neck I think replacing the neck with a flexible hose would be far safer as with some movement in it it's less likely to drop fuel I should think. I mentioned before tank liners which are available for ally tanks.

Timpty - I'm not so sure roll cages are best designed for road cars, great in a roll to keep you from getting squashed but in an impact there's no energy absorbtion. If you have a space framed mini on a track it's all good, run offs and tyre walls at most tracks. But if you're harnessed to a really solid car and you stop very suddenly (which I imagine is common in road accidents) then pop go your internal organs? Reinforcing the body in choice places like subframe mounts though could well be really beneficial if it's going to stop the car crushing the occupants, perhaps re-directing forces. I'm glad rally man's wife got away with it!