On the Road

Drove the new Mini Convertible a couple of weeks ago. Great car, and a huge improvement over the old model which it looks so much like. But from behind the wheel I could never quite shake the feeling that I was being discriminated against.

I realise the majority of cars sold worldwide are left-hand drive, but surely carmakers could spare a thought for us poor right-hand drivers?

In the Mini, there’s an ‘Always Open Timer’ – a small dial next to the tachometer which shows how long the car’s been driven with the top down. As you can see in a left-hand drive car, its position makes perfect sense:

But in a right-hand drive Mini, it blocks more than half of an air-con vent:

Now that’s not cool. Literally. It wouldn’t have been that difficult to shift it to the right side, would it?

But this is a small transgression compared to what Mini did with the Clubman and its asymmetric door layout. There is only one rear side door, and in a left-hand drive country it opens kerbside so rear passengers can step out safely:

But Mini didn’t switch the door over for right-hand drive cars. So when you stop your Clubman by the side of the road here, the poor guys behind get out right into the path of oncoming traffic.

Many European and American carmakers are guilty of similar sins. But in Mini’s case it’s sad because while the brand is owned by the BMW Group, it has such a rich British (and thus right-hand drive) heritage.