Clubman door 'fiasco'

[Tonyt3]

So is the single door on the 'wrong' side....? Well, for the UK market, it is. however, long term, for Mini, the world market is more important.

Technically however, the rear door itself is also poorly designed if you're thinking about child access/saftey for any market. The door isnt actually a suicide door, as suicide doors can be opened independantly. The Clubmans 'suicide' door can only be opened when the front door is also opened. Otherwise, rear passengers are stuck there. So, even in LHD countries, the front passenger has to exit the vehicle for the rear door to be opened. If there is in fact no front passenger (as would normally be the case for a 'school run Mom'), then the driver has to park the car, exit the vehicle, walk around the car, and open both front and 'suicide' door. Thats not a great solution either.

So the arguement is not 'is the door on the wrong side', but actually, does the door, on either side, actually make any sense? No, it doesnt, its a compromise whatever side of the road you traval on. Both designs are fatally flawed IMHO. The car would have looked much better with a symetric design. Whether 4 doors, or in fact just sticking with 2 doors, but perhaps lenghtening them slightly, or coming up with a radical door design (such as the early traveller concepts had) or better access via revised seat tilt design.

Mini spent a huge amount of money coming up with a radical design for the rear 'barn yard' door design (which to me looks fussy and poorly concieved), when quite frankly they should have probably kept the perfectly servicable rear hatch, and spent the time and money re-engineering the extended platorm to create 2 rear doors.

When you can see failures in the design from both perspectives of LHD and RHD, you have to ask, what were the designers thinking????

[Paul]

How is three doors in any way less safe or less sensible than two?

[Mini1380]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tonyt3 (original)

its a compromise whatever side of the road you traval on.

That is the whole point. Building a car is a compromise. There is no perfect car. You have to balance looks, function, practicality, price, etc., etc., etc.

I am preserving my judgement of the clubman to when I can see it in person. IMHO, they have done well, but I reserve the right to change that opinion when I actually get a chance to sit in the real thing.

[Tigger, Eeyore & Roo]

I can't see how a suicide rear door is any cheaper to build than the utterly brilliant canterlever doors on the concept car That was neat looking, practical, virtually unique and extremely clever, whereas the suicide door is only one of those things

I can't see that the barn rear doors are that expensive a solution as virtually every van manufacturer uses almost exactly the same idea, except they make them fold back though a much more practical 180 degree arch

One thing will be interesting to see if they've sorted; in a van the join between the barn doors is the greatest source of squeaks and rattles in the entire van. With what it effectively two sets of barn doors (one right next to the driver's right ear) they will definitely have to have put a lot of effort into sorting that one out...

[Japper]

I think Tony makes some valid points, especially the school run in LH drive markets.

But it's not the first car to have to open the front first to get access to open the rear..................RX8.

How do RX8 owners cope on the school run. There's plenty about.

[McMuffin]

Quote: Originally Posted by Japper (original)

I think Tony makes some valid points, especially the school run in LH drive markets.

But it's not the first car to have to open the front first to get access to open the rear..................RX8.

How do RX8 owners cope on the school run. There's plenty about.

No comment on the asymmetric design.

But as I just came from an RX-8 I would say the access is similar to a 2 door set-up, if you want the kids to get out pavement side you still need to open the front passenger door.
The rear "suicide" doors just give a wider opening.
The worst place to use them was when you were parked between vehicles as you would box yourself in with the doors open and had to juggle around to shut them again.

[DerekH]

Tony after looking at the car and climbing into it i don't think it maters the side the door is on as does not seem to make it much easer to get in or out, as for rear leg room and boot space i don't think you will notice a vast amount of change but hey if you want to be different and a new kind of cool go for it, i would say all relevant points. The car is not for me but Mini marketing is very good as far as i see they will sell in the shed load if you ask me

[Paul]

Quote: Originally Posted by Paul Mullett (original)

How is three doors in any way less safe or less sensible than two?

Anyone?

[Tonyt3]

Quote: Originally Posted by Paul Mullett (original)

Anyone?

Not 100% sure what your getting at, however, can I counter it with another question - in which way is this 3 door design actually more safe or more sensible than 2?

I think the original idea, like the Rx8, was probably different, but I'd like to know if there was an 'oh bl**dy heck" moment when they realised that they could only supply one rear door, instead of 2? From what I've read about it from BMW, they seem to justify it as 'better having it than not having it', and that it isnt really an issue. And yes, for people that actually purchase the clubman, they will have already considered it a non issue.

Did any of the concepts for this car have a rear door? I cant remember.

I think there would even be a pretty big market for this car without a rear door, perhaps at a small discount?

There are a lot of things to like about this car, and it'll be a success. Just cant help thinking that whichever way you look at the doors, they dont do it any favours.

[Paul]

Well, I can't really see what the arguments "against" it really are. In fact I cant really see the debate at all.

I can't see how anyone could say the Clubman is LESS convenient than the regular MINI. So MINI have done what they set out to do, there's more room for rear passengers, bigger boot, and a rear door that adds functionality if you want to use it too.

The barn doors are probably more contentious in that they're purely a "retro touch" and styling based, and have a downside in blocking the rear view quite badly. But the Club Door does exactly what it says on the tin.

[swamos]

Can I just say, that IMHO if you're child is still sitting in the back seat (with no one in the front passenger) they are probably not old enough to be hopping out of a car on their own. By the time they are they'll probably be sitting in the front seat

I'm still undecided. I've got a feeling it's just going to be too much hassle, and too expensive to be bothered with

[Step_7]

I agree - I've just recently bought a 5-door car and my 2 boys both still sit in the back - first thing I did?? That's right I engaged the childlocks on the rear doors to STOP them getting out on their own! This is also to stop them banging the doors into other cars when parked in car parks which is where I park 99% of the time - not by the side of the road.

I've been considering the Clubman for the last few months but I still haven't ordered one - however, the suicide door is not something that I can see being a problem. In fact the way I normally use the car it will be easier to get the children in and out through the larger 2-door opening. If I'm dropping them off to school at the moment I let them both out through the drivers side which in the clubman will be bigger than the hatch!

[Rakey]

Quote: Originally Posted by Paul Mullett (original)

How is three doors in any way less safe or less sensible than two?

Probably a better question is what is this thread about other than to try and pick holes in a MINI design, when its been done better in so many other threads and articles, this one surely is asking why do a third door, when really the ulitmate question is why restrict it to just one side of the vehicle and the side which is not best for the country its built in?

But hey, I suppose some like to try and add a new twist to things to try and get the snake pit buzzing

[Stiggy]

My classic 3-door MINI is arriving in a few weeks, but I did seriously consider the Clubman on the basis it had a larger boot and was a bit ‘different’. At the time, I thought that UK models would have the door on the left.

Actually, for someone with no kids and only occasional passengers, the door is more sensible on the drivers’ side. I tend to use the back seats for occasional storage of bags/cases/shopping rather than the boot. The last time I owned a 3-door (Fiat – don’t ask!) I found it quite inconvenient and missed the easy access of a 5-door.

If there was a conventional 5-door MINI I would have been much more likely to order one. I know that MINI want to produce something that is unique in the marketplace and is a bit ‘quirky’, but they are missing out on a lot of sales. Surely BMW could see the need for something that sits between the MINI and a 1-series?

Now I’ve seen pictures of the finished Clubman, I have to say I don’t think the styling quite works. The roof looks too high, and this is made worse on models with the silver roof!

I like to think I will be driving my Cooper D with no regrets...

[Japper]

Quote: Originally Posted by McMuffin (original)

The worst place to use them was when you were parked between vehicles as you would box yourself in with the doors open and had to juggle around to shut them again.

Lol..................this is funny picturing this in my head, but i'm sure it was a right royal pain in the butt living with it.