Designing mini cars to be safe and fuel efficient certainly is possible
In commenting on a Green Car Congress article about increasing sales in Japan of mini cars* with a corresponding drop in sales of other cars, NBK-Boston observed that an American company (GM) makes a nice minicar, the Daewoo Matiz but can’t sell it in this country.
On the other hand, this blog previously relayed, a set of subcompact automobiles currently available or soon to be available in the United States.
Note: Although not everyone uses the same terminology, mini car refers to a small two seater, whereas a super mini is a car with four or more seats.
As GCC previously reported, the Matiz / Spark mini-car is popular in China. Daewoo, a GM subsidiary, sells the Matiz under Chevy, Pontiac and other nameplates in various international markets. This mini car has a 92.1″ wheelbase, 137″ total length, and weighs around 1800 lbs.
The commenter opined, “It gets great mileage (typically estimated at 45 mpg, averaging city and highway), but is both light and tiny, making it a safety risk.” As two UK automotive reporters recently observed:
“Traveling at the same speed as lorries, we lost count of the number trying to bully us out of their way. And when you drive something” (that little and looking in the rear view mirror you see) “your entire rear window full of a Dutch, heavy goods vehicle, you suddenly understand the meaning of intimidation.”
On the other hand, if car makers want to sell mini cars in markets, where passenger safety is more highly regulated, then they will design their fuel-efficient offerings in this highly competitive global market with greater crash-worthiness.
