Posted on Monday 24 September 2007
One of the more interesting features of the new Clubman is its rear-opening third door but, according to Mini’s engineering Chief Ulrich Kranz, it wasn’t part of the car’s original design. The door is located only on the non-driver’s side and makes getting in and out of the rear seats much easier than it would if the Clubman was made a two door.
Part of the reason for adding it was easier access but this isn’t only reason the unique design feature was installed, reports Automotive News. Engineers wanted a low-cost solution that would keep kerb-weight down and they also required the fuel filler neck on the driver’s side to remain unchanged. The solution was to install only one door, which also had the benefit of avoiding new crash tests.
Another strange design trait is the twin-opening rear hatch similar to those seen on commercial vans, which give the new car a total of five doors all up. Click here to watch a video of the rear opening third door in action or click here to read our previous story on the car.
Broken link for “video of the rear opening third door in action”.
Link has been fixed.
It is quite clear this door was never part of the plan as it is totally unsuitable for use in countries that drive on the left - like the UK, Australia and Japan. In a right hand drive car the door thus opens into the flow of traffic. To make matters worse the seatbelt mechanism for this “suicide” door is attached to the door greatly increasing the chances of someone tripping over it when exiting. A nice law suit waiting to happen I think.