Comments by "John Burns" (@johnburns4017) on "What is the Most Influential Car of All Time?" video.

@richardarcher3435 the Mini's rear end was superb.
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In the title is says Influential. Apart from the Renault 4CV, what did the Beetle influence? The Beetle sold in the millions because it was well made and reliable - nothing else. The Mini, perfecting FWD, influenced a plethora of front wheel drive cars after its 1959 introduction.
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@johnd8892 The Mini had more of its volume given over to people and storage. Not been beaten to this day. What made the Mini influential in engineering terms was the perfection of FWD. It used CV joints in the wheel hubs making a compact arrangement. Its road holding was unsurpassed, winning rallys when being just about in basic form. It was amazing for such a cheap volume car. Nothing touched it on many levels.
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@marcelromijn2227 The Mini had no compromises. You need to understand what the Mini brought. The CV joints in a compact wheel hub with equal sized drive shafts.
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@marcelromijn2227 Nothing wrong with the gearbox in the sump as long as the oil was quality and changed at the specified intervals. The last of the Mini models in the early 2000s used synthetic oils giving superb longevity. The cooling system was fine being designed for NW Europe. I had three Minis with not one overheating. Later, electric fans improved the cooling in hot climates. The Mini had equal length driveshafts. The wheels were deliberately small to have a lower centre of gravity giving the car unmatched sports car roadholding, and less intrusion of wheel arches into the cabin space. The rubber suspension was ground breaking in 1959 using far less space than other methods.
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How can you omit the Mini!
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