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Result: night-time accidents, especially in fog. Drivers will see a single flashing taillight arrow and make incorrect assumptions. Very severe and fatal collisions and consequential lawsuits will ensue. Cooper will pay, pay, pay. They will issue recalls and beg for leniency. But there is no doubt they f*cked this design.

If one of the two tail lights and/or a brake light(s) is/are out then the situation will only be worse.

I'd short Cooper stock were I an investor. This will cost them a pretty penny.

Gawd, I can't imagine what a self-driving car would see when it is following a Mini down a foggy British roadway. Perhaps someone could model it?



If I'm not mistaken, rear fog lamps are required by UNECE regulations and would mitigate this issue. Unfortunately, in the US rear fog lamps are not required.


If it’s on a British road, said self-driving car will see normal yellow indicators, since red is not a permissible colour. As mentioned in the article.


Yeah, I think the amber horizontal bar in the middle for EU cars is an acceptable design. Cutesy, but no risk to the health and safety of the driver and others.

It's the US spec that seems incredibly poorly thought out.


Even though this is a particularly egregious example, poorly thought out indicators are not exactly new in the US though - it is unfathomable to me why people thing that making the turn signals the same colour as both tail and brake light is a good idea...


It was almost certainly a grandfathered cost reducing measure.




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