Mini coupe JCW (2011) CAR review
Mini Roadster (2012) first official pictures
After the endless teaser stories and photos of cars wearing vestigal disguise, Mini has finally released full details of its cut down, uglied-up two-seat Coupe.
The fifth – and most ludicrous – Mini shape comes in Cooper, Cooper S, Cooper SD and John Cooper Works forms and, according to BMW, promises to reward keen drivers with ‘a level of handling and agility unmatched in the small car segment’. We think current champs RenaultSport might have something to say about that.
On sale in October priced from £16,640-£23,795 (before the obligatory option splurge, of course) the Coupe costs up to £1860 more than the basic hatch, but still undercuts the cabrio by at least £595. Coopers get weedy 15in castors, S model get an upgrade to 16s and the 149mph Works car goes an inch bigger again. All get digital radio, parking sensors and a three-spoke leather wheel.
Despite having just two seats, the Coupe matches the standard hatch for length and width, but that ridiculous squashed toupee of a roof means it sits 29mm lower. Instead of rear seats, the Coupe gets a big 280-litre luggage bay – 20 litres bigger than the Clubman’s and 75% roomier than the standard three door’s.
Aesthetically, it’s certainly an acquired taste, looking its most dramatic when viewed in profile where you can see the sharper rake of the A-pillars and windscreen and the motorised rear spoiler embedded in the roof that rises at 50mph and drops down again at 37mph.
Engine-wise it’s the same as the rest of the Mini range with a choice of petrol and diesel motors, six-speed manual gears as standard and a six-speed auto optional on all but the range topping Works.
| Model |
Power/torque 0-62 max mpg co2 |
Price |
Cooper
Cooper S
Cooper SD
Cooper Wks |
120bhp/118lbft 9.0sec 127 52 127
184bhp/177lbft 6.9sec 143 49 136
143bhp/225lbft 7.9sec 134 66 114
211bhp/207lbft 6.4sec 149 40 165 |
£16,640
£19,775
£20,510
£23,795 |
Mini reckons the Coupe’s bespoke chassis settings will give it a tangibly different feel to the regular hatch and, as a bonus, all Coupes get a console-mounted sport button to sharpen up the throttle response and reduce steering assistance. A sports suspension package comprising uprated dampers and roll bars is available as an option and if you still want more, there’s an even tougher Cooper Works setup in the accessories brochure.
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