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Filed under: Concept Cars, Budget, Europe, Hatchback, Mini, UK, Design/Style
Mini has made it clear that it is hard at work on a successor to the automaker's bread-and-butter
Cooper. Word has it we'll get our first glimpse at the next-generation Mini toward the end of next year, and when it debuts, Sonny Lim believes the machine will be smaller, more mainstream and far less gimmicky than the current creation.
Having served as the senior designer with
BMW DesignWorksUSA, Lim knows a thing or two about BMW styling. His sketches show a modern three-door hatch that's still easily-identifiable as a Mini thanks to bulging fender arches pushed far to the vehicle's corners, pie-plate headlights and a traditional Mini grille.
Lim says the next-generation Cooper will be more true to the concept of the original Cooper. Measuring in at just 140.6 inches from stem to stern, the Mini Zero Concept is shorter than the current hatchback and just slightly longer than the the now deceased
Mini Rocketman Concept. The clipped size means the Zero weighs in at 1,851 pounds, which should help it yield better fuel economy and performance with minimal changes to the drivetrain. Head over to
Behance.net for a deeper dive.
Sonny Lim sketches the next-generation Mini originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 May 2012 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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May 2nd, 2012
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Filed under: Wagon, Hatchback, Mini, Luxury
Britain is not without its automakers, even if they are all foreign-owned, but
Mini certainly ranks among the most quintessentially British of them all. Parent company
BMW has cashed in on this with a succession of special editions that celebrate its Anglophilia.
The latest are called the Hyde Park and Green Park editions, named after public spaces in London. The Hyde Park model comes in off-white with brown trim (which Mini calls "Hot Chocolate") on the roof, mirror caps and stripes. The Green Park edition has green trim (British Racing Green, naturally) to contrast with the same Pepper White body color.
Owners putting down their deposits for a special new Mini can opt for two body styles (hatchback and
Clubman wagon) and four engines: 122-horsepower Cooper, 184hp Cooper S, 112hp diesel Cooper D and 143hp diesel Cooper SD.
The interiors have also been spruced up for the special editions, as you can see for yourself in the attached image gallery. More info can be found in the press release below the fold.
Continue reading Mini motors through London with Hyde Park and Green Park editions
Mini motors through London with Hyde Park and Green Park editions originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 22 Apr 2012 10:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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April 22nd, 2012
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special edition,
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Filed under: Hatchback, Mini, UK, Luxury
If you want to buy a new car, you go to a car dealership. If you want to buy a ridiculously expensive and luxurious cashmere sweater in any color imaginable, you go to
Harrods. At least that's the way it once was, but these days the swanky London department store has been turning its front window display into an automotive showroom.
A year and a half ago
Aston Martin put its Cygnet city car on display at Harrods, a lead that
Lexus followed with a showcase of luxury hybrids in the same space a month later.
Fisker followed suit just a few months ago, and now
Mini is doing the same with its
Goodwood edition hatchback.
As you may recall, the Goodwood is a Mini hatchback that's had its interior fitted by the same craftsmen who do the cabins for
Rolls-Royce. Only 1,000 units will be made, each with a whopping $52,000 price tag. The Mini Inspired by Goodwood has been on display at Harrods for a week already and will be for another, with a salesman on hand - swatches and samples at the ready - to answer questions and take orders behind the window on Brompton Road.
Continue reading Mini puts Goodwood edition on display at Harrods
Mini puts Goodwood edition on display at Harrods originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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April 20th, 2012
Filed under: Spy Photos, Coupe, Performance, Mini
Want a hot little hatchback? You could do a lot worse than a
Mini. But as with many cars, your budget will determine how much speed you get: Cooper, Cooper S, JCW or - with the first-gen model, anyway - the top-of-the-line John Cooper Works GP.
Introduced just before Mini launched the second-generation model line, the GP edition packed more power, less weight and a sportier suspension. After receiving
reports a few months ago that Mini was planning a similar version of the current model, we brought you
spy shots a few weeks ago of a prototype hatchback wearing some tell-tale signs of GP-ification. But what is this? A GP coupe?
That's what it would seem, with the less versatile and more backwards-hat-wearing Mini Coupe wearing a minimally camouflaged lower fascias front and rear, plus four-spoke wheels like the first GP edition.
The question is whether Mini is planning GP versions of both the hatchback and coupe, or if one of these prototypes is merely a diversion of some sort. We'll have to wait to find out, but you can take a closer look at the spy shots and start to wonder as well.
Mini preparing JCW GP version of Cooper Coupe too? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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April 18th, 2012
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Filed under: Spy Photos, Performance, Europe, Hatchback, Mini, Design/Style
It looks as if the rumors swirling around the supposed resurrection of the limited-edition
Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP have some substance. Our spy photographers caught this creation out and about for a little testing just a short hop away from the
Nürburgring recently. From the looks of things, this could be our first glimpse at a new version of the JCW GP. New aero work, including a new front splitter and more aggressive rear spoiler, help set the model apart from its more pedestrian siblings. It looks as if the vehicle will also boast a set of revised rockers with what functional air inlets for cooling off the rear brakes.
With unique four-spoke wheels that pay homage to the first GP and a lower ride height, the hatch looks downright sinister. Early reports have hinted that the hot hatch may boast somewhere in the neighborhood of 220 horsepower with less weight to boot. Like its sought-after 2006 predecessor, odds are there's a big stiffening brace where the rear seats used to reside, too.
Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works GP spotted testing originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 28 Mar 2012 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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March 28th, 2012
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Filed under: Convertible, Coupe, Wagon, Etc., Hatchback, Mini
In 2002, the first U.S.
Mini dealership opened in San Francisco. With only one model and a gallon of gas selling for an average of $1.25, there were plenty of critics who said the Mini brand didn't stand a chance in the States.
"Mini launched in the U.S. during the time when gas was cheap and large trucks and SUVs ruled the road," said Jim McDowell, Vice President of Mini USA in a statement. "Many thought the brand would be a one-hit wonder, and we are extremely proud that we were able to surprise some the toughest critics, and at times, even ourselves."
Now, ten years later, Mini has six models, gas prices have more than tripled and "small car" doesn't necessarily mean "cheap car." It's safe to say those naysayers in 2002 made a big mistake about the premium small car from
BMW.
So, happy birthday, Mini USA, and congrats on convincing an SUV-loving American public that bigger is not always better.
Continue reading Happy 10 year anniversary, Mini
Happy 10 year anniversary, Mini originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Mar 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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March 23rd, 2012
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