Mini News

We’ve seen quite a few outrageous car stunts lately, but they have all just been one-upped by the world’s first car backflip. French daredevil Guerlain Chicherit pulled off the feat overnight by flipping a Mini Countryman from a snow ramp in France. Chicherit is calling it the world's first "unassisted 360 degree backflip" in a car. Using a specially modified Mini John Cooper Works Countryman, Chicherit accelerated up a ramp and jumped to an estimated 12 metres during the stunt. The French driver reportedly spent four years training and preparing for the stunt, which saw him launch the Mini, flip through 360 degrees and land – right side up – on the eight-metre ramp. Details on the car modifications haven’t been revealed, but it was based on the JCW Countryman crossover powered by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine that delivers 160 kW of power and 300Nm of torque, making for a 0-100km/h time of 7.0 seconds and a top speed of 225km/h.  

MINI calls it "Not Normal." We've been known to call it "creepy." Wherever it lands on your personal spectrum, MINI's ad flavour is definitely unusual. The latest, for the new Paceman, is called "Street Attitude". Showing a guy that's in a hurry to grab some vinyl, pick up dinner, and flash his girlfriend--with his lights--as he pulls into his living room/garage, we're not entirely sure what's going on here. Par for the course with MINI. Three versions of the ad are offered, with the primary ad featuring a run-in at an intersection with another Paceman--later revealed to be the first driver's bird-flipping girlfriend. Not that it's the first time MINI has flipped us the bird. The second version has a happier ending, and the third version ends with a much lonelier scene. Almost loser status. So what do you think of these ad spots? Is MINI out in left field again, or do they resonate with you? If so, could you please tell us what sort of person you are, because we still can't figure out who the typical Paceman buyer is. Thanks.   www.motorauthority.com    

There probably isn't a huge market for a somewhat off-road-capable, three-door, sporty, compact hatchback. So what is the market for a more hardcore, sporty, less off-road-capable version of that same hatchback?We're not sure, but that's exactly what the MINI Paceman John Cooper Works is. This is our first look at the hot edition of the Paceman, courtesy of rampant leakage around the web today ahead of its official debut, expected sometime in the coming months.The 2013 MINI Paceman the John Cooper Works edition is based on was just unveiled to the public at the 2012 Paris Auto Show in September, so the JCW is close on the heels of its more normal (though still somewhat oddball) counterpart.Leaked to the web without specs or information, the MINI John Cooper Works Paceman is already familiar--if not quite pleasing--to our eyes. But do the official details on MINI's latest car persuade us to want to like it?Close, but not quite. You see, this is arguably the most confusing and least attractive cut of MINI's one-sausage-many-lengths theory of design. Pairing the high-riding and soft-roading qualities of the Countryman with the enthusiast-focused John Cooper Works formula could have resulted in a three-door MINI Paceman Baja Edition--a sort of micro-Raptor.Instead, it leaves us with a John Cooper Works Paceman, good for 7 seconds to 100km/h from a 160 kilowatts turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine driving ALL4 all-wheel drive. Peak torque of 300 newton-meters is available from 1,700 rpm to 4,500 rpm with the Overboost function enabled--pretty stout for a smallish turbo four.A choice of manual or automatic six-speed transmissions is available, and it won't affect the 0-100km/h times. But as strong as that little engine is, the 7-second 0-100km/h time hints at the problems of going tall and off-road-ish: weight. The JCW Paceman is quicker than the JCW Countryman, but not by much.By way of contrast, the Scion FR-S manages a rather anemic 147 kilowatts from its boxer engine, with at most about three-quarters the torque of the MINI JCW Paceman's engine--and even then, it's all at the top of the tach--and yet it can dash to 100km/h in about the same time, with rear-wheel drive only.The comparison is apples to oranges on everything, and all of it should favour the MINI. But the clock doesn't. That spells a stout curb weight to us. MINI doesn't disabuse us of this notion with the official announcement--curb weight isn't anywhere to be found.www.motorauthority.com 

The team of 28 gym members squashed and squeezed their way into a 2012 Mini Hatch yesterday in London, UK, to make it into the Guinness World Records.Getting four people just into the boot space of the Min, they went on to use every available pocket of room in the car, including folding bodies into the footwells and across the dashboard.The successful bid broke the record they set last year with 27 people, but that wasn’t enough for the women.After unfolding from the Mini Hatch – and gulping a few mouthfuls of fresher air – they hightailed it for a television studio, where 23 of them set a second record for the number of people in a much smaller classic Mini from the 1960s.The stunts were part of the eighth annual Guinness World Records Day, which saw 4000 people around the world try to make it into the record book.Australia was represented by 15-year-old Lachlan Phelps from Scone, NSW, who set the record for the longest note blown on a didgeridoo -- without using the continuous circular breathing technique – blasting past the previous 60 second record with a 65.66-sec note. 

This car, caught by Carparazzi, is regular Mini but with extra rear doors to make it more family friendly. European sources say it is part of the third-generation Mini family and should be ready for showrooms in the second half of next year at around $50,000. 

The once staunch rear-wheel drive car maker says it will use its new front-drive platform for future BMW models - including the Concept Active Tourer on display at this week's Paris motor show - and for the new Mini. The new Mini Cooper, expected in early 2014, will be the first to use the shared platform that is called UKL. Speaking at the Paris show, BMW board member Ian Robertson indicated a range of front-drive models with the BMW badge that could arrive together in 2014. “One of the big advantages of UKL is that we are able to launch a lot of products almost simultaneously because we are doing the engineering at once,” Robertson says. In reference to the Concept Active Tourer, he says: “This is the first car that we are showing.” BMW is on record as saying the premium small car market will become the fastest growing segment because it offered flexibility in design, spaciousness and a compact footprint. “We will attract a broad profile of customers, from young families to people entering the later phase of life,” Robertson says. “You get a lot of flexibility.”

The JCW Countryman is the first performance model of the range to come with Mini ALL4 all-wheel drive. Power comes from a newly developed four-cylinder, turbocharged 1.6-litre engine with 160 kW/280Nm (300Nm with overboost).It's the most powerful drive unit in the Mini range, featuring construction principles and materials adapted specially from race-trim cars. There's a combination of twin-scroll turbocharger, petrol direct injection and fully variable valve management based on the BMW Group's Valvetronic technology.It gives the JCW Countryman acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.0 seconds and stand-out efficiency in this output class. Mini also uses plenty of its ‘Minimalism’ fuel saving technology including brake energy regeneration, gear shift indicator, auto start-stop function and electric power steering. A six-speed manual gearbox is standard with a six-speed auto optional. It has steering wheel shift paddles. Other standard kit includes a sports exhaust that produces a stirring soundtrack and a Sport button that tweaks the engine's responses and vocal character, the power assistance provided by the steering and the shift dynamics of the optional automatic gearbox. Power distribution is varied seamlessly between the front and rear axles by an electromagnetic centre differential positioned directly on the final drive. A range of electronic dynamic controls is fitted. The JCW model has a sports suspension with firmly tuned springs and dampers, strengthened anti-roll bars and a 10-millimetre drop in ride height; powerful brakes with red calipers and extra-lightweight 18-inch twin spoke alloy wheels optional to 19s. Inside it gets a JCW cockpit with sports seats, sports steering wheel, interior trim strips in piano black, anthracite-coloured roof liner, dark speedometer and rev counter dials and John Cooper Works door sills. 

The Mini marque is adding entry-level models to its new Coupe and Roadster ranges - launched in March this year - that will be in showrooms from November. The two-seater models were originally launched in Cooper S and John Cooper Works guises but the BMW-owned badge is looking to broaden its appeal with naturally-aspirated petrol entry-level models but don't hold your breath for any diesel models. The 1.6-litre Cooper models sans turbo represents almost a third of the hatch volume for Mini - so far this year, 28 per cent of the hard-top range wears a Cooper badge. Coupe variants will be starting from $34,900 and the Roadster will carry a $37,500 price tag when the S is lopped from the Cooper badge, which lowers the entry-point for new Mini sports cars by more than $8000 and below the $40,000 psychological barrier. Mini Australia general manager Kai Bruesewitz said the new Cooper variants will be in hot demand. “The Mini Cooper engine is extremely popular in other body styles in the MINI range offering punchy performance and frugal economy at a great price.” “With the addition of this engine variant, the striking new Mini Coupe and Roadster are now even more attractive and more attainable to the young and the young at heart,” he says. The two-seater sporties will lose a yard of pace in the bid to grab more buyers - the Cooper models are powered by a naturally-aspirated variable-valve 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine producing 90kW at 6000rpm and 160Nm of torque at 4250 rpm - down 45kW and 80Nm over the S but enough, says Mini, to hit 100km/h in 9 seconds. The payoff comes at the petrol pump, where the Cooper's fuel use drops 0.6 to 5.8 l/100km with emissions of 136 g/km of CO2. The Mini Cooper Roadster covers the sprint to 100km/h in 9.2 seconds - about two seconds slower - with a slightly reduced fuel use figure of 6.1l/100km. Both models will be offered with the new engine hooked up to either a six-speed manual or an optional six-speed auto. Standard fare for both of new models includes 16in alloy wheels, sport seats, cruise control, climate control, Bluetooth phone link, a USB sound system input, rain sensing wipers and automatic headlights.  

The Paceman, which was only a motor show concept at Detroit in 2010, hits Australian showrooms early next year. It follows the Countryman, Clubman van, and a long string of other teases including the Mini Coupe and Roadster from the spotlights to the stop lights.The production Paceman is based on the biggest of the existing Mini models, the all-wheel drive Countryman, and is likely to be the last addition to the Mini lineup before BMW Group - which owns the iconic British brand - gives it a total renewal.The production Paceman continues almost unchanged from the styling of the concept car, with the emphasis on performance including a Cooper S model that will sprint to 100km/h in 7.5 seconds. “It's the seventh body shape in the mini range,” the spokesman for Mini in Australia, Piers Scott, confirms to Carsguide.“It's March next year for Australia. We're pretty solid on that. The cars are being built in Austria in November.” He will not discuss prices or equipment but confirms the Paceman's position at the top of the local lineup, and a likely price tag of more than $55,000.“It will sit above the countryman. It's the flagship,” says Scott. “It will have a small premium over the Countryman.” The body of the Paceman is a three-door hatch but it is much bigger than the basic Mini that opens the action, and its interior is focussed on a luxury four-seater cabin that provides individual chairs for two people in the back. These include armrests for back-seat passengers, extra leg and knee room, and a central storage system.Mini confirms a sporty focus for the Paceman chassis, but also reveals a luggage capacity of up to 1080 litres. “It's the largest platform and the sportiest iteration of what the Mini brand currently offers. This is the furtherest extrapolation of the Countryman,” says Scott. The large central speedometer continues as a Mini signature, although it could be the last model with this emphasis as the upcoming replacement for the Mini Cooper is believed to have a more-conventional dashboard design.European sources point to a preview of the car at the Frankfurt Motor Show in almost exactly a year's time. “Yes, there is a replacement for the Mini hatch to come. That will, no doubt, bring new design elements,” confirms Scott. “There are certain elements that every Mini must have, so I wouldn't expect anything too radical for the new hatch. We should get a look at it next year. I believe it will be later in the year.”