So, does the fastest mainstream production Mini yet go better than it looks?
The Mini Coupe's public unveiling from beneath a giant baseball cap with accompanying break dancers in low-slung denim has to be among the more nauseous examples of motor show marketing guff. But there's always been more than a hint of the embarrassing dad trying to prove that he's down with the kids about Mini's relentless flirtations with yoof culture. You'll note early allusions to the roofline being influenced by a reversed baseball cap have been quietly dropped though...
Perhaps better when partially obscured
Motor show glitz and press launch hyperbole dealt with we thought it worth spending a week in the Coupe's company to suss, once and for all, whether the coupe is actually the most PH-worthy Mini yet or simply a derivative too far.
Putting the boot in First impressions? Well, it's a Mini with a daft roofline and even less room in the back than usual. Oh, apart from the boot, which is actually bigger than the Clubman estate version, yet difficult to access thanks to the world's heaviest bootlid. So it's both the most and least practical (non Countryman) Mini yet made. And the fastest, apparently.
Familiarity means the novelty value of the Mini interior has dulled a little but if you haven't been in one for a while it's still like nothing else. OK, the retro thing may be a little over-egged but it's fun and distinctive and, for all the daft features like the oversized central speedo, actually quite clean and easy to use. The near £30K pricetag of our test car is going to raise a few PH eyebrows no doubt but, though pricey, extras like the stitched leather dash (£805) do at least raise the ambience levels a little.
Points deducted for trying too hard
This being the JCW version (what, you thought we'd get the diesel in or something?) our test car has the full 211hp and temporarily overboosted 206lb ft of torque, still remarkable figures for a mere 1.6. Again, it's an engine we're familiar with from a host of cars - not least the Peugeot RCZ you may consider a rival - but Mini seems best equipped to unleash it's more charismatic side. Saying that there are fewer of the characterful bangs and pops it's had in the past.
Speak up caller Like every control in the car, the throttle response is a little springy and over keen, the sense that the Mini is shouting just a little harder than it actually needs to about its performance never quite absent. There's nothing subtle, the JCW dumping seemingly all the available acceleration or steering in response to the smallest input. It's desperate to impress but sometimes you wish for a slightly calmer response. Hitting the Sport button just magnifies this further, the steering gaining unwelcome and artificial weighting and the throttle even snappier responses.
Looks do turn heads, it has to be said
It's all about the front end this car too, the rear wheels seemingly just propping up the back end. They certainly don't offer much in the way of lateral grip, no matter what that Riggers might say! All Minis seem willing to steer from the rear, lifts even with the stability control on occasionally requiring substantial corrections in addition to the sometimes violent kickback and camber sniffing you get from the front wheels. The JCW gets the LSD-simulating Electronic Differential Control but at times you'd swear there was a mechanical diff up front the way the wheel tugs back and forth at times. All of which makes the JCW somewhat busy on bumpy roads, be they city streets or undulating back roads with sudden camber changes or big compressions.
So where does that leave us? Pretty much where we started really - a Mini with a daft roofline and even less room in the back...
MINI JOHN COOPER WORKS COUPE Engine: 1,598cc 4-cyl, turbocharged Transmission: 6-speed manual Power (hp): 211@6,000rpm Torque (lb ft): 192@1,850rpm MPG: 39.8mpg (NEDC combined) CO2: 165g/km Price: £23,795 (£29,335 as tested)
Looks like fun but somehow I can't help but loathe it. It's sort of like a mad scientist taking away your dog after it dies in order to reanimate it. You'd end up with a lumpy twitchy frankenstein of the original.
BMW have a knack of selling cars that don't look great (X6 etc) - it'll be intersting to see how many of these get out on the roads. Personally I don't mind it, it's different and quirky. I wouldn't buy one tho!
I really dislike this car - the styling is awful, and I get the impression that the sole purpose of bringing out the "coupe" model was to get extra sales from fashion/ marketting victims. The Mini Roadster looks like more fun, but plenty of other things I'd rather buy for £25k...
I have one, came out of my GT3 (Divorce) and needed something to bum around in for a bit. Saw the Coupe JCW and thought 'What the hell' and did it, 2000 miles and 1 month into ownership, I guess the mileage is telling you something, these cars are a complete hoot. I've still got a Cooper S (I've had a Cooper D, Cooper S Conv.) and this is head and shoulders above that.
I agree it's a very marmite car, but in the 'right' colour combination they look amazing, I've never had so much attention (even compared to the GT3) and have had to literally demo the car to people. All the crap about shrunken roofline and less space, personally speaking I've had very little need for the rear seats in a hatch, the GT3 never had any, the boot space in the Coupe is enormous, I reckon I can get my road bike in there with a little thought!
Take one out for a test drive, don't be fobbed off with a Cooper S version they are limp compared to the JCW, they are fun with a capital 'F'.
95% sure I've read somewhere that this is stiffer than the standard Cooper. So it isn't all marketing ploy to do with that 'Helmet roof' as they, and I'm sure many others, call it.
Having driven one though, the only difference I felt was my head touching the roof!
95% sure I've read somewhere that this is stiffer than the standard Cooper. So it isn't all marketing ploy to do with that 'Helmet roof' as they, and I'm sure many others, call it.
Not surprising that a body shell with fewer large openings is stiffer than one with more openings. Saloons/ non-hatchback style coupes are generally always stiffer than their hatchback counterparts where a large part of the bodyshell lifts away.
AS much as I wouldn't buy the car because of the lack of headroom and difficulty seeing traffic lights, It isn't a bad car. far more characterful than an i30 or whatever. Somehow I don;t think the article gives a fair review of the car, an example of which states that "it has less rear space, but has a big boot".
Come on, it doesnt even have rear seats. Which is it then?
I await the numerous responses of sheep echoing the reviewer's view, most of which haven't driven the car. Part of me wants to laugh at them, another part of me wants to runthem over.
This isn;t just with the MINI though. it's with all other reviews as well which from time to time aren't very objective.
With a black or body coloured roof, I don't think they look quite as daft. In fact, I don't think they look at all bad with such colour schemes. For me, it's another example of a shape that's refreshingly different from the other white goods on the roads, that unfortunately is destined to get a royal bashing from most (think Evoque, Juke etc).
AS much as I wouldn't buy the car because of the lack of headroom and difficulty seeing traffic lights, It isn't a bad car. far more characterful than an i30 or whatever. Somehow I don;t think the article gives a fair review of the car, an example of which states that "it has less rear space, but has a big boot".
True about the traffic lights, you have to position yourself just right
Headroom is no problem, I'm 6'1" and have the Recaro option and I've got room both height and by the door frame (unlike a Maser Stradale ) to wear a crash helmet with no issues.
The reviews make me laugh....but so did the car until I drove one!
