MINI Cooper Paceman - Underpowered?

[romeogolf]

I'm borrowing a MINI Cooper Paceman with an auto 'box at the moment. It's got around 1200 miles on it currently.

Am I alone in feeling like this is a somewhat underpowered/rough-driving car? I feel like it's always searching for a better gear, shifting down at the slightest prod of the pedal and never really 'getting going'.

Not sure if it's the gearbox or just the fact the car is a bit heavy for the engine.

Driving position is excellent, IMO, and it's a comfortable place to sit, although much of the trim (especially the steering wheel) feels a bit cheap and flimsy to my hands.

[romeogolf]

redddraggon said:

What do you normally drive?

I wouldn't say the standard 1.6L was that underpowered compared - certainly it won't feel as good as it does in the hatch because of the higher weight it has to move about. Apart from the 1.6 DIG-T it's got more power than most of the Jukes (which I'd say is the closest rival).

Previously had an SLK250 CDI so of course it's not comparable. I was borrowing a MINI Cooper Hatch (manual) for a month before the Countryman. The hatch was reasonably peppy but the Countryman feels like a tank in comparison.

I'm also average lower than 36mpg compared to nearly 45mpg when I was using the (also brand new) hatch.