RE: Mini 1499 GT announced
Discussion
Hammy98 said:
Marketing exercise, same as the Park Lane, Checkmate etc.
I think they're missing a trick not doing a lightweight version (2 seats?) with the 1.5 3cyl pushing 160bhp-ish, JCW suspension and some Cup 2s. No doubt it would be nearly the same price as the Cooper S, but if priced appropriately I could see that being a good weekend toy.
What imaginary people do you think will buy that car?I think they're missing a trick not doing a lightweight version (2 seats?) with the 1.5 3cyl pushing 160bhp-ish, JCW suspension and some Cup 2s. No doubt it would be nearly the same price as the Cooper S, but if priced appropriately I could see that being a good weekend toy.
Maybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
TwigtheWonderkid said:
I suspect they've done loads of research and have concluded that this will sell better. They are in business to make cars to sell for a profit. If their research tells them that a 102bhp version will sell better than a higher priced more powerful version, then that's what they'll make.
More like it won't cut into the sales of the Cooper S/JCW and gives Mini the chance to sell the new version of the One at a higher price without impacting all the left over stock they currently have for the old Mini One.hondansx said:
What imaginary people do you think will buy that car?
Maybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
Agreed, it needs to be closer to the Fiesta ST/Audi S1 for BHP as this is what most people seem to focus on. The 1.5 is capable of ~230 BHP in the i8 (360 BHP with the electric motor), that should be popular if stamping all over the JCW.Maybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
hondansx said:
What imaginary people do you think will buy that car?
Maybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
If it was priced right, probably quite a few. There's been quite a few mugs who have chucked £30k at either a WC50 or that JCW Challenge one, so a limited edition performance model would no doubt fly off the shelves once againMaybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
What a load of b
ks. What was distinctive about the 1275GT (and Clubman) compared to the rest of the Mini line-up? What have they forgotten here. Exactly.
I agree with the poster above re the 2-seater, doesn't matter if the bigger ones are more popular, it would do wonders for the brand,be a great marketing tool and sell enough to pay for itself. Especially if they took the original Mini approach and didn't keep face-lifting it,making it bigger and just left it as it is until people stopped buying it.
ks. What was distinctive about the 1275GT (and Clubman) compared to the rest of the Mini line-up? What have they forgotten here. Exactly.I agree with the poster above re the 2-seater, doesn't matter if the bigger ones are more popular, it would do wonders for the brand,be a great marketing tool and sell enough to pay for itself. Especially if they took the original Mini approach and didn't keep face-lifting it,making it bigger and just left it as it is until people stopped buying it.
Glasgowrob said:
really want to like this
but 102bhp its laughably underpowered.
For what, carting itself plus occupants anywhere they want to go ? or challenging a Chiron ?but 102bhp its laughably underpowered.
I am using our Citroen C1 at the moment, all 68 bhp of it, and most of the time its perfectly fine, sometimes feels a bit sluggish but it does the job, it has plenty of power to fulfil its brief, as does this, its just we are addled by massive power outputs, my CLS has 388 bhp, it is 200 bhp over what it needs really. Most of the time, even in the little noddy car, I am stuck behind something else anyway.
These Minis are actually pretty good, it will feel better than 102 bhp due to the turbo filling in the mid range, it will however run out of puff.
All cars do not need 500 bhp or more to do their job, and you can buy faster Minis if thats what you want.
mon the fish said:
hondansx said:
What imaginary people do you think will buy that car?
Maybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
If it was priced right, probably quite a few. There's been quite a few mugs who have chucked £30k at either a WC50 or that JCW Challenge one, so a limited edition performance model would no doubt fly off the shelves once againMaybe the same people that said they'd buy a GT86.
The JCW Challenge very nearly got my money but at £31k it was about £4/5k too much given it was a poverty spec JCW with £3500 of upgrades. The way they sold it to you highlighted that too - you paid BMW £28k for the car and Total Track £3500 for the upgrades. A boggo JCW is about £24k.
nobbybonez said:
its not a mini.
it will never be a mini.
if you want a mini, buy a mini.
GT? Get Thucked.
Why isn't it a Mini? Because you say it isn't? Are the current 911s not 911s? How about Fiat 500s? it will never be a mini.
if you want a mini, buy a mini.
GT? Get Thucked.
It's not an 'original' Mini and isn't meant to be. That's because the market for a car exactly the same as one first released in the late 1950s is somewhat limited.
ajprice said:
Would the new Mini be more accepted as a Mini if they stopped making the original in 1980 when the Metro was launched, then the Rover Metro, then the Rover 100, then the new Mini from 2000 on?
No. they should have had a Mini, this could be the Midi and they could reintroduce the Maxi as an SUV.God preserve us - why is the motor industry (and presumably many of its customers ) so mired in the past? Ironic , really , as the designers of cars like the original Mini,Renault 5 , Beetle and 124 Spyder (other cynically relaunched brands are available ) were only looking into the future , not exhuming the past . It's one reason why , back in the 60s and 70s , we never had a Bullnose special edition of the Mini Cooper S , nor a Model T Escort nor a Prince Henry Vauxhall Firenza .
The real faux pas is that the 1275GT was a cheap , cheerful, and cynical minor re- design of the Mini, which was already past its sell by date . The result was horrible - it looked like a dog and despite the lazy GT branding it was lacking in the trouser department - I think 59bhp, was it, to the Cooper S ' 76bhp ?
The real faux pas is that the 1275GT was a cheap , cheerful, and cynical minor re- design of the Mini, which was already past its sell by date . The result was horrible - it looked like a dog and despite the lazy GT branding it was lacking in the trouser department - I think 59bhp, was it, to the Cooper S ' 76bhp ?
J4CKO said:
It is basically doing exactly what the original did, a sporty Mini that wasnt a Cooper, bit cheaper, still looks good, bit less power but still fun.This is based I think on the normal Cooper, which is a 1.5 3 cyl, the one is a 1.2 3 cyl and the Cooper S a 2 litre 4 cyl.
I think this is a Detuned Cooper 1.5 engine, they are normally 136 bhp, but will respond well to a remap, so the possibility is to buy this and then get it mapped at nearer 170 bhp.
Not so, there was no cooper when the 1275 GT was out. I think this is a Detuned Cooper 1.5 engine, they are normally 136 bhp, but will respond well to a remap, so the possibility is to buy this and then get it mapped at nearer 170 bhp.
My dad put a MG Metro engine in his at Gaydon in the early 80s. I was snuck in....
coppice said:
God preserve us - why is the motor industry (and presumably many of its customers ) so mired in the past? .
The real faux pas is that the 1275GT was a cheap , cheerful, and cynical minor re- design of the Mini, which was already past its sell by date . The result was horrible - it looked like a dog and despite the lazy GT branding it was lacking in the trouser department - I think 59bhp, was it, to the Cooper S ' 76bhp ?
It was a golden age for design. So many iconic designs Mini, Fiat 500, Beetle, 911, Citroen 2CV, DS and SM, Dino, Daytona, the list could go on forever (which isn't to say there were some real howlers). How many of today's designs will be deemed iconic, in twenty years time? I'm struggling to even think of one but maybe the TT and F-Type, Alfa 159 possibly. The real faux pas is that the 1275GT was a cheap , cheerful, and cynical minor re- design of the Mini, which was already past its sell by date . The result was horrible - it looked like a dog and despite the lazy GT branding it was lacking in the trouser department - I think 59bhp, was it, to the Cooper S ' 76bhp ?
The reason they are resurrected is because, damn, they were very good and incredibly popular. Modern design and safety doesn't permit the novelty inherent in those designs so they can only try to catch the afterglow.
I get more annoyed when a name is resurrected based on nothing, like the Viva which has no link to Vivas past and the DS.
Dolf Stoppard said:
nobbybonez said:
its not a mini.
it will never be a mini.
if you want a mini, buy a mini.
GT? Get Thucked.
Why isn't it a Mini? Because you say it isn't? Are the current 911s not 911s? How about Fiat 500s? it will never be a mini.
if you want a mini, buy a mini.
GT? Get Thucked.
It's not an 'original' Mini and isn't meant to be. That's because the market for a car exactly the same as one first released in the late 1950s is somewhat limited.
The Mini was originally a small, cheap family car designed to be cheap to run and fit four people, it had no "brand", from 1959, that was built over the 40 or so years they made and sold them, the British car industry didnt really realise the value of what they had, there was a bit of an idea to bring the Mini back as a new model but it never happened.
What we ended up with is a small (but not that small) fairly badly packaged, Mini themed BMW hatchback with a Brazillian engine and some premium aspirations that initially traded on the originals popularity.
Of course we can never have a new one that is an updated version of the original, it is too small to meet safety regulations and really, would you actually want one in a world full of massive SUV's ? the landscape has changed, it wouldnt work now, the Aygo covers that angle.
Minis were cute, well packaged, cheeky looking and fun to drive (sometimes) but were largely a steaming heap of poo, everyone thinks about pristine wide arched Coopers but the reality for most was a brown base spec one that had flapping wings, was dog slow, bouncy and wouldnt start when it was damp.
Nostalgia is a dangerous thing.
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