A Bit of Cooper Magic

Anyone who loves cars must have rejoiced when BMW announced plans to build a new, bigger version of the Iconic Mini at the turn of the centrury.

After All it had been a familar sight on UK roads since 1959 and it seemed that everyone had a mini or used to have one.

It was garunteed to strike a nostalgic note among many of a certain age, but the bonus was that the German giants came up with a quality, fun-to-drive car, and it went down a storm.

Like the Fiat 500, it was a small car that seemingly everyone liked. Now, as the Mini celebrates its 50th birthday, BMW has brought out four new Minis – Cooper, Cooper S, and John Cooper Works versions of the convertible and the Mini One Clubman.

I drove the Mini Cooper S version of the Convertible, a higher performance machine with turbocharged 1.6 Litre unit produce 175bhp.

Whereas the Cooper chalks up 0-62 in 9.8 seconds and to-speeds at 123, the S hits the same speed at 7.4 seconds, and has a top speed of 138 mph ( the john cooper works does 0-62 in 6.5 seconds).

These new 21st century Minis are a different breed to the ancestors, although they do have one thing in common – sheer fun to drive.

Sure they’re not exactly practical for a family but get the roof down, roll down the windows and its guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

Former incarnations of Minis always drew comparisons to driving a go-Kart and this bigger version is still as much fun.

The shape of the Mini means it corners like its on rails and your so low down that theres very little body roll.

But despite its boxy shape the Mini is more than comfortable cruising on the motorway – but its obviously great for urban driving. True, the stiff suspension that’s necessary for that kind of control can be a bit jarring to start with and, if it hits a pothole while cornering, the front end does have a tendency to boune fleetingly, but alarmingly. But you get used to it.

The six speed gearbox is slick and prcise, although the position of reverse seemed a little close to first gear at first, and the brakes slam a halt on things instantly, too.

Although the Mini is a small car, there is no problem for front seat passengers. The seats adjust well and theres plenty of headroom with the top up.

You might get some complaints from passengers in the rear though. With the front seats full back you’re hard pushed to slip a sheet of paper between the front and rear seats.

With the front seats pushed forward you can get two adults in the back but its still a pretty tight fit.

The boot is understandably cramped but theres enough room to fit a couple of small cases or a few bags of shopping, and the rear seats fold, too.

The interior gives a nod to its prdecessor,with a large… nay huge… circular dial in the centre. Most of the plastics used are of a good quality but the aluminium-type plastic seems a little cheap.

The swtches for windows, heater etc are funky but difficult to work while driving.

Seats are comfortable and the heater works well in either heating up or cooling down.

But your going to want to get the top down as much as possible in the precious summer enjoy.

The Minis roog goes up or down in 15 seconds flat and its easy to operate. If the sun suddenly shines while on the move you can also open the roof 40 or so centimeters while driving, creating instant sun roof.

Wind noise is surprisingly muted with the top down – especially with the side windows raised – and decent with the roof on, too. There a wind deflector that slots behind the front seats to improve things even further .

The engine gives off a pleasent rasp, reminiscent of the engines of old, but its not deafening even when driven hard. And the Mini is such fun that you’ll want to drive it hard and it delivers punch through the gears.

The steering is nice and sharp but rear visability is limited with the roof up and down, although its fine around front and sides. Parking is aided by sensors as standard, though.

BMW have made sure that you get a decnet amount of kit as standard, both for practicality and safety.

The coopers body has been stiffened to compensate for the lack of roof, and front and side airbags are standard, along with stability control, traction control and ISOFIX child seat fittings.

With the Cooper S, on top of the normal model, you get 16 inch alloys, leather steering wheel, sports seats and some of that fancy aluminium-look detail.

You also get a dial next to the rev counter which is activated when the rood is lowered and shows how long its been down, im sure there is a valid reason for this but the use escapes me at the moment.

Mini Cooper S Convertible

Engine 1.6 Petrol
Transmission: Six Speed Manual
0-62: 7.4
Top Speed: 138mph
Combined mpg: 44.1mpg
OTR Price from: £22,275