MINI Cooper News

If you like the MINI but want something a little more practical, then this could be the car for you. It's the MINI Clubman Concept and it's set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week. Though even a brief glance tells you there's little concept-like about the new car. In contrast to the...

The third-generation MINI has only just been launched, but that hasn't stopped parent company BMW commenting on what the next generation might hold. Details of the models themselves are unlikely to arrive for many years--the current car has a whole lifecycle, including a mid-life refresh ahead of...

MINI USA has announced pricing for the third generation of its BMW-produced hatchback, which will be priced from $20,745 when it arrives in the spring. That figure includes MINI's mandatory $795 destination charge, which also applies to the $24,395 MINI Cooper S. The new car will be called the MINI...

It's the world's best-known small car, and it's all new for 2014. It is of course the MINI Cooper, though you might have stumbled over the phrase "all new", since a quick glance won't really reveal what parent company BMW has changed--the quirky retro styling is as familiar as ever. BMW has changed...

What's the 2014 MINI Cooper going to look like? The old one, probably--a perception that isn't tarnished by MINI's latest teaser video, which gives us a hint as to the new car's form. The new car is set to be unveiled in full on November 18, the 107th anniversary of the birth of Sir Alec Issigonis...

Future MINI models will be powered by three- and four-cylinder engines the brand says will combine fuel economy and sportiness.

You might not be familiar with Sir Alec Issigonis, but his name has made as much impact on the motoring landscape, particularly in Britain, as anyone else in the history of the automobile. Issigonis was the man behind the Austin Seven and Morris Mini-Minor--the famous Mini. He died in 1988, but...

More or less coincidentally, we've recently tested three hot hatchbacks: the Chevrolet Sonic RS, the Fiat 500c Abarth, and the MINI John Cooper Works Paceman All4. (The Fiat was actually the Cabrio version of the Abarth hot-rod model with the roll-back cloth roof, not a hatchback--but for all...

Every once in a while, we end up driving a car that leaves us utterly confused. The 2013 MINI Cooper Paceman John Cooper Works ALL4 we drove for a day last week is one such vehicle. It's striking, but far less functional than the MINI Countryman from which it's derived. The handling is decent, but...

Many things can signify summer--the weather finally being warm enough to ditch those outer layers of clothing; TV ads taking a distinctly more cheery tone; maybe simply hunting around for your sunshades for the first time in six months. It's now possible to have fun in the sun and get good gas...

The MINI brand re-established itself globally by building fuel-efficient cars that, coincidentally, were also surprisingly fun to drive. In fact, when it comes to cars powered by their front wheels, we can’t think of any that handle better than MINI’s products. The brand has innovated...

Which side are you on? Bigger is better? Or perhaps 'No replacement for displacement'? Or do you think more along the lines of 'small is beautiful' and 'good things come in small packages'? If it's the latter, then you may also be a fan of the smallest cars manufacturers have to offer. And if you...

There was a time when small European cars like the original Fiat 500, Volkswagen Beetle and Mini represented the very epitome of cheap, stylish, practical motoring. So much so that all three original cars have inspired contemporary retro-styled rides meant to evoke the memories of days gone by. But...

As anyone who owns one will tell you, there's nothing quite like driving with the top down on a sunny day. It may be clichéd, but having the wind in your hair, sun on your face and experiencing just a little more of the world around you, really does make every journey a little more fun...

Anyone who's traveled overseas has seen the small car-based commercial vehicles common in the crowded cities of Europe and Asia. While U.S. workmen may use full-size Ford or Chevy vans, their European counterparts use smaller vans (and pickups too) based on compact or even subcompact models. But...

I took possession of my 2009 Mini E electric car (serial number 250) on June 12, 2009. At the time, I signed up for a one year lease, which is all BMW was offering. It was made perfectly clear that after 12 months, we would have to give the car back and that there would be no exceptions. One...

A couple of weeks ago, BMW invited me to come to Munich and take part in the first drive of production versions of the BMW ActiveE, their second battery electric test vehicle. A bit of background: I've been something of a high-profile MINI E pioneers, maintaining an active blog about my...

A few months after BMW and MINI's electric car study ended in the United States, a similar scheme run in the U.K. has also come to a close, and the results are in... ...and if you've read the results of the American tests, the figures coming from the U.K. will all look very familiar. Basically, all...

The 2012 Olympics to be held next summer in London may be the greenest yet, with spectators and many participants moving by mass transit among the various venues. Still, automotive partner BMW plans to provide up to 4,000 vehicles for use during the events. Now we learn that 200 of those will be...

When BMW launched the new MINI back in 2001, the U.S. market wondered if anyone could actually sell a car that small. The proof has been in the pudding--the new MINI sold quite well--but the company hasn't stopped there, adding models left and right. Now, leave it to the folks over at MINI Central...