Road Test: Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works GP

Price as tested: €47,640

+ Handling, performance, styling, seats, noise, fun
– Hard ride, impractical
= Small car, massive fun

Road Test: Mini Cooper Roadster

Price as tested: €28,165

+ Better looking than the Coupe, fun, agile, engaging
– Crashy ride, limited practicality
= Sweet and fun but we still prefer the standard Mini hatch

I am, I will admit, somewhat baffled by the existence of the Mini Coupe. Why? Because the Mini hatchback is already a coupe. No it's not, you will say. It's a hatchback, clear as day. Not so. Take this simple list of the standard Mini's attributes. Two comfy seats in a stylish (if archly retro) cabin up front, a pair of cramped, tight-fitting, only fitfully useful seats behind and a small boot. A car bought almost entirely on the strength of its style and personality. That's a shopping list that brings you immediately to the door of EuroCoupe – coupe supermarket to the stars.

So, by taking out the occasionally useful pair of rear seats, plonking an offensively ugly roof on the top and calling it a coupe, Mini has created one of the most singularly pointless and unattractive cars I have ever driven, quite apart from its poor ride quality. It does nothing on the road that the Mini hatch doesn't do at least as well, often better, yet is more expensive and less useful. Avoid.

This, the Mini Roadster, I have to say I find significantly less troublesome and its cleaner, crisper styling is only the half of it. Because it has a folding fabric roof that stows neatly away behind the two seat cockpit, there is at least a compelling reason for the excision of the hatch's two rear seats. In doing so, it actually manages to look better than its four-seat equivalent, the Mini convertible (with its awkward rear headrests and pram-like hood) and manages therefore to deftly sidestep the Coupe's inherent pointlessness.

Of course, it is a bit of a silly car for Ireland, and that is only partly down to our regular climactic conditions. It's not even not very practical, it's not practical at all, with a tiny boot and little in the way of extra stowage space in the cabin. Not only that, but the rival Mazda MX-5 easily shows it the way home in terms of driving position, handling balance and even boot space.

Still, the Mini Roadster is at least a fun little thing. Front-drive it may be but the standard Mini's up-and-at-em chassis is still a delight, more than a decade on from its original re-invention. The steering still feels meaty and rewarding when pointing the stubby nose into a corner and in terms of grip and agility it's hard to fault. A shame that the seemingly standard too-hard ride is there; it does rather spoil the mood when tackling some of Ireland's more entertaining back roads. Someday, car makers will realise that an ability to shrug off bumps and lumps is actually more help to making swift progress than all the low profile tyres and stiff springs in the world, but I suspect it will take the carpet-bombing (or impending financial destruction) of the (in)famous Nurburgring race track to do so. The fewer car makers that sign off their stiff chassis settings on that legendary strip of tarmac, the happier I am...

The 1.6-litre 120bhp petrol engine proves that diesel needn't have things all its own way in the Mini range, and indeed reminds you that you don't need to upgrade to a Cooper S just to enjoy yourself. True, performance is hardly electrifying, but then it's more fun to spend the time winding something like the Cooper up to brisk speeds than to simply stamp on the pedal of something more powerful and arrive immediately at licence-threatening velocity. Well, I've always thought so at any rate. That it's a crisp and smooth unit, eager to rev and decently refined is all icing. As is the low Co2 figure. Who would have thought, half a decade ago, that you’d be able to buy a fun, agile, revvy, gutsy Mini convertible and pay just €225 a year for road tax? Brilliant.

The electric folding hood is a good one, belying the need for a heavier, more complicated folding steel roof, providing as it does all the insulation and security you could reasonably ask for, at a fraction of the weight and complication and without the detrimental effect on styling. The little pop-up boot spoiler is a nice little gimmick, but rather a bit of a giveway to the law that you're pressing on, unless you remembered to flick the cockpit switch to raise it manually of course, officer.

It must be noted that the Roadster finds the Mini at something of a crossroads. A decade ago, we just had the standard three-door hatch in Cooper and Cooper S forms. Since then, the Mini family has grown from a sub-brand into a proper car maker in its own right, with the Clubman, Countryman, Roadster, Coupe, Convertible and forthcoming Paceman (a Countryman coupe of all things) all vying for space. BMW is currently working on the successor to the Mini, which will use a more versatile chassis that will allow, for the first time ever, the creation of a five-door version of the standard car. Hopefully, the current car's sense of simple, honest fun will transfer to the new one, as will its palpably good cabin quality, distinctive layout and pleasantly cheeky styling. A bigger boot would be nice, and please Mini, drop the Coupe altogether, OK?

Oh, but you can keep the Roadster. A nice little car, that.


Mini Cooper Roadster
Price as tested: €28,165
Range price: €25,660 to €58,860
Capacity: 1,598cc
Power: 122bhp
Torque: 160Nm
Top speed: 200kmh
0-100kmh: 9.2sec
Economy: 5.7-100km (49.6mpg)
CO2 emissions: 133g/km
Tax Band: B. €225 road tax
Euro NCAP rating: Not yet tested

Road Test: Mini Cooper SD

Price as tested: €31,080

+ Cool, cute, torquey, fun
– Not economical enough to make any sense
= Lots of fun but Cooper S petrol is superior


I’ve always had a bit of a thing for diesels. Most of my motoring writing colleagues will tell you that there’s nothing to beat the thrill of chasing the redline with a spine-tingling petrol straight six, or listening to the bassy woofle and rumble of a proper Mopar V8. And they’re right. But there is more to life...

And that more is better known as torque. Torque, far more than power, is what makes driving worth doing. It’s what gives you overtaking oomph, out-of-junction propulsion and that sublime kick in the small of the back on a quick take-off. Petrol engines can provide torque, of course, but usually they need the assistance of either a big turbocharger or a large swept capacity. Both of which tend to lead to big fuel bills, and if there’s one thing I like in motoring, it’s something that’s useful in the real world.

So diesel, with the price only of a bit of clatter and rattle, can give you big torque but without the nasty surprise on your credit card statement. And that’s why I was so delighted to have a go in the Mini Cooper SD.

As BMW itself says, a few years ago, it would have been unthinkable for a Cooper S badge to be glued on to anything other than a highly-tuned petrol engine. But times change, Co2 takes over as mankind’s primary worry, and technology improves. And suddenly a diesel-swilling Cooper S seems like perfect common sense.

The SD’s 2.0-litre engine isn’t actually related (at least not directly) to the 2.0-litre 188bhp engine found in the 520d and so many others. Rather, it’s a development of the 110bhp 1.6 diesel found in the Mini Cooper D, and as such was much easier to package within the Mini’s tight engine compartment.

143bhp doesn’t sound like much when you compare it to the petrol Cooper S’s 184bhp but then the petrol’s 240Nm of torque pales in comparison to the SD’s 305Nm. That’s good enough to twist the front tyres all the way to a 0-100kmh time of 8.1secs. Now, that’s just over a second and a half behind the petrol Cooper S, and that is where the SD’s case starts to unravel just a touch.

You see, were the petrol Cooper S some high-revving headache of a car, one that needs to be driven on the limit to give of its best, then the effortless torque of the SD would be the ideal counterpoint, making for a more relaxing drive and more accessible performance. But that’s just not the case. Because the Cooper S uses a turbocharged engine, its performance characteristics are closer to those of a diesel than of a traditional high-revving petrol engine. Just, it’s 65Nm down on the SD, but I guarantee you that, if you drive a Cooper S, you won’t come away thinking “Hmmm, that could have done with a bit more low down shove.”

So perhaps then, the SD can muller the thirsty, profligate Cooper S when it comes to fuel economy. Ummm, nope, not that either.

In terms of official quoted figures, there is a significant difference, with the Cooper S returning 5.8-litres per 100km and the SD a mere 4.3-litres per 100km. But it’s not that simple. Official figures are always at best a work of utter fiction and in my hands, the Cooper SD only managed to average around 6.0-litres per 100km, and that’s with the full battery of fuel-saving MINIMALISM systems, including stop-start and an intelligent alternator fitted. True enough, that means a Cooper S will be worse again than its own official figure, but I don’t recall having driven one and felt that it was exactly hoovering my wallets. And in terms of Co2, there’s nothing to choose, really. The Cooper SD’s Band A rating means you’ll pay €104 a year road tax, while the Cooper S’s 136g/km means you’ll pay a whopping... er... actually quite similar €156.

In terms of the way they drive, there is almost nothing separating the two S models. Ever since the Mini introduced electric power steering in its 2007 facelift, the old feel and feedback of the 2001 Mini has gone, replaced by heft and accuracy, but a distinctly artificial taste to the helm. The ride, as it has always been, is firm to the point of being jiggly on poor surfaces, but actually, I reckon that recent tweaks to the Mini have improved things. Certainly, the SD felt noticeably more comfortable on poor surfaces than previous Minis, even if it’s still no Rolls-Royce in that respect.

And once you tip it into a sequence of corners, all sins are forgiven anyway. It may be so much bigger and heavier than the original Issigonis Mini, but the balance, grip and infectious sense of fun are still are there in abundance. The SD is an utter riot to punt down a twisty road, and with all that torque, it does mean that you can keep gear changes down to a minimum.

Inside, the cabin is still a bit of a retro-mess in terms of ergonomics, but it is also still beguiling and charming with that big (and mostly useless) dinner-plate-sized speedo slapped in the middle of the dash and the row of neat toggle switches underneath. Space in the back is still essentially useless but the front seats are spacious and comfy, even if they are chronically awkward to adjust.

I honestly thought that the Cooper SD was going to be, for me, the ultimate Mini. I thought that it would combine the addictive hit of high performance that you get from the petrol Cooper S but with the fuel-sipping nature that grants you the warm feeling of a four-figure touring range. But it doesn’t. It’s still a damned good car, with an excellent engine and a terrific chassis, but all of that is also true of the Cooper S, which just happens to be €400 cheaper. I still have a thing for diesels. Just not this one.

Facts & Figures

Mini Cooper SD
Price as tested: €31,080
Price range: €17,250 to €37,150
Capacity: 1,995cc
Power: 143bhp
Torque: 305Nm
Top speed: 215kmh
0-100kmh: 8.1sec
Economy: 4.3l-100km (65.6mpg)
CO2 emissions: 114g/km
Road Tax Band: A €104
Euro NCAP rating: 5-star adult, 3-star child, 2-star pedestrian

Road Test: Mini Coupe John Cooper Works

Price as tested: €36,440

+ Lots of fun, cracking engine, image
– Not any better to drive than the hatch, but less practical. Not pretty
= For those who crave something different. The rest of us should stick with the hatch

You would have to question the wisdom of taking a Mini and actually making it less practical, but with the new Mini Coupe, that's exactly what has been done The rear seats are gone, the roofline has been chopped by about 52mm. The whole car appears to have been sucked, as if from an under-floor Dyson, down onto its wheels. Distinctive and aggressive it most certainly is. Pretty or attractive? Hmmm. Not so sure there. The roofline, which is meant to ape the style of a baseball cap being worn backwards (honestly), is awkward and moving the Mini away from its traditional two-box profile to a saloon-like three-box outline hasn't, to these eyes, been an especially successful operation.

So what then is the point of the Mini Coupe? If coupes are purchased mostly because of their looks, then its role in life looks a little precarious. And considering that the Mini hatch, with its tiny rear seats and small boot, is effectively already really a 2+2 coupe, then the case for a bespoke two-seater is looking ever more tenuous.

Perhaps this is Mini, and BMW, marking out its territory. After all, Mini admits that it's not the first to produce a chopped-top version; the likes of Marcos and Broadspeed got there first back in the sixties. Maybe then Mini is producing a Mini coupe largely because it doesn't want any other independent coachbuilder to beat it to the punch...

The serious intent behind the Coupe is of course to take the Mini's already engaging chassis and distill it a touch, purify it so that its responses are even sharper and more enjoyable for a committed driver. And in this aspect, the Coupe succeeds, albeit to a level that will most likely pass unnoticed by a majority of its drivers.

The dampers have been firmed up, the springs are a touch stiffer and the anti-roll bars are thicker and more resistive. In terms of the construction of the car, the Coupe uses the same basic chassis as the Mini hatch, but with the underfloor panels from the Mini Convertible, which add greatly to the body's stiffness, but bring with them a 25kg weight penalty. That stubby rear boot deck incorporates an electrically powered rear wing that extends at speeds above 80kmh and can add, claims Mini, a useful 40kg of rear downforce at high speeds.

Certainly, there's no lack of stability, always a worry when you see car makers adding in extending spoilers and wings. With the chance to give the speedometer a thorough exercise on the Autobhans near Munich, we can report that the Mini Coupe sits rock solid and stable at speeds up to and above 170kmh. Not perhaps the most useful piece of news for irish buyers, but reassuring nonetheless.

Find a slower, twisting stretch of road and the Coupe responds with the alacrity that we have come to expect of the Mini brand. The electric power steering, as on most every other car fitted with such a system, robs the driver of pure road feel, but it's weighted in a pleasingly hefty manner, and there's no doubting the speed and accuracy with which the Coupe can be pointed into an apex. No doubting either that there is grip and poise aplenty when you do so, and proper enjoyment and fun to be had. Far from being over-grippy and "on-rails" the Coupe feels alive and adjustable. On the test track it can even be coaxed into a gentle four-wheel-drive, if you disable the electronic safety systems, although we'd never advise doing such a thing on the public road.

And it's that gap between on-track antics and road driving that shows up the biggest chink in the Mini Coupe's armour. On a closed circuit, with the benefit of run-off and no oncoming traffic, you can really stretch the chassis' ability and feel that extra stiffness and responsiveness. It is there, and it is quite brilliant. On the road though, restricted by speed limits and sanity, there's just not enough of a difference between the driving experience of the Coupe and an equivalent Mini hatch to warrant the extra money, and the reduction in practicality. A Cooper S hatch, day-to-day, will be just as enjoyable to drive as a Cooper S Coupe, will be around E3,000 cheaper and still have back seats for when you need them. True, the Coupe's 280-litre boot trumps even that of the Clubman estate, but personally we tend to fill our seats more than our boots.

The engine range is probably the true star of the show though. In John Cooper Works form, the Mini's 1.6-litre turbo petrol engine is putting out 211bhp and 26Nm of torque. A 0-100kmh time of 6.4secs doesn't sound all that exciting, but it's the torque, and the way the Cooper S Works pulls hard in high gears that really makes this not just the outstanding engine of the Mini Coupe range, but one of the most outstanding engines we've ever sat behind. Most, of course, will buy a standard 122bhp Cooper Coupe, and with a sub-10sec 0-100kmh time, and 127g/km emissions, that's probably not a bad performance compromise for Irish conditions. Most surprising, especially on the track, was the 143bhp Cooper SD diesel. 143bhp doesn't sound like much, but with 305Nm of torque, the SD really flies, and in the hands of Mini ace rally driver Rauno Aa    ltonen (he of sixties Monte Carlo rally fame) proved that yes, you can opposite-lock a front-drive diesel hatch. The range is rounded out by the 184bhp Cooper S, which remarkably is actually a Band B car in tax terms, with emissions of just 136g/km. All engines, except that of the John Cooper Works, can be optionally fitted with a six-speed automatic gearbox.

Prices range from €23.410 for a Cooper Coupe to €27,790 for a Cooper S, €28,410 for a Cooper SD and €36,440 for the range-topping John Cooper Works Coupe. Those prices don't represent a massive excess over the price charged for a standard hatchback but still, there remains the niggling doubt that you're not actually gaining all that much for your money.

For the dedicated motoring fashionista, who also fancies themselves as a bit of a handy driver, a Mini Coupe might just make sense. For the rest of us, the hatch is a far better prospect, and in real terms, every bit as invigorating to drive. Next year's very pretty Roadster convertible may tip the balance in favour of a two-seat Mini, but for now, we prefer to still be able to get two elephants in the front, and two in the back.

Facts & Figures

Mini Coupe John Cooper Works
Price as tested: €36,440
Price range: €23,410 to €36,440
Capacity: 1,598cc
Power: 211bhp
Torque: 280Nm
Top speed: 240kmh
0-100kmh: 6.4sec
Economy: 7.1l-100km (39.7mpg)
CO2 emissions: 165g/km
Road Tax Band: D €447
Euro NCAP rating: Not yet tested