20 April 2011
New car report: A not so mini MINI
We’d heard that the new MINI Countryman was somewhat larger than its mini stable mates, but seeing it parked alongside its siblings at BMW MINI’s headquarters in Auckland gave us some real perspective as to the Countryman’s huge proportions.
Unlike the slightly stretched Clubman which, when compared with a standard MINI offers a little bit of added practicality and half a rear door on one side only (the wrong side for RHD versions!) the Countryman is a true full size hatchback, offering five door practicality while retaining the style and visual appeal that BMW’s clever designers managed to extract from Sir Alec Issigonis’s fifty-something year old original.
With an overall length of 4,110mm, height of 1,561mm and width of 1,996 (including the mirrors), the Countryman is 381mm longer, 128mm higher and 104mm wider than a “normal” MINI, and significantly higher and wider than a BMW X1 and only 129mm shorter than a 5 door 1 Series hatch.
Despite the dimensions, it's instantly recognisable as a MINI.
Interior design remains true to the MINI familiarity of the dinner plate sized centrally mounted speedo, numerous large round vents sprouting from the fascia panel and plenty of contrasting embellishments and retro looking toggle switchgear.
Five models are on offer, each with the choice of 6 speed manual or 6 speed automatic transmission options. Starting with the 90kW/160Nm Countryman Cooper Manual priced at $46,900 through to the 135kW/240Nm Cooper S Auto ALL4 (AWD) with a price tag of $61,900.
In between, there are a couple of diesels (a 2WD and an ALL4) as well as a 2WD Cooper S. Our test car was super well equipped, but had an eye watering $74,540 price tag – quite a lot for a MINI!
But this is no ordinary MINI. Our ALL4 Cooper S Countryman came with numerous fancy MINI options such as Chilli Pack, Electric Glass roof, Piano Black cockpit surfaces, go-fast stripes on the bonnet, storage compartment package, upgraded wheels and audio system as well as an anthracite headliner, rounding off the $12,640 vehicle option list.
The driving experience is a mix of the brand’s typically good driving dynamics, comfortably contoured seating, brisk power delivery and a certain joie de vivre that comes standard with all MINI’s. But there’s also a feeling that you’re driving something a little odd, with a sense of freakishness about it. The Countryman feels like it’s been fed too many growth hormones and like biggest kid in the class, blends into the surrounding traffic a little uncomfortably.
Maybe we’ll get over that in time, once we start seeing a few more of these on the road, but for now it turns heads and attracts comment from everywhere, with everyone having an opinion about it. When we drove it up Auckland’s Queen Street, people pointed, tourists took pictures and other motorists gawked sideways when stopped at the lights.
Practical and capable - but cute and fun too.
It’s a rare mix, with both technical excellence and cheeky styling which may well be copied by others in the near future – maybe we’re witnessing a new market sector in its infancy. It has qualities to satisfy both left and right brain buyers although the quirky cuteness may seem just a tad too frivolous for left brain analytical types.
Certainly, the Countryman is practical and cute at the same time. It’s safe and fuel efficient and perhaps offers a real alternative to other bland Crossover/SUV type vehicles which have become so very popular in recent times.
It’s doubtful that our ALL4 Countryman would ever be taken into real bush-bashing country, and while we haven’t put it to the test, its capability in such terrain might be limited. But for outdoorsy types who want to strap the windsurfer or the snowboard to the roof, venture a few metres off the black top onto the boat-ramp or icy trek up to the ski slopes, it would undoubtedly cope well enough and provide a great deal of fun on the journey to and from the adventure playground.
We like it, sort of (it’s hard not to) – but what's the buyer profile? We wonder whether it might be just a little too “niche”, and at almost $75k for our test car, it’s competing with some real 4X4 heavyweights
However, with a starting price in the mid forties, the new sector MINI seems to be creating with the Countryman just might have some legs.