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MINI’s new Cooper and Cooper S aren’t so mini anymore — which is wonderful for the backseat occupants in your life, for starters — but the BMW brand had done its best to maintain the spirit. Under the bonnets are either a three-pot pushing 134 horses out the front gate with 162 lb-ft of torque or, for the S, an extra cylinder helping to produce 189 horsepower and 221 lb-ft of torque, with either engine paired to a six-speed manual or automatic.
16 Comments on “Los Angeles 2013: MINI Unveils 2014 Cooper, Cooper S...”
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What’s with the long face? And the LED light’s, and the crappy rear lights, and the “not in the center cluster” speed dial, and the wrong windshield angle….It looks like a proper Chinese rip off. The Mini concept is lost. Is it just me?
I’m with you. The new look is cartoonish and ugly. I think they styled the front end from the look on potential buyers faces when they see the sticker price.
I had an ’03 JCW and loved it! Kind of raw, not too refined. It made great sounds and was a hoot to drive. There are plenty of sound-deadened, bloated cars out there if people want them…bring back the original MINI!
The interior is SUCH A MESS. It looks like they forgot to organize it at the factory.
And the face of the thing now! That yellow one looks like a scared goldfish. The horn should go “OH NOOO!”
Agreed totally. From the first BMW Mini, it’s been all downhill. Quite garish.
Also, look at the cheap piece of fabric velcroed around the seat belt latch. It’s too tall for the side bolster, and I’m guessing they didn’t want to spend money reconfiguring. You get a cheap piece of felt so it won’t rub your leg.
Yikes!
The felt is actually there so the buckle doesn’t bang against the center console. Our first gen new mini has the same thing. It has never bothered me.
Ah ha! Functional, but I still dislike.
What’s with the big black plastic piece running across the grille? Subaru has a similar piece on the BRZ and more cars have these gaping grills. Assuming it must be covering a crash bar of some sort. Pedestrian impact standards raising hood heights, making front bumpers taller another possibility. Anyone know for sure the rationale behind these nasty plastic bumperettes?
I’ve assumed that they’re supposed to work like unpainted bumpers as they pop up on more newer city cars than anything, you bump a car when you park and you won’t loose any paint.
But then again the grilles right behind them so you won’t loose paint but you’ll loose $2000 from a repair bill.
The interior does look a lot worse than the outgoing model, in my opinion. Center-mounted speedometer or not, the second-gen MINI Cooper looked a lot more polished than this. This new one looks seems like it’s just trying to force classic MINI design motifs into an overall aesthetic that has moved beyond them. I can’t say that I have any complaints about the Cooper exterior, but the Cooper S’ front fascia is just horrible.
I bought a first gen BMW mini new in 04 that will be 10 years old in 3 months and my Cooper S is the best car I have ever owned even including a M-Benz 250 SL I owned in 1970 I have also owned it much longer than any other new car I have bought.
When I heard that this new version would be the 3d major engine change from the supercharged one in my car I wondered why another design so soon. Who makes this one? Is it a BMW design? Why the change ? Cost I expect still it bothered me and I was interested to see what the new one looks like…. What a mess the front is a disaster and the interior is not something I would want to live with in a rental… Let alone own for many years.
My plans were to shop for a new car just to keep up with new tech. I do love my electronic toys and the aftermarket Bluetooth hands free kit from Nokia I installed in 04 never worked with anything besides the Nokia semi smart phone I owned back then. And the BMW sourced sat nav system is showing its age ( rumor is that next year may be the last year for map data DVD updates for it) so I had planed to consider the next MINI as a replacement but it is now heavily crossed off of my list… A huge disappointment.
What were they smoking?
“For a clownfish, he’s not that funny.”
Loved my ’09 Mini. This one, I’m not feelin it. Why dump that sweet 1.6 liter mill for a 3-pot?
>> Why dump that sweet 1.6 liter mill for a 3-pot?
Theoretically lower cost, less parts, lighter weight, and more engine bay room – although I haven’t checked the numbers to verify they accomplished those goals. The U.S. base model with the triple does 0-60 in 7.3 seconds now versus 8.5 with the old 4, so there is some improvement in performance. The Euro version is lighter than the predecessor, but due to a couple of added knee air bags, the US version might actually be heavier.
Here come the 3 cylinders. Great. I’m so excited.
These motors suck. Period. You think a 4cyl is rough or sounds bad? Wait till you try a 3. Vibration is awful. And they sound like a tractor.
V8s dying off for V6, maybe boosted. V6s being phased out for 4cyl only. 4s going to 3s. N/A is a dying breed. I have liked the turbo 4s I’ve driven quite a lot, but better than a N/A 6? No way.
But I will never buy a 3. Just awful engines.
When will we see the V-Twins??