On display at the MINI booth at this year’s Concours d’Elegance is the 2012 MINI Cooper Coupe, MINI’s new 2-seater that looks to inject even more driving fun into the MINI line-up. The Coupe becomes the fastest MINI available and purports to offer even more agile handling than the already nimble Cooper.

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Review by Gary Chan

Pros:

• Great fuel economy
• Sure footed all-wheel drive handling
• Sport mode that really increases responsiveness

Cons:

• Center rail is intrusive and limits loading options
• Engine noise from the turbo-4 when accelerating
• Premium sticker price for a non-premium car

I finally had the opportunity to drive a MINI and this one had 4-doors and all-wheel drive! Boy was this car an attention getter. Wherever I went it garnered comments and stares: my neighbor remarked, “I’m jealous … yours looks more aggressive than mine [2-door Cooper S].” People at church stopped to assess the body and look at the interior, and one kid jumped in and said the interior was “cool”.

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MINI has announced the MINI Cooper SD, a diesel version of their popular S performance model, which will debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

The MINI Cooper SD will include a diesel particulate filter and an oxidation catalytic converter for cleaner emissions and will offer the best performance and economy of the line. The new MINI Cooper SD also features a 2.0-liter turbo diesel, four-cylinder, 143-horsepower engine, a six-speed manual with an optional six-speed automatic transmission, Brake Energy Regeneration, Auto Start/Stop, Shift Point Display, and Electric Power Steering.

Will this fuel efficient, cleaner emissions car come to the U.S.? MINI has yet to make a final decision on a diesel-powered model for the U.S.  So for now, we can only dream.

Video and photos after the jump

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The MINI grows up.

BMW announced last week that a forth car is going to be added to MINI’s line up in early 2011. The new model is named the Countryman and it will be a crossover with optional all wheel drive. The new model will be the first from MINI that has five-doors.

The Countryman measures 161.3 inches in length and has a wheelbase of 102.2 inches. Compare that to the Mini Cooper’s 141.6 inch length and 97.1 wheelbase. The rather small increase in size means that the new model is not nearly as big as a standard crossover. A Chevy Equinox is almost two-feet longer than the Countryman. Ground clearance is higher than the standard MINI, but don’t expect to do any off-roading.

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MINI Cooper Consumer Reviews	MINI Cooper More Expert Reviews	2009 MINI Cooper S Photo Gallery	2009 MINI Cooper S Specs

>> Review by Peter N. >> Photographs by Derek Mau

Pros:

• Small, zippy driving experience
• Cool cockpit design
• Good iPod integration
• Low road noise

Cons:

• Ultra-stiff suspension setup
• Small trunk
• No rear leg room

Introduction
I recall on one of my first trips to Europe coming across a Mini Cooper parked in the street. I was awestruck that anyone would sell, let alone buy, such a small car. We took photos of it to prove to our friends how small European cars were. It really lived up to name. This was back in the 80′s, so it was one of the “original” Mini Cooper designs. Ever since BMW re-launched the MINI Cooper line in 2000, I’ve always wanted to see how the brand that builds the ultimate driving machine would recreate an ultra-small British car. As it turns out, just about what you would expect: a small but very sporty car that is simple, but well done.

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BMW is calling the new MINI Coupé Concept as “an expression of MINI design and the great ability of the brand’s designers to fill the elementary values of the brand with new life, using the options of modern drivetrain and suspension technology, and developing fascinating perspectives for the future of the brand on this basis.”

We see a horde of MINIs here in San Francisco. For major pickup on the hills; squeezing into tight parking spots and a fast, little darter with class and style, the MINI is a huge deal with drivers in the 20-35 age range. I’ve even seen quite a few post-60ish folks in MINIs. These cars represent a very solid merging brand in the Bay Area overall, evident by seeing a ton of them on the highways and roads of Norther California.

The new Concept Coupé is taking the MINI to the maximum, attempting to attract even more career-conscious drivers in their 20′s and 30′s. Corporate types and mid-income rangers alike enjoy the body style, the great mileage and performance. Fast AND green–they love it!

More photographs after the jump:

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Even though BMW’s well loved Mini is selling well, and the all electric version is selling better than their expectations, Mini can’t get off the dime and bring the diesel version to these shores, even though it’s been available, and selling quite well in the Euro markets. Why? First off, it’s the diesel engine. The current diesel in the Cooper D isn’t deemed clean enough for U.S. emissions regulations. Initially Mini suggested a modified version of the Cooper D could make the trip to America, company spokesmen now say it might have to wait until the next-gen clean-burning diesel can be developed for the MINI.

Drat! But I can see the engineering conundrum that Mini, and by extension, BMW face. Sure, BMW has a whole bunch of really nice diesels, and all of the modern ones burn very clean, but all you have to do is look in the engine bay of a 5 series Beemer, and into the shoe box they use for the engine compartment in a Mini and you know there’s going to be fitment issues up the kazoo. And remember, diesels are bulky little mills to begin with.

Another problem facing the Mini D (And all other diesels in the U.S.) is the price of diesel fuel which, for reasons beyond me, is kept artificially high via taxation.

Mini has a rationalization about this, of course. They point out that the price difference between premium gasoline their vehicles require and ordinary diesel is actually quite a bit more manageable. Also folding into the personal auto balance sheet is the operating cost of the Mini D. Those little brutes get SIXTY miles per gallon according to tests run in the U.S. by Bosch, so even though the fuel is spendy, owning one overall is not.

Source: AutoBlogGreen

The first time I fell in love with a Citroën was when I saw the François Truffaut movie, Breathless. The Citroën DS, circa 1958, was like a minor character in the background, looking very tres chic as it zipped along the Champs-Élysées. Besides looking like a work of art worthy enough to hang (yes, I said hang) in the Louvre, what gets me about these old Citroëns is that the rearview mirror sits impractically on top of the dashboard. That is soooooooo French! By far, the old model Citroën is one of my dream cars (though the hills of San Francisco would be a bitch on its suspension). The car looked like it could be in a 1950’s sci-fi movie in order to show what vehicles of the future would look like.

Citroën built almost 1.46 million DS cars between 1955 and 1975, thrilling its loyal drivers with its pneumatic suspension and distinctive sleek design. Owners of the original Citroën DS included Brigitte Bardot, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, and French President Charles de Gaulle who escaped an assassination attempt as DS escaped at top speed despite the fact that two of its tires were shot out. Yes, the Citroën DS was as magical as those who drove it.

Photographs that were leaked out prior to the Geneva International Motor Show after the jump

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By Holly R.

Pros:

• Super-stiff suspension
• Light-weight, small and extremely agile
• Drives like a sports car
• Superp acceleration
• Excellent gas mileage
• You can park this anywhere! EVERYONE has good parking karma in a MINI.

Cons:

• Appeared to not have a Bluetooth (even though there was a phone button on the stereo, I never could get it to work)
• Not all the dials and knobs were intuitive (I’m embarrassed to admit how long it took me to find the window controls…)
• One-touch window control was a bit TOO touchy

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By Adrienne Gruben

BMW unveiled the MINI E yesterday at the Los Angeles Auto Show’s press day, realizing BMW’s long hope of an electric car on the road. You remember BMW’s electric concept car pacing the 1972 Olympic Marathon runners. Ok I don’t either, but a German born American won that year. Was this his “KITT” from Knight Rider? The Germans love Knight Rider.

BMW CEO Dr. Norbert Reithofer spoke with actual glee about the 500 Mini E’s becoming available for an $850/mo, 1 year lease to Southern Californians and New Yorkers by year’s end. And like on American Idol, the audience will control the outcome. Reithofer asked the crowd, “What kind of infrastructure do we need? The important feedback will help us in preparing for production.” And he means it. “This is not just a car to roll out from one event to another. The MINI E belongs on the road.”

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