The latest MINI 3 S- door is a friend of young boys and gals…
Is it because its small and fun to play with, it beats the hell out of my imagination but ask the locals in Bloemfontein as it revved its ugly but beautifully crafted bonnet- we tested the Black& Grey bonnet stripes design.
Destination: Macufe – an annual music and cultural fest that takes over the province of the Free State in October (my birthday month).
And yes, all and sundry admitted seeing this beau for the first time, in their City as it clogged 100km in a sec along the Nelson Mandela Drive, as we took on top German brands- it was unbearable and unrealistic to imagine.
It boasts a 141kw power. We used the petrol derivative and transmission –sports automatic.
Well, welcome to the world of remastered MINI S. It’s center of gravity handling and exhilarating go-kart feeling is superb- now wonder BMW still pride itself with its association.
Lifted from the previous model but don’t expect enough leg-room, that’s the only snag with the new petrol derivative. The boot Boot space at 211-731 L (could only carry sneakers and make-up bags), finish & klaar.
However, the interior and new features such as the the centre armrest now opens up to deliver a wireless charging bay and real-time traffic is available as an option, the infotainment system is now also Apple CarPlay ready.
The MiniYours personalisation options are further enhanced with the ability to put a name on the honeycomb plastic adjacent to the side indicators. The list of individual touches you can make goes on forever and carries on inside, where you can choose your own design for the passenger dash mount… ours had a blue Union Jack motif.
Engine hops onto boost a small kick of torque steer, before the ‘wheel smooths out and normals steering resumes. It’s nothing to be afraid of, just make sure you’re paying attention and holding the wheel, these sorts of forces can be a bit tricky to deal with at the Mini’s power levels.
Cooper track width: 1,485 front and rear. All figures in mm.
Thankfully, Bloem or a ‘City of Roses’ as it is known by locals does not have the usual hair-pin turns like in other provinces. But that would not be an issue with John Cooper Works, it held its own.
The 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, in turn, is slick and brisk and unlikely to disappoint, especially if you commute in traffic.
Alas in (Bloem dololo traffic) suffice to say traffic officers were in full force usually at this time of the year.
Mini is a British automotive marque, owned by BMW since 2000, and used by them for a range of small cars. The word Mini has been used in car model names since 1959, and in 1969 it became a marque in its own right when the name “Mini” replaced the separate “Austin Mini” and “Morris Mini” car model names. Got it…?
It has the air-scoop in the bonnet, track-style grille, iconic “S” emblem and provides lower intakes.
Ed Note. I hope a certain musician will NOT ponder coming closer to this beau considering what happened having mauled school children due to drugs and binge.
Mini sells itself on individuality and its cars are bought with the seemingly infinite trim/wheel/roof/bonnet/dash options you can choose from, something you don’t get from the others.
The facelifted Mini is covered by 5-year/100 000 km maintenance plans.
It retails for R428 300
Verdict
Performance 1-10 (7)
Fuel (Petrol) 1-10 (6)
