Gabe

I received some interesting details about the MINI Cabrio yesterday from a local dealer who said that they’ve now all seen photos.

First the top is a pretty unique folding piece that doesn’t take up passenger space or room in the boot. Even better it manages to fold down to something smaller than the hump that you see on the New Beetle convertible (as you can see here). Further the boot actually folds down a la the original Mini.

In this photo you can see a very early prototype of the roof and how it folds back.

You’ll also notice in that photo the body colored plastics inside. This will be standard on the Cabrio and may make it to the rest of the line eventually. No word yet if those seats will make production though.

I’d expect officials photos to either be leaked or presented to the press by the end of the summer. US pricing will probably be announced the early part of next year paving the way for the rollout to be in the latter half of ’04. No word on whether the Cooper and the Cooper S Cabrio will be a staggered roll-out or released simultaneously. As always for more information about the MINI Cabrio check out the dedicated Cabrio info section.