Mar 2nd, 2010
MINI officially introduced the Countryman today in Geneva. The car will be on display throughout the next two weeks there before making its way across the pond to the New York Autoshow. But the big news wasn’t on the MINI stand but the BMW stand.
Official Release: Speech by Ian Robertson: MINI Press Conference, 80th Geneva International Motor Show.
Ladies and Gentlemen— Bonjour! Welcome to MINI! I’m always thrilled to see how many people come to join us at MINI. But that’s what this brand is all about. MINI is simply appealing!
I’d like to talk to you about three topics today.
- First: Business at MINI
- Second: MINIMALISM
- And third, the world premiere of the MINI Countryman
MINI celebrated its 50th birthday last year and it proved that it is, without a doubt, the most exciting small car brand in the world. continued →
Mar 2nd, 2010
Last week MINI introduced the new MINI Connect option on the Countryman crossover. The idea is the first of its kind in the automotive world. The idea is that your iPhone (more on that in a sec) plugs into the car via the armrest. This charges the iPhone and provides a connection to the roof antenna and a hardwire connection for all the data. The iPhone is still via Bluetooth so all the functions normally supported by MINI via Bluetooth are still there.
Why just the iPhone? According to sources MINI has approached several manufacturers but Apple has been by far and away the most helpful in development so at this point the iPhone has the priority. Being the smartphone market leader doesn’t hurt either. However MINI is also working on integrating newer Blackberry handsets in future updates. What’s unclear is whether the first cars with MINI Connect can be updated later to accommodate new phones (i.e. Android handsets).
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Mar 2nd, 2010
Due to some last second things that have come up, we couldn’t make it to Geneva. And that’s not a bad thing. Geneva will be relatively quiet for MINI since the Countryman was released online and the 2011 refresh won’t break cover until later this year.
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Mar 1st, 2010
The current line of MINIs has been a huge success for BMW in terms of sales. It’s also evolved the design language of the brand in a natural way that both gave the cars more aggressive appearance while keeping them classically British. However as is customary with all BMW and MINI products, a thorough refresh is coming. For the 2011 model year MINI will be nipping and tucking both the interior and exterior of the entire line-up. Along with the engine changes going into effect for March production (detailed previously and recapped below), the 2011 line-up will feature some noticeable improvements and a few new features.
Exterior Refresh
MINI design has amped up the attitude on the Cooper S while further refining the look of the Cooper and the One models. Let’s start up front. the Xenon and the standard Halogen headlights look similar to the current models but there are some changes that enthusiasts will spot (these changes are not seen in the images). The Cooper S retains its faux air intake but the Cooper will take the more pronounced bonnet from the MINI Cooper D to give it a meatier more menacing look.
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