Bulgarian car customizers Vilner are taking a page out of the book of Rolls Royce, creating a bespoke MINI Cooper S of their own. Dubbed “The Italian Job”, the car features plush brown Nappa leather and matching Alcantara throughout the interior tied together in a diamond quilt pattern. The exterior of the car features a matte gray wrap and contrasting matte black roof and bonnet stripes. Custom 18″ wheels keep everything moving. It’s arguably as lavish as the MINI by Goodwood, but this one-off won’t find its way into a MINI dealer near you any time soon. Full gallery after the break. continued →
Aftermarket MINI accessory makers Cravenspeed have taken on a rather ambitions MINI mod: a fully electric R53. Now they fully admit that MINI and others did actually beat them to this feat, but they’re taking it a step further. Cravenspeed plan to have their fully electric R53 wheels down in just about a month. Even more ambitions than their prototype timeline are their plans to offer the setup as a kit. Featuring a 245ft/lb electric motor, the Cravenspeed MINI EV should go like crazy. Estimated range is 60-100 miles, and their approach should make a fully electric MINI a rather fun and accessible option for the ambitious R53 owner. Follow along with their progress over at their project blog. Thanks for sending this in, fellas, and best of luck!
Every year MINI hands off a car to a series of designers to create a special one-off car to be presented for auction. This year it’s design team DSQUARED² and the car is a raised off-road version of the MINI Cooper S hatch. And yes the sketch above shows an R53. However we expect the car to be a R56.
Official Release: Dean and Dan Caten, better known as the designer duo DSQUARED², yesterday presented the initial sketches of the MINI they have designed exclusively for the 2011 Life Ball. Three weeks before the grand unveiling of this one-off model on 21 May, the Canadian twins are granting a first preview of what this absolute MINI must-have for men will look like. Since 2001, a MINI created by world-renowned designers has been a pivotal element of the Life Ball. This year, carmaker MINI is supporting Europe’s biggest AIDS charity event for the 11th time. Each year a legendary one-off MINI is produced for the Life Ball, the proceeds of which go to projects combating HIV/AIDS. continued →
Some people like to describe their tuned Cooper S as “fire breathing”, but BMP Design of Tyler, Texas wins the brag with the MINI Jet. The 420 hp, 400 ft-lb of torque, RWD monster is literally powered by a Rolls Royce-Allison helicopter engine (the 250-C20B to be exact). Complete with helicopter style lever throttle between the seats, it’s unclear if the MINI Jet retains its original engine up front as well. If it does, that would make this the most seriously badass hybrid to date. More video after the break. continued →
As many of you know, MINI made a sizable marketing investment in the Super Bowl this year — running an ad as well as giving away tickets to “the big game.” MINI also threw a Bootparty to celebrate and it included some game day themed MINIs that we’re told we’ll see round the country at similar events in the future. Looks like good times.
We’re seeing a trend lately of not just more custom MINIs, but MINIs in full vinyl wraps instead of custom paint. The latest is this offering from vinyl shop CoverEFX. Taking its cues from Louis Vuitton, the gold and leather trimmed JCW hatch isn’t just about achieving a particular look. Two performance packages are available, bumping the engine output to 232 hp and 249 hp respectively. While the car’s style certainly isn’t my bag, I think we can all appreciate horsepower. No word yet on whether it travels through time. More photos after the break. continued →
Tastes in custom cars are as varied as the rainbow of available metal flake paint they come in. Take this latest offering from Schmidt Revolution. They took a MINI Clubman S, added some custom wheels, a blue vinyl wrap, a Streetec air suspension, and then tuned the engine up to 200 hp. The best part (and no, I can’t keep a straight face as I type this) is the name. They’re calling it the StreetWorker. The grill badge is a nice touch though. More photos after the break. continued →
1st Gen MINI R50: One & MC Hatch R52: All 1st Gen MINI Convt. R53: MCS Hatch 2nd Gen MINI R55: Clubman R56: Hatch R57: Convertible R58: Coupe R59: Roadster R60: MINI Crossover R61: MINI Crossover Coupe 3rd Gen MINI F55: Clubman F56: Hatch F57: Convertible F60: MINI Crossover F62: Traveller
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Sections: Custom MINIs Jun 3rd, 2011 16 Comments 
