Section: Efficiency
May 8th, 2008
A great article via the Paper of record. It would seem that those SUV drivers are really getting tired of having to swipe their credit cards twice to fill up their tanks.
In what industry analysts are calling a first, about one in five vehicles sold in the United States was a compact or subcompact car during April, based on monthly sales data released Thursday. Almost a decade ago, when sport utility vehicles were at their peak of popularity, only one in every eight vehicles sold was a small car.
Amazing stats. Oh, but there’s more.
Sales of Toyota’s subcompact Yaris increased 46 percent, and Honda’s tiny Fit had a record month. Ford’s compact Focus model jumped 32 percent in April from a year earlier. All those models are rated at more than 30 miles per gallon for highway driving.
Not to mention MINIUSA Sales up almost 40% for April.
continued →
May 5th, 2008
We’ve discussed BMW building a smaller, city-type car, in the past. It looks as though they mean to build it. And, according to Left Lane News, bring it to the US.
In order to comply with upcoming regulations in California as well as major city centers around the world that require zero-emissions vehicles, BMW is preparing its smallest vehicle in recent memory. The small city car, would be called Isetta and be a result of the recently launched Project i unit, charged with developing the car.
In other news outlets it’s probably worth noting that there are reports that this car still has an outside chance of being branded a MINI. You can read more below.
[ BMW to Launch Electric Car by 2012 ] Leftlanenews.com
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May 1st, 2008
While these questions are meant primarily for our US readers, any feedback is appreciated. With the cost of premium petrol in Chicago at the $4.29 mark we thought it was time to discuss how rising prices will affect you and your MINI:
Does this change the way you drive? Even though the MINI isn’t terrible on gas, the R53 MCS (for example) isn’t exactly stellar when it comes to MPG.
Could the price of petrol potentially change what you drive? Anyone out there thinking of selling your selling your MINI altogether?
Does this change what you value in the MINI?
And finally, at what point do you start to reconsider the fastest MINI out there and opt for the most effecient? With the new Cooper getting over 40 mpg on the highway and the Cooper D (for our European readers) getting getting over 70 mpg, we’re curious if it will start to look a bit more tempting.
And for those in the US considering these questions, remember the US still has it relatively easy at these prices. For example our readers in the UK are currently paying around $10 a gallon.
Apr 25th, 2008
Yet another country slated to get the MINI Diesel according to AUSmotive.com.
GoAuto is reporting that MINI Australia will introduce the MINI Cooper D within the next 12 months. Coupled with a 6 speed manual and a 1.6l 80kW/240Nm powerplant the Cooper D is said to be capable of consumption under 4l/100km. Add to that impressive emission figures of 104g/km and there’ll be a whole bunch of Hollywood actors realising they could have looked cool and still been green, instead of buying a Prius.
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Mar 24th, 2008
GoodCleanTech.com has a very interesting story about a BMW 520D and a Toyota Prius driving from London to Geneva.
It looks like that is exactly what happened on a 545-mile London-Geneva run, when a diesel-powered BMW 5-series posted better MPG stats than a petrol-based Toyota Prius hybrid. The BMW 520d with a 2.0-liter diesel engine and regenerative braking posted an impressive 41.9 mpg - about 0.9 mpg better than a full hybrid Prius. The difference may not seem huge. But given that the Prius weighs about 500 lb less, BMW’s fuel economy lead was significant enough to raise new questions about which drivetrain technologies are more environmentally viable and should become the future mainstream of sustainable transport.
Impressive to say the least. A 5 Series that gets better MPG than a Prius. We can only imagine how well a MINI Cooper D would fare.
[ BMW Beats a Prius in MPGs ] Goodcleantech.com
Mar 15th, 2008
MINI UK Press Release: Fleet News has become the latest media outlet to nominate MINI as a green winner. In the publication’s 20th Annual Awards ceremony, MINI was named Best Small Car 2008 thanks to the introduction of new fuel-saving technologies and amazingly strong residual values.
Cost-conscious, practical and desirable motoring topped the awards criteria. The Fleet News panel* cited the new Clubman model as key to the appeal of MINI for business car drivers, with one judge claiming: “There is no other car in the sector that drivers would like to have more.” continued →
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Mar 11th, 2008
Plenty Magazine (an environmentally focused publication) had a brief chance to sit down with MINI USA VP Jim McDowell recently to ask a couple questions. While the interview is short, it’s an interesting read for the MINI enthusiast. Here’s an excerpt:
Plenty Magazine: Does Mini have plans to offer a hybrid or maybe a more efficient car in the US?
Jim McDowell: We are very open to alternative drive trains. We have made no announcements about anything that we will be doing in addition to our current lineup. On the point of hybrids, when you already get 37 miles per gallon, where is the further advantage of adding those heavy batteries to a car and having to deal with the environmental aspects of those batteries at the end of the lifespan?
+ Mini Cooper: The car of tomorrow is here today / Plenty Magazine
Feb 27th, 2008
Greencars.org has released the 2008 list of the greenest cars sold in the United States.
The Best of 2008 lists the greenest models in each vehicle class. Included are the year’s top-rated subcompact, compact, midsize, and large cars, as well as minivans, vans, pickups, and sport utility vehicles. continued →
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Feb 16th, 2008
MINI UK Press Release: BMW and MINI’s market positions as the number one premium cars within their segments in London were strengthened today with the Mayor of London’s announcement of a new charging structure for entering the
capital in a car.
New legislation that comes into effect in October means drivers of vehicles emitting less than 120g/km will be Congestion Charge exempt. Drivers of cars emitting between 120g/km and 225g/km will continue to pay the standard £8 a day fee, while those driving vehicles that record more than 225g/km will pay an increased daily charge of £25.
The change in charging structure means BMW and MINI owners will be financially better off than owners of other prestige cars. All MINIs and most BMWs will remain within the £8 threshold, but there was further good news for many BMW and MINI owners. The new BMW 118d, the MINI Cooper D and the MINI Clubman D all fall into the new sub 120g/km Congestion Charge free bracket. This means that from October 2008 an owner of one of these models will save £2,040 a year driving in the capital compared to owners of non-exempt rival products.
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Feb 10th, 2008
Interesting artcle over at Leftlanenew.com talking about the possibility of BMW building an electric car.
While BMW is working on its fuel-cell technology, Jochen Schmalholz, head of BMW’s clean-energy technology, told Drive that BMW is considering electric vehicles to fill the 15 to 20 year void before hydrogen vehicles will actually be practical. BMW has even predicted that hydrogen cars could still be 30 years out. continued →
Feb 3rd, 2008
While we normally don’t put much credence to Auto Express scoops, we believe this one may have some legs. For one is matches much of what we’re hearing from our own sources. Here’s an excerpt:
A new range of city models is being planned by BMW, and they could be called Isetta after the famous bubble car of the Fifties. …it seems the project is being developed into a range of eco-friendly models to sit below MINI. continued →
Jan 29th, 2008
Official BMW Group (UK) Press Release: BMW Group has won What Car?’s coveted Green Award. With EfficientDynamics introduced across the BMW and MINI model ranges as standard in 2007, What Car? rewarded BMW’s efforts with one of most coveted awards in the UK automotive calendar. The UK’s self-styled new car buyers’ bible also announced its 2006 car of the year, the BMW 3 Series, as its ‘Best Compact Executive’ car for the third year in a row. MINI Cooper S retained its ‘Best Hot Hatch’ trophy. continued →
Jan 23rd, 2008
We mentioned this back in November, but it would appear that BMW is looking to start another brand to help it’s CAFE standards.
Winding Road has a great article to this point.
BMW’s current range of brands doesn’t lend itself particularly well to small, high mpg vehicles. Rolls-Royce is clearly out, and the core BMW products, despite the aforementioned diesels, are larger rear-drive sedans that may not mesh well with the sort of cars (front-drivers and crossovers) that will likely be built to bring corporate average economy down. As BMW board member Stefan Krause put it, “We cannot take the blue out of BMW and change it to green.” continued →
Jan 9th, 2008
In a word.. no. But before we get to that, let’s take a look at what is being said. Autoblog (among other sites) is currently running a story that argues MINI will be bringing the current MINI Cooper D to the US and the introduction will happen next week at the Detroit Autoshow. Here’s an excerpt from their post that sheds some light on their reasoning:
We believe that MINI may correct this at the 2008 North American International Auto Show in Detroit next week. Our guess is based on a press release issued by MINI today that, while saying very little about its plan for the Detroit show other than the Clubman and Clubman S would be present, included images of a left-hand-drive Cooper D Clubman. The press release also mentions that a talking point at MINI’s press conference will be “More Driving Pleasure, Less Fuel Consumption: The new MINI in the 2008 Model Year”. Couple that with parent company BMW’s announcement of two new models for the U.S. market that will be powered by diesel engines, the X5 xDrive35d and the 335d, and it begins to look like MINI will follow suit with a diesel of its own.
Before all you US readers get too giddy, let’s think about this for a moment.
The press release in question is same one that MINI has been using since the release of the Brake Energy Regeneration and Auto Start Stop features (both currently not offered in the US mind you) in late 2007.
Secondly the current diesel in the MINI range is a PSA engine and is not capable of a urea injection system that BMW uses on it’s new US diesel offerings without some incredibly expensive engineering and retrofitting. Neither of which make sense for what would be a niche vehicle in the US market. continued →
Dec 17th, 2007
The EPA has released the new, updated, fuel mileage numbers for 2008, including the MINI Cooper. The original mileage figures were calculated using a test and formula that were developed in the late 1960’s. The new test and formula have been updated to include testing such things as higher speed driving, running the A/C, cold weather starts. Needless to say the actual figures will be lower using the new procedures. continued →
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