Wheels24.co.za gets some seat time in an R56 MCS.
>Evolutionary rather than revolutionary.
>Yet the changes are important, ranging from new engines through to better safety for pedestrians to improved ride and handling and a bit more space inside and in the boot.
>In short, the essence of the BMW Group’s first MINI has been retained, but a lot of problem areas have been improved upon or fixed altogether.
>The main speeches at the world launch of the new car in Barcelona were in German and this, I suspect, was aimed at underscoring how BMW engineers have refined and improved upon the old Rover Group design and injected it with Teutonic thoroughness and design excellence.
There isn’t anything here we haven’t already seen or heard, but it is nice to see a perspective on the car after being driven on actual city streets.
[ We Drive the new MINI Cooper S ] Wheels24.co.az
embargo??
<blockquote>Although I didn’t have any hairy moments, one of my colleagues from overseas went from fourth to second by mistake and blew the top off the engine!</blockquote>
Yikes!! They killed a MINI!
It was a very good review, and it seems as we get nearer to the launch of the R56, it is evident that the driving character of the R50/R53 has not been lost.
<blockquote>Although I didn’t have any hairy moments, one of my colleagues from overseas went from fourth to second by mistake and blew the top off the engine!</blockquote>
Should this be possible? I am sure I did this a few times when learning to drive and I never blew the top off any engines…
Fourth to second is a strange mistake. I could see down from 5th or 6th to 4th and getting 2nd by mistake. If you manage to get into 2nd when at the MPH top of 4th (say 100MPH) and then let the clutch out you’d see how well the engine took to 10,000 rpms or so. Most don’t do so well for long.
I think I might have to get an 07 Cooper S to go along with my 05 Cooper! It seems the more I see and the more I read about it the more I like it. Still trying to get over the center stack, but I’ll wait till I see it in person.
“The Cooper S, though not perhaps as punchy right from the bottom of the rev range as the old supercharged version, picks up pretty quickly, and once on the boil – above 2 000 r/min – is easy to keep there.”
Interesting comment, since the new car (on paper) shows the torque kicking in so much earlier… you would assume more power off the bottom (like most of the other reviews have mentioned).
<blockquote>The Cooper S, though not perhaps as punchy right from the bottom of the rev range as the old supercharged version</blockquote>I thought this was an interesting comment too, as the current S is hardly known for being punchy at the bottom of the rev range. The writer also said this:<blockquote>I’d forgotten just how direct the steering is on the MINI Cooper S, how quickly and easily it responds and turns-in.</blockquote>which leads me to believe that it has been some time since he has driven the current S, and he would need a refresher before making a proper comparison for either the engine or steering.
Apparently there was supposed to be a press embargo on the MINI Barcelona event until October 10th, but wheels24.co.za broke it. So now MINI2 has followed suit with their own report:
<a href="http://www.mini2.com/article402-full-second-generation-mini-cooper-s-test-drive-report.html" rel="nofollow"> Full Second Generation MINI Cooper S Test Drive Report (MINI2)</a>
<a href="http://www.mini2.com/images/barca_one/slideshow.php" rel="nofollow">MINI2 Barcelona event slide show</a>
Discussion: <a href="http://www.mini2.com/forum/general-discussion/127679-full-second-generation-test-drive-report-online.html" rel="nofollow">Second Generation Test Drive Report (MINI2)</a>