BMW May Radically Change or Even Kill the MINI Clubman
The MINI Clubman is perhaps the best kept secret in the model line-up. Arguably better than any other car MINI offers at versitility, it delivers an excellent combination of performance, utility and style. And yet sales are rapidly dwindling (down almost 60% for July) in the US market and elsewhere in the world. Because of this we’ve heard rumors that MINI is considering radically changing the Clubman and/or simply killing it.
There are several factors at play. The four door MINI hatch may not be the best looking model the company produces but it delivers potentially the best bang for your buck in terms of size vs price. On the other end there’s the Countryman which is far more appealing to most in this age of the crossover. It’s also packed with a bit more utility (thanks to some clever packaging) and has a the rugged crossover appeal that is so sought after.
We recently spent a year with a JCW Clubman before stepping into our new JCW Countryman and the differences can be both subtle and striking. In short both are excellent products that, while arguably under-powered in JCW trim, compete very well against what else is out there. The Clubman is slightly quicker, more efficient and in our eyes the more unique of the two. Yet it’s the Countryman shape and added utility that people are looking for.
What is BMW’s Move with the MINI Clubman?
What MINI won’t likely do is kill the Clubman before it’s original end of life date (scheduled for 2021). In fact that may even be extended if rumors prove true that all of MINI’s current models will go past the typical seven year model cycle. So you have plenty of time to order. In fact we’ll be seeing a Clubman LCI in just a few months.
What MINI will soon be deciding however is how to replace the Clubman in its next generation of models. There are rumors of a smaller crossover and/or a total rethink of the Clubman. Either way the current wagonesque shape may go away.
What do you think? Should MINI kill the Clubman? If so what should replace it? Sound off below in the comments.
<p>I’d like it if MINI would bring back the hardtop based Clubman. But that’s just me. I don’t know if the sales volume would be there, though.</p>
<p>I agree with you that the F54 Clubman would have been more attractive, had it have been based on the F55 4-door Hardtop platform. It is understandable, however, why BMW didn’t go down that route.</p>
<p>The cost of building the F54 on the larger UKL2 platform is only marginally greater than it would have been to build it on the smaller UKL1 platform, and by moving it up into the ‘C’ class – Golf/Focus – BMW could justify a higher RRP. In any case, the high cost of manufacture and assembly of those ‘barn doors’ would be the same.</p>
<p>I agree. I always felt the R55 was the perfect balance of family car, hauler, and fun car. I thoroughly enjoyed by R55 for the 3 years I had it on lease. If it had still been available at least end, I would have specced and ordered a new one. The new F54 Clubman was just too big IMO. I also found the doors too small on the F54 (same with F55) getting in and out of the car as a 6’4″ 220lb guy. The longer doors on the R55 fit me better</p>
<p>I thought you might be interested in the attached pictures of a pair of Japanese R55s with pseudo wood trim, replicating the original classic Austin Mini Countryman as the classic Mini Wagon was called, a photo of which I have also attached.</p>
<p>I have previously owned two brand new R55s in succession. The second one was palpably better made than the first. In the UK we drive on the left hand side of the road, so the driver sits on the right hand side – the same side as the Club Door</p>
<p>On the first one, the driver’s door always shut with a slight rattle, whereas on the second one the driver’s door shut with a more solid thud. I suspect some further development on the Club Door had taken place in the interim 🙂 <a href="https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/14f9757da1169d0626f4358c67b0aeaac2421267c953cc3023fb058ca276d769.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc">https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/14f9757da1169d0626f4358c67b0aeaac2421267c953cc3023fb058ca276d769.jpg</a> <a href="https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/dddc3d4d1f9cb7b47972b9fecdb6c1a066bc66b72167d49d444dc70f4d39d18b.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc">https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/dddc3d4d1f9cb7b47972b9fecdb6c1a066bc66b72167d49d444dc70f4d39d18b.jpg</a></p>
<p>Those are interesting looking cars for sure!</p>
<p>One more photo – the last one, promise – of a particularly smart R55 fitted with the Mini Delta body kit.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mini-delta.com/b/products/detail4505.html" rel="nofollow ugc">http://www.mini-delta.com/b/products/detail4505.html</a> <a href="https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/115d301ad5c7ce473662c6e6f32f127bf498c1520741a93fd2c6fc7228a7099b.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc">https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/115d301ad5c7ce473662c6e6f32f127bf498c1520741a93fd2c6fc7228a7099b.jpg</a></p>
<p>I like the Clubman over the Countryman. I would have thought they would kill off the four-door cooper. If they feel they really need to change the Clubman I’d say make it a true wagon by adding 12-18 inches to the cargo hold with a very flat roof.</p>
<p>Agreed, the Clubman is (very arguably) the best MINI on sale right now…. but sales are sales and the numbers almost do not support it….just like the Convertible. Here in NZ anyhow.
It would be a sad day, but maybe they can try some new configurations?</p>
<p>bringbackminicommercial</p>
<p>I have a 2017 Clubman S and I love it. I got it to replace a 2-door GTI, and I enjoy the MINI far more. It’s the perfect size for my small family and it’s very fun to drive. When my lease runs out late next year, I’m strongly considering getting another, likely JCW. I insist on a manual, and there’s just nothing else out there.</p>
<p>Now, by my next car around 2022, I may not feel so bad about it being gone. Still, it is definitely a fantastic car that deserves more love.</p>
<p>I think that if they took the size of the first gen Countryman added some of the Paceman’s sportier aspects and the double rear doors they’d have a nifty crossover which is the kind of model they are lacking. It would then play in the same marketplace as the BMW x1&2x CRV, Rogue, RAV4, Crosstrek etc.</p>
<p>I’m a week into JCW Clubman ownership and absolutely love the experience so far. Had an e91 touring and then an f31 touring prior to the clubman. While very competent, the f31 just never seemed as fun as the e91. The JCW Clubman brings the fizz back and then some, in a tidy (non SUV/CUV), urban-friendly, utilitarian package that seats five – something that is otherwise difficult to find in BMW’s US portfolio. Sales dictate product planning, but it will be a real shame to lose the clubman as an option.</p>
<p>I think the Clubman Off-road Concept might suggest the right path – happy crossover wagon compromise.</p>
<p>Add just a few inches to the trunk, and (sacrilege) get rid of the barn doors. Barn doors are problematic in dense urban environments and have a safety issue with frame blocking the center rear view.</p>
<p>And oh, 100% electric option, with plugin hybrid as base. By the time this would hit the market, I can’t see 100% ICE being the right answer.</p>
<p>If you see the barn doors, you’re looking at the wrong thing. You should be looking OUTSIDE of the car…</p>
<p>Good on you for owning the original.
I hate the barn doors. I love most everything else but the barn doors. They are the sole reason I did not buy one. And if you’re suggesting by your comment that I don’t practice good situational awareness while driving, you’re mistaken. I always know what’s going on around me and have been able to avoid several potential accidents (and tickets) by seeing the full view behind me. I simply don’t like a blind spot in the center of my rear view.
Also I live in a dense urban environment and street parking is at a premium. When someone is parked close behind you, the barn doors make access difficult at best. A hatch would be better. If I lived elsewhere where this problem is less common, that probably wouldn’t bother me.
For some the barn doors are an endearing quirk. For me they’re a design flaw, especially when there’s another solution.
Just my opinion. You’re entitled to yours.</p>
<p>The two options I see (other than killing it) are:</p>
<p>(1) change the styling of the body to look more SUVish or cross-overish,</p>
<p>(2) be the first to market with a electric wagon.</p>
<p>Option 1 is redundant. Option 2 is not possible for BMW to execute. So ya, basically, it’s dead.</p>
<p>I appreciate the gains and functionality of today’s model, but I miss the look and dimensions of the old clubperson.</p>
<p>If I could wave my unrealistic, pipe dream magic wand, this super hero dies and makes way for a new super hero such as a Superleggera or a really small MINI (with no overhang).</p>
<p>The BMW X1, X2 and the F60 Countryman are SAVs of course, not SUVs, whereas the F54 Clubman is, unashamedly, a Wagon.</p>
<p>The F54 Clubman’s biggest weakness, however, is its lack of height. More often than not customers who buy SAVs do so for the security – whether perceived or actual – that riding higher provides. A taller car is also more comfortable to get in and out of and generally more practical to live with.</p>
<p>BMW X1 174.76ins L x 71.69ins W x 62.91ins H
BMW X2 171.70ins L x 71.80ins W x 60.08ins H
MINI F60 169.25ins L x 71.70ins W x 61.30ins H
MINI F54 167.44ins L x 70.87ins W x 56.19ins H
MINI F55 157.67ins L x 67.99ins W x 56.10ins H</p>
<p>Club doors should be replaced with a proper hatch, and then the car should replace the 4-door Hardtop outright, unless that would make it too similar to the Countryman to justify its existence. Otherwise, they should probably just drop the model entirely.</p>
<p>Would love to see the 2 door clubman with the passenger side club-door make it’s way back. I don’t like short, sedan style 4-door vehicles.</p>
<p>Shame. If I got back into a MIni it would be a Clubman.</p>
<p>If nothing else, MINI/BMW seem to be pretty good at creating instant collectibles: the Paceman, the Roadster and the Coupe…</p>
<p>True. At the peak of MINI R-series global sales in 2013, the R56 Hardtop and the R60 Countryman accounted for 75% of total sales. It took FIVE more models to make up the remaining 25%.</p>
<p>R56 Hardtop 42%
R60 Countryman 33%</p>
<p>R55 Clubman 7%
R57 Convertible 7%
R58 Coupe 3%
R59 Roadster 3%
R61 Paceman 5%</p>
<p>From a R&D and production point of view, the R58/59 Twins were effectively the same car, so it leaves the R61 Paceman wearing the crown for the poorest seller.</p>
<p>BMW should have had another winner on its hands with the Paceman, and the idea was certainly a good one, but it’s execution was appallingly cynical. Potential customers saw it for what it was – a 2-door Countryman, but with everything that made the Countryman great taken out, and a higher price.</p>
<p>The only issue with the current Clubman is the brake lights… why they didn’t integrate them into the large ones on the doors and put them in the bumper is the only thing wrong with this design!</p>
<p>Not the only thing, but a huge one for sure. It’s very odd that the brake lights are in the bumper and not in the HUGE lights staring other drivers in the face.</p>
<p>According to global market analyst JATO Dynamics, the biggest news from the first half of the year was the increase in the dominant position of SUVs, which now count for almost 36% of passenger cars sales worldwide. Almost 15 million SUVs were sold in the first six months of 2018, up by a solid 14%, a record for this vehicle type.</p>
<p>Volume grew in 10 of the 11 key regions, with double-digit growth in 8, and a drop of 4% in Japan. SUVs are very popular in the USA, China, Canada and Russia, but are still lagging behind other segments in Latin America, Japan and India. This is good news however, as it shows that SUVs still have growth potential in those key markets.</p>