Hands-On With The Combustion 2025 MINI Cooper S Five-Door (F65)
We spend time with the 2025 Five-Door MINI Cooper S to see how MINI’s updated design works with the Largest Petrol Cooper.
If you’ve been reading MotoringFile over the years you’ll likely know we’ve always thought the five-door MINI Cooper was a strange product in the lineup. When it came out it felt a bit compromised, awkwardly fitting somewhere between the three-door Cooper and the much more capable Clubman. Has that changed with the Clubman dead, the Countryman larger and MINI’s new minimal design language applied? Let’s dive in.
The F65 MINI Cooper five-door is based on the previous generation F55 and is 100% petrol-powered. Like the all-new electric Aceman (which is roughly the same size albeit in crossover form), it’s intended to take the best parts of the Cooper and add just enough room for an extra set of doors. Unlike the Aceman the F65 Cooper five-door is 100% combustion-powered and will be available in Cooper C and Cooper S forms.
Like the recently released F66 three-door Cooper, the F65 is an evolution of the previous generation five-door. It’s mechanically evolved underneath with a completely new look and feel inside and out. The basic layout is the same albeit with slightly tweaked dimensions. There are no exterior parts (outside of the glass and the roof) shared between the two cars and subtle changes are everywhere. But even these subtle changes can have big effects. Take the lights, for example. MINI has pushed the headlights forward and made them slightly more upright. It means that this car feels more upright and a little closer to the R50 and R56. It also marks this car out as different than the sleeker J01 MINI Cooper EV.
Then there’s the taillights which adopt the triangular design we’ve seen on the J01 and F66. Here they actually feel more obvious because of how the rear hatch protrudes from the glass. Love them or hate them, they are more in your face on the F65 as compared to the three-door F66 Cooper.
In our time with the F65 MINI Cooper five-door we came away liking the more minimal styling on the outside but really loved the subtle tweaks inside. The general layout is the same up front but there is slightly more rear width than before offering a bit more room for rear passengers. In the US this is purely a four-seater due to regulations. However, in the rest of the world the three-seat layout becomes more doable with these revisions.
Worth mentioning is MINI’s new Vescin seats which are miles ahead of the old Leatherette material. While they don’t quite have the suppleness of the previously optional (and expensive) Lounge Leather, they feel great to the touch and promise better wear. And that new blue color looks great in person.
One thing that hasn’t changed is the tiny doors. Due to the size of the car, MINI had to shrink the front doors considerably as compared to the three-door in order to make room for the rear doors. Subsequently, the rear doors are also tiny. I’m 6′ 2″ and getting in and out of the five-door Cooper has always been something that required attention. This new F65 model is no different.
The boot is fractionally larger but the difference is negligible based on our real-world experience. Similarly, the car itself is fractionally wider than the F55 but without the two side-by-side and a tape measure you’d not be able to tell.
Performance Upgrades For The F65 MINI Cooper C & Cooper S
MINI has upped the ante in terms of power with both models while sadly ditching the manual. The F65 Cooper C is getting a 14% power upgrade going from 134 hp to 156 hp. This change takes the C from 0-62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 7.7 seconds. The more powerful F65 Cooper S gets a less dramatic 7.4% horsepower boost from 189 to 204 hp but sees a significant torque increase to 221 lb-ft. This is all driven through the front wheels courtesy of a revised 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.
| Model | F55 Cooper | F55 Cooper S | F65 Cooper C | F65 Cooper S |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 134 hp | 189 hp | 156 hp | 204 hp |
| Torque | 162 lb-ft/1480 rpm | 206 lb-ft/1350 rpm | 170 lb-ft/1,480 rpm | 221 lb-ft |
| Transmission | Manual/DCT | Manual/DCT | 7-speed DCT | 7 speed DCT |
This gets the new F65 Cooper S to 62 mph in 6.6 seconds (60 mph in 6.3 seconds). And keep in mind these are both likely conservative numbers knowing how BMW calculates figures.
Early Conclusions on the 2025 F65 MINI Cooper Five-Door
With the Clubman gone and the Countryman now larger, the five-door layout for the Cooper starts to make a bit more sense. Simply put there’s nothing in MINI’s lineup at this stage that overlaps with this car. Thus if you want the feel of a Cooper but need a bit more room, this is your choice. Put another way, for the first time this model actually makes sense in the lineup.
2025 F65 MINI Cooper Five-Door Product and Release Info
The F65 MINI Cooper five-door will begin production July 1st in both Cooper C and Cooper S variants. That means dealers in the UK and Europe will have cars on hand in mid to late July. In the US that should translate into early to mid August. Pricing for each market will be released shortly.
If you’re looking for a full preview of the new F65 MINI Cooper five-door, head to our in-depth report on the car where we go into details on MINI’s latest model.
F65 MINI Cooper S Gallery
I understand this was written from an American perspective where some of the new MINI models will not be sold, but it would still make sense to mention the Aceman which is clearly a new size between the Cooper and the Countryman (at least for us here in Europe).
Aceman is mentioned in the second paragraph? Besides, it’s electric-only and unless they’re made in Oxford or North America, will never make it to the US.
I guess you didn’t read the article, which does mention the Aceman and says that it’s about the same size as the F66 four door Mini.
What I’m curious to hear is about the missing middle seat and belt. While this car was only ever wide enough for two adults, it was usable for a child to go in the middle…was the interior narrowed for extra side crash structure or did they just take out the middle seat? Would be great to see a pic of it.
I never understood offering the Clubman and the Fiver Door in the lineup at the same time. The Clubman was (and still would be) vastly superior…..which is why I’ve owned 2!
With the Clubman gone, this makes sense to me. Heck if they would have offered this in JCW trim I’d consider one. I need the back seats only once in a while really, the longer wheelbase makes the ride just a little less choppy. As it stands this is the only MINI in the USA lineup that seems viable to me…..except they won’t give you JCW. I suppose you could probably get a tune to get the extra power, there is only one transmission option now so that doesn’t differentiate (though maybe the F66 DCT is different in the JCW I’m not sure)
I find the new MINI lineup quite sad for me. If they had an Electric option (Which they don’t in the US) I might be interested – I suppose they offer the Countryman in Electric but if I want an SUV/CUV there are many other options. I think small EV’s are a tough nut to crack, the batteries can’t be too big so power and range end up limited. It an interesting time for me in the Auto industry but my favorite brand isn’t part of the action for me.