As a former owner of a Mini Cooper S hatchback, I know how much fun these little cars can be and now there are even more choices for those looking for a small European car that emphasises fun; the 2012 Mini Cooper Coupe. The first thing you’ll notice is the absence of the boxy shape and in its place you’ll find a somewhat sporty looking body; you’ll also notice the back seats are no more. The back seats were pretty cramped on the hatchback but they did come in handy for those emergency situations.
The styling of the new car is unmistakeably Mini, which in this case, is not a good thing. It looks like BMW engineers cut the top off the Cooper and went through the parts bin and found some leftover pieces of metal and glass and welded them to the top. The Mini Cooper Coupe looks like something you’d see a guy build in his back yard. I find it to be extremely ugly and stupid (Jeremy Clarkson voice). The styling of the car reminds of the “bowl cut” hair-style from the 90’s (picture on the right, just in case you don’t know what I’m talking about).
My rant is over, now on to the specs on the 2012 Mini Cooper Coupe, it will come in three trim levels, the base Cooper Coupe, Cooper S Coupe, and John Cooper Works Coupe. The base model coupe will have a starting price of $22,000 in the U.S., while the Cooper S Coupe will be priced at $25,300, and the JCW Coupe will have a starting price of $31,900.
All three models will come equipped with 1.6 liter 4-cylinder engines with 6-speed manual transmissions; a 6-speed automatic will be optional on the S and JCW coupes. The base model coupe will come with 121 horsepower and 118 pound-feet of torque allowing the car to sprint to 60 mph in 8.3 seconds with a top speed of 127 mph. The Cooper S Coupe and JCW coupes will come with turbochargers and direct injection; the S Coupe will have 181 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque and will do the 0 – 60 mph run in 6.5 seconds with a top speed of 142 mph. The JCW Coupe will have 208 horsepower and 192 pound-feet for torque and get to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds with a top speed of 149 mph.
Fans of Mini are going to hate on me for hating on the Cooper Coupe but IMO it is one of the ugliest cars I’ve seen in a while. I’m not denying the fact that this will be a very fun to drive car but I just can’t get over the looks and don’t even get me started on Minis’ reliability issues.
2012 Mini Cooper Coupe Promo Video:
2012 Mini Cooper Coupe Photo Gallery:
