a New...New Mini = Newer?
12-22-2004, 09:31 AM
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a New...New Mini = Newer? It's a second generation retro......is that possible?
From Autocar
Based on today’s chassis with its front strut and rear multi-link Z-axle suspension, the new Mini will be a similar size to today’s car, growing just a few millimetres in length, width, wheelbase and height. That will keep it at 3.6m long with a 2.4m long wheelbase, ensuring that the wheel-at-each-corner proportions remain.
Designers will also resist the temptation to extend the rear overhang to create a bigger boot. ‘There are always pressures to make a new car bigger, but the Mini has to be small, otherwise it isn’t a Mini,’ said a source.
As a result the interior package will be very similar to the current car’s, with detail changes to components like seats and interior trim squeezing an extra few millimetres of leg, head and shoulder room.
...
The bonnet line will be higher to incorporate better pedestrian protection, shielding the windscreen wipers below the bonnet line, and also to smooth airflow over the windscreen. The headlights will remain as single, round units. Rumours of a twin-headlight design are dismissed by company insiders as ‘too much like Mercedes-Benz’. The bonnet design itself has been changed. In place of today’s clamshell, which is expensive to make, could be a conventional bonnet with split lines between the headlights and grille – a nod to the original Issigonis Mini.
The front grille has also been redesigned, as can be seen on the prototype pictured overleaf. Deeper and slightly narrower than today’s grille, the three-bar design is a more prominent feature of the face of the new Mini. The shape of the grille is also closer to the original car’s. Significantly, it is more upright than today’s design, to comply with forthcoming pedestrian-impact laws.
Under the main grille, the lower air intake is considerably bigger than today’s car’s. That’s because the new Cooper and Cooper S will be powered by turbocharged engines and their intercooler is located low down at the front of the car.
The car pictured in our scoop photos (right) has to mimic the exact shape of the new Mini’s nose, because it is testing the new P105 version of the family of engines co-developed with Peugeot and Citroën. These engines will transform the Mini, whose main weakness has been its gruff, iron-block single-cam engine, developed in the late 1990s for BMW by Chrysler.
‘We’re confident that we have a very smooth, strong-performing engine with good economy. This is a very good engine,’ said Erich Sonntag, BMW’s project manager for the new engine.
The new Mini will again be offered with a choice of three 1.6-litre engines, with the entry-level One and best-selling Cooper each getting a worthwhile boost in power. The One will produce 115bhp and 117lb ft of torque (up from 89 and 103), the Cooper 143bhp and 176lb ft of torque (up from 113 and 110), and the Cooper S 168bhp (the same as today’s offering). No torque figure is available yet for the S. The One’s 1.6-litre unit will be naturally aspirated, while both Cooper and Cooper S will get turbochargers.
...
With a turbo replacing a supercharger in the S, the tuning potential will only be limited by concerns of reliability. Today’s Works makes 210bhp, but in future that should rise to as much as 230bhp. BMW technicians and Cooper Garages are already working on the project.
With the launch still over two years away, possibly following a first showing at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, prices are unconfirmed, but a One is likely to start at around £11,000, a low-power Cooper around £12,500, the high-power version £14,000 and the S £16,000.
There’s still a long way to go until the Mini is replaced, but it’s already shaping up to be a major event in 2007.
Based on today’s chassis with its front strut and rear multi-link Z-axle suspension, the new Mini will be a similar size to today’s car, growing just a few millimetres in length, width, wheelbase and height. That will keep it at 3.6m long with a 2.4m long wheelbase, ensuring that the wheel-at-each-corner proportions remain.
Designers will also resist the temptation to extend the rear overhang to create a bigger boot. ‘There are always pressures to make a new car bigger, but the Mini has to be small, otherwise it isn’t a Mini,’ said a source.
As a result the interior package will be very similar to the current car’s, with detail changes to components like seats and interior trim squeezing an extra few millimetres of leg, head and shoulder room.
...
The bonnet line will be higher to incorporate better pedestrian protection, shielding the windscreen wipers below the bonnet line, and also to smooth airflow over the windscreen. The headlights will remain as single, round units. Rumours of a twin-headlight design are dismissed by company insiders as ‘too much like Mercedes-Benz’. The bonnet design itself has been changed. In place of today’s clamshell, which is expensive to make, could be a conventional bonnet with split lines between the headlights and grille – a nod to the original Issigonis Mini.
The front grille has also been redesigned, as can be seen on the prototype pictured overleaf. Deeper and slightly narrower than today’s grille, the three-bar design is a more prominent feature of the face of the new Mini. The shape of the grille is also closer to the original car’s. Significantly, it is more upright than today’s design, to comply with forthcoming pedestrian-impact laws.
Under the main grille, the lower air intake is considerably bigger than today’s car’s. That’s because the new Cooper and Cooper S will be powered by turbocharged engines and their intercooler is located low down at the front of the car.
The car pictured in our scoop photos (right) has to mimic the exact shape of the new Mini’s nose, because it is testing the new P105 version of the family of engines co-developed with Peugeot and Citroën. These engines will transform the Mini, whose main weakness has been its gruff, iron-block single-cam engine, developed in the late 1990s for BMW by Chrysler.
‘We’re confident that we have a very smooth, strong-performing engine with good economy. This is a very good engine,’ said Erich Sonntag, BMW’s project manager for the new engine.
The new Mini will again be offered with a choice of three 1.6-litre engines, with the entry-level One and best-selling Cooper each getting a worthwhile boost in power. The One will produce 115bhp and 117lb ft of torque (up from 89 and 103), the Cooper 143bhp and 176lb ft of torque (up from 113 and 110), and the Cooper S 168bhp (the same as today’s offering). No torque figure is available yet for the S. The One’s 1.6-litre unit will be naturally aspirated, while both Cooper and Cooper S will get turbochargers.
...
With a turbo replacing a supercharger in the S, the tuning potential will only be limited by concerns of reliability. Today’s Works makes 210bhp, but in future that should rise to as much as 230bhp. BMW technicians and Cooper Garages are already working on the project.
With the launch still over two years away, possibly following a first showing at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, prices are unconfirmed, but a One is likely to start at around £11,000, a low-power Cooper around £12,500, the high-power version £14,000 and the S £16,000.
There’s still a long way to go until the Mini is replaced, but it’s already shaping up to be a major event in 2007.
12-22-2004, 01:17 PM
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Mini Coopers... I never took much of an interest in them except as a very small car for Europe. Then I saw "Italian Job" and I started to like them more. Pretty cool car, I like the new hood and extra HP and a turbo will definately give it some potential.
12-23-2004, 08:30 AM
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The Mini is an awesome little car. A coworker of mine has one, and you would not believe how much room is in these cars! They are TINY on the outside, but HUGE on the inside. I'm 6'1", and fit COMFORTABLY in the passenger seat of this car, and still felt like I had room.
12-23-2004, 09:15 AM
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The Mini Cooper is the "New Beetle for men" 
Hell I've half considered getting one as a beater car for hauling the dog around and zipping around the city. They're fairly cheap, fun to drive and as Pen mentioned they have lots of room.
-Adam
Hell I've half considered getting one as a beater car for hauling the dog around and zipping around the city. They're fairly cheap, fun to drive and as Pen mentioned they have lots of room.
-Adam
