Wow so much grrrr for so much aawww, what I mean by this is that of the expression "never judge a book by its cover" and this is exactly one of those cars. Unless you've gone for the John Cooper 50th anniversary Mini which is fitted with a spoiler and 17" sporty alloys; also known as the chav pack, you will be thinking look at that cute little mini with that gorgeous girl sat inside with the roof divorced. That Mini wouldn't be able to out do my new Golf GT TDI. Until the lights turn green and before you know it that supercharger has turned that beauty therapist into an astronaut and that you didn't even say the first digit of your mobile number before the Mini has rocketed off into thin air.
I think this car is one of the most exciting around to drive, first impressions as I looked at the vehicle were that I could see its priority is style; with the round headlights, its slick bubble shape, convertible soft top and air intake for the supercharger it really stands out on the road. Once inside I noticed the front was spacious with plenty of leg room and electronically adjustable seats. The seats are beefed up leather which keeps you firmly tucked in. The dials are coated in a silver plastic skirting, along with a variety of different trims available for the interior, it also comes equipped with a chrome gear stick and the needles glow orange at night. Although the space in the front is plenty the same couldn't be said for the back from which you will need to keep the roof down if your higher than Frodo Baggins. The switches inside the Mini are brilliant, they flick up and down like in a fighter jet, i felt like saying "check!" in a high pitched drill sergeant's voice after each switch had been used. Amongst all of the gadgets and leather is of course the sporty steering wheel which is small and pleasurable to grab, now let's get into driving the Mini.
When in an automatic it isn't as responsive as I had hoped for. Once your foot is on the pedal it finds it difficult to reach the optimum rpm that you would hope for pulling away. This will force you too tailgate the driver in front as you pull away from a set of traffic lights. As you get going you immediately feel how stiff the suspension is, it's absolutely bone shaking which is not helped by the firm seats. Much cannot be said for manoeuvrability either with heavy electro hydraulic steering to add too the drive, on an average sized road a 180 degree turn would be accomplished by the time Britney's shaved head has grown hair again. So far the ride comfort isn't looking great but what makes up for it is the handling and power. Being honest have you ever been in a go-kart drifting around every corner with you're foot to the floor? Well it's a lot like Mini Coopers. As soon as you floor it that aggressive supercharger sends the finely tuned 1.6 engine from 0-60 in 7.3 seconds. It gives you a real kick in the back, this speed carries on up until 137mph. The Newest John Cooper works edition has 211 (hp), goes 0-60 in 6.5 seconds and has a top speed of 148mph which is a considerable amount more than the standard sport convertible.
Believe it or not this car can really handle, I mean seriously handle. With its lowered sports chassis and stiffened sports-plus suspension you could most probably hit a 90 degree turn at 60mph and drift round it. Although don't try that because that's just what it feels like it could do but on a serious note you can corner at incredibly high speeds due to the assist of it's chassis designed by BMW and the traction control which cuts in as you corner at high speeds. Overall it's an extremely fun, good looking, fast car and as long as you can get over the lack of space and poor ride comfort it's £19,965 on the road price and £21.875 for the John Cooper Works edition.
