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We’ve already covered the engine and exterior design changes of next year’s range of MINI’s.  Now MotoringFile is able to provide us with a first look at the substantial changes to the MINI’s interior that will arrive with 2011’s new models.

MINI will be changing from shiny silver plastics to high-grade matte black materials.  However, the big change is the totally redesigned satnav system. The new navigation system will be hard drive based, feature MINI Connect and will be much, much faster.

You can read the original MotoringFile article here.

Yesterday saw one of the biggest regular event on the MINI calendar; the MINI Cooper Day at Beaulieu.  Organised by the MINI Cooper Register, this amazing event has taken place every year for twenty-four years. Having attended for the last six years I can testify to the fact that the amount of Classic and New MINI’s on display continues to increase year-on-year.  The show is now twice the size it was when I first visited Beaulieu in 2005; a healthy sign for a car entering it’s fifty-first year of production.

One of the best aspects of this show is the sheer amount of space available at Beaulieu.  The motor museum is surrounded by acres of lush countryside and every time you think this event will run out of space they just open another field!

Along with several other members of South Coast New MINI, I headed down early to help erect our stand.  The benefit of having so much space available meant you could have parked all 25 of our cars on our stand and still had space to stage a small football tournament.  Two other excellent New MINI clubs, with whom SCNM share many members, helped to expand the inaugural New MINI area of the show.  TotalMINI and Surry New MINI are both stuffed full of dedicated and fun members old and new and if you’re new to the MINI scene there is no better way of beginning your journey than to check out all three clubs.  Join a club and you realise there are thousands just as crazy as you are!

Of course, MINI Cooper Day began as a Classic MINI event.  As such, the amount of classics on display is amazing.  When you stand and look across the sea of happy little cars it seems as if every Classic MINI in the country is assembled in one place.  As always, there is also a small collection of MINI celebrities on hand reminiscing about the history of the biggest little car in the world.  As well as rally legend Paddy Hopkirk and BMC team manager Stuart Turner, we were also joined by TV chef James Martin.

You can enjoy a gallery of photos here.

Dedicated readers may remember our past coverage of the regular summer Poole Quay events.  Last May, July and August I accompanied other SCNM members to Dorset and this past Friday I happily repeated the experience. As part of the regular ‘Quay for my Car’ program, hundreds of MINI’s are regularly welcomed into this bustling tourist area for a relaxed early-evening static show.

You can check out a gallery of photos from Friday’s event here.

Those ever-vigilant people over at Auto Express have managed to snap a few photos of the new facelifted 2011 MINI.  Most of the changes you can see in the photos are cosmetic, but the engines will be getting a substantial makeover as well.

The Cooper S lower bumper has been altered and now incorporates functional brake ducts finished in chrome.  The revised rear bumper will incorporate a similar arrangement.  New lighter 17″ S-lite wheels will also come as standard on the Cooper S.

Both the Cooper and Cooper S will be getting new engines.  The Cooper will now have map-regulated oil pump which will help reduce fuel consumption by an average 3%.  Power will rise to 122bhp.  The Cooper S will retain the same level of fuel consumption and CO2 levels as the current model, but thanks to the new fully variable valve train power will rise to a meaty 182bhp.  These changes will also be incorporated into the 2011 JCW model.

You can see more photos from Auto Express here.
MotoringFile has more technical information here.

Behold the MINI Countryman; a MINI with four doors and with four wheel drive!  This is a real change from previous MINI models and, despite the name, there isn’t a similar model from MINI history with which to compare it.  MINI are promoting the new MINI Countryman along the lines of a ‘mini’ SUV; freedom, versatility, and fun.

The MINI Countryman will initially be offered in all MINI model specifications and the MINI Cooper D Countryman and MINI Cooper S Countryman will also have the option of an all wheel drive system branded ALL4.  The ALL4 all wheel drive system features an electrohydraulic differential positioned directly on the final drive, which varies the distribution from front to rear in an infinite process. Under regular driving conditions up to 50 percent of the engine’s power is directed to the rear wheels, while under more “extreme conditions” this can increase all the way to 100 percent rear wheel drive, which is certainly something never seen before on a production model MINI of any variety.

Luggage capacity is 350 litres as standard, which is 90 more than the Clubman and more than double that of the standard MINI. The rear seats move forward and back individually for the four seat model or in a 60:40 split on the five seat version. The backrests can also be tilted forward to increase capacity, for the three seat bench this is in a 40:20:40 split. With seats tilted forward, capacity increases to 440 litres. The maximum stated luggage capacity is 1,170 litres.  The MINI Countryman comes equipped with front, side and curtain airbags, inertia reel seat belts all round, and ISOFIX child seat fastenings.

The MINI Cooper S Countryman with ALL4 will feature runflat tyres as standard, a technology which MINI have recently appeared to be moving away from, and they will remain optional across the rest of the range.  The MINI Countryman will be offered in a range of eleven colour options, with customers of the Cooper Countryman, Cooper D Countryman and Cooper S Countryman having the ability to select a black or white contrasting roof.  All petrol variants feature a 1.6 litre (1,598 cc) four-cylinder petrol engine with twin-scroll turbocharger, direct fuel injection and fully variable valve management based on the BMW Group’s VALVETRONIC technology.

The MINI Countryman is obviously the largest vehicle produced under the MINI banner in the fifty-one year history of the brand.  Comparing the Countryman to the original 1959 Austin and Morris models produces a particularly startling comparison!  However, it’s important to realise the Countryman is part of MINI’s drive to push the marque into unexplored sectors of the automobile market.  The Countryman may seem large when parked next to a Classic MINI, but park it beside any one of the dozens of  AWD family vehicles available and it becomes obvious that 4X4’s have just become MINI!

Find out more about the MINI Countryman here.

This past weekend I attended the annual London to Brighton MINI Run.  Organised by the LSMOC, this event began as a simple run down to Brighton for a mere six MINI’s and has since developed into one of the biggest events of the year.  Roughly 2200 MINI’s of all ages attend the run with many more following along unofficially.

The gates at Crystal Palace open to campers on Saturday afternoon, although on this occasion I decided to travel up to the event on the Sunday morning.  Leaving Basingstoke at 0530, we arrived at the departure-point at about 0700.  Although the run was due to begin at 0830, MINI’s didn’t begin streaming out into the morning traffic until 0900.  This year there seemed to be real difficulties in getting us out of Crystal Palace.  I’m not sure what caused these excessive delays, but it’s possibly as a result of the Chelsea team’s open-top bus parade through south-west London taking place at the same time.

Finally leaving Crystal Palace at about 1150, we hit the road and arrived on Brighton seafront at about 1400.  Despite the weather now starting to turn against us (something that normally happens on the L2B!) we were able to grab dozens of photos of some fantastic MINI’s and meet up with several friends.  A special mention must go out at this point to our new friend Nazri San; keeping the MINI flag flying in the State of Brunei!

There is a gallery of photos from London here.
There is a gallery of photos from Brighton here.

A lot of people reading this will have followed the MINI’s long and successful history in worldwide motor sport.  In the fifty year history of the MINI, however, there cannot have been a more spectacular incident than that which occurred earlier this weekend at the Queensland Raceway in Brisbane. During a race in Australia’s MINI Challenge, driver Kain Magrow’s Cooper S clipped another competitor’s car before flipping over the crash barrier and sailing into the watching crowd!

Fortunately, what could easily have been a disaster resulted in only two minor injuries and Magrow himself was able to walk away from the wrecked MINI unaided.  “It’s amazing that more people were not seriously injured,” said Australian racing legend Dick Johnson.  A Queensland Raceway spokesman said the crash was “…a seriously freak accident”.

See a full gallery of photos (courtesy of John Morris) at the Daily Mail here.
A video of the crash has been posted on YouTube and you can see it here.

Today saw several cars from SCNM take to the roads for a Sunday morning run through the country lanes of Hampshire and Wiltshire. Originally devised by the late Max McKinley, today’s event was partially run in his honour.  Despite the unpredictable weather, and brisk wind on the Downs, a great day was had by all and the club was able to welcome two new members to their inaugural event.

You can view a small gallery of photos here.

For the third year running the current iteration of the MINI Cooper has been named by the influential Kelley Blue Book website as one of the top ten greenest cars you can buy. The MINI Cooper on sale today first appeared in 2008 and was immediately praised for underlining the brand’s commitment to being environmentally friendly. With big European car manufacturers being pushed ever-harder for better fuel consumption and lower CO2 emissions, the MINI brand makes an invaluable contribution to ensuring BMW remain one of the most environmentally responsible car companies in the world.  Not bad for a car that was once known for invariably leaving little puddles of oil and clouds of smoke,wherever it parked!

“MINI supports a sustainable economy – we take the resources we need and leave some for the next generation,” said Jim McDowell, Vice President, MINI USA. “The MINI was born during an oil crisis, and we work to remain true to the original MINI brand values in every vehicle we build. We are honored to be named by kbb.com as a 2010 Top 10 Green Car, and are grateful for their recognition of our commitment to the environment.”

In being considered for the list, each vehicle was required to offer fuel economy and CO2 emissions superior to the bulk of vehicles in its class whilst at the same time provide all the safety, creature comforts and driving enjoyment that would make it pleasant to own. In talking about the MINI Cooper being named to the list, the kbb.com editors said, “The famously responsive and eager little MINI Cooper is roomier and more livable than many imagine, and just as fun as anyone could expect. The fact that it also delivers impeccable fuel economy is simply the cherry on top of one of our favorite automotive sundaes.”

Read the entire Kelly Blue Book article here.
MotoringFile have more on this story here.

Last week, the invaluable MotoringFile revealed that work may have begun on a Hydrogen-powered MINI. Recently, BMW’s Technik division celebrated its 25th anniversary with a slew of photos of the super secret division’s work and one thing tucked away within the photos and information was a small piece on a very recent BMW test car that featured a Hydrogen fuel cell combined with a small petrol engine.

BMW has traditionally spent quite a bit of money on Hydrogen research. In fact they even brought the Hydrogen 7 Series to market a few years back. However late last year they publicly said that future hydrogen development was being put on hold for fully electric and hybrid electric vehicles.  British magazine Autocar is theorizing that this could end up not only in a small future BMW for also in larger MINI’s.  According to Autocar BMW hasn’t given the go ahead for the system but once they do things could be ramped up rapidly.

You can read the original MotoringFile article here.
You can read Autocar’s article here.