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Just a couple of months ago, Mini announced that they will expand their line-up with a new model and that model will be the all new Mini Paceman. The Paceman is styled as a coupe interpretation of the Countryman and it is set for a launch in the United Kingdom in March 2013. Four versions of the Paceman will be made available when it arrives, including the Mini Cooper S Paceman which will have a 0-100km/h timing of around 7.5 seconds. The seventh unique member of the Mini family will sit alongside the Hatch, Clubman, Convertible, Countryman, Coupe and Roadster. The Paceman has been created to appeal to a new type of design-conscious customer. The prominent horizontal lines and dynamic curved surfaces give the promise of sporting performance, yet there is an elegant simplicity to the overall form of the car. The three door Paceman is built on the Countryman platform. Bumper to bumper the car is 4,109 mm (4,115mm for the Mini Cooper S Paceman and Cooper SD Paceman), which makes it almost identical in size to its sibling. The upright front grille, complete with hexagonal radiator grille and broad chrome surround, gives the Paceman genuine presence. Its coupe-style stretched side profile features long doors, while the blacked-out pillars create a 'floating' roof concept, as already seen on the Mini Coupe. Available in either black, white or body colour, the roof gently slopes towards the rear of the car, ending at the spoiler. The horizontal arrangement of the rear lights, which accentuates the car's width, is a first for Mini. The Paceman is the only member of the brand's line-up to be identified by a rear nameplate. The car's interior has been designed specifically for this model. Its highlight is the innovative rear seat, which has been styled around a lounge concept. Two individual chairs provide generous levels of head, shoulder and knee room with outstanding comfort and support. Armrests have been integrated into the rear trim. A two section version of the Mini Centre Rail storage and attachment system (first seen in the Countryman) comes as standard. Paceman customers will have the choice of four powerful four cylinder engines, two petrol and two diesel. All come with a six speed manual gearbox, or the optional six speed automatic with Steptronic function for manual control. The base model will be fitted with a 1.6 litre engine that generates around 122bhp, with a 0-100km/h timing of 10.4 seconds. The Mini Cooper S Paceman will get a similar engine but tuned to deliver 184bhp and a 0-100km/h timing of 7.5 seconds. There are also two diesel engines offered. First is a 1.6 litre unit that makes around 112bhp and the flagship diesel model will get a 2.0 litre unit that churns out 143bhp. Mini

The Mini hatchback is close to its sell by date. Now in its second generation, the model has been around for over 10 years (since 2001). It was reported last month that the company were planning to release a special model for the final farewell of the Mini hatchback. It will be known as the Mini John Cooper Works GP II and pictures of it has surfaced on the Internet. This is not the first time Mini has pulled this trick. The Mini John Cooper Works GP was released when the first generation Mini hatchback was about to be replaced with a new model (which is the current generation Mini hatchback). The original Mini John Cooper Works GP was generally a tuned and stripped out Mini JCW. Churning out 218bhp from its 1.6-litre turbocharged four cylinder engine. The rear seats were removed and replaced with an internal strut brace, aluminium suspension components and also removed was the sound insulation. This resulted in a 40kg weight loss and a century sprint of less than 6.5 seconds. The above is pretty much about the original Mini JCW GP. Now let us see what Mini has to offer for the JCW GP

The Mini Countryman is basically a 5 door hatchback that unlike its namesake is actually popular with urban motoring instead of acutally being used in the countryside. Its tall and largish profile (especially for a Mini) means that it has been embraced as a lifestyle vehicle and as a good vehicle for soccer mums and the sort. But whatever the reason people have for buying the Countryman, they can now buy the Countryman in the uprated John Cooper Works variant. This 2013 model is set for its official preview at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show and it is due to be on sale by fall/winter of this year. This performance variant brings it closer in terms of spirit to the WRC Mini Countryman. Or so I'd like to think. Because if I didn't think so I'd just think that the 2012 Mini Countryman John Cooper Works edition is a tarted up, slightly obese vehicle that thinks that it is a mini-sized vehicle. So like any John Cooper Works (JCW) Mini, it will have all the go-fast bits that you'd expect. Exernally it gets a more aggressive bodykit, JCW badging, sports suspension and larger 18inch alloy wheels. Brakes, exhaust sytem and the 1.6liter engine gets the usual upgrading too. The turbocharged engine now makes 215hp and 280Nm torque with 300Nm available on overboost for short periods of time. Performance figures for the 2013 Countryman JCW are 0-100km/h in 7seconds and a top speed of 225km/h. As it has a reasonably small 1.6liter engine, the Countryman JCW consume 7.2ltr/100km in manual and 8.0ltr/100km in automatic. The Mini Countryman is basically an effort for BMW Mini to bring the Mini concept to those who have families and need the extra space

[extract] Mini has extended its model range with the release of the Mini Roadster which is slated for release some time this year. It will be Mini

John Cooper Works (JCW) has announced an upgraded tuning package for the 2011 MINI, which is available for all variants of the MINI Cooper and cabriolet variants. For the exterior, the stylistics touches include black border around the wheel arches, a honeycomb grille and side skirts that curve inwards that give the MINI models that distinct JCW look. The package also provide 17-inch light alloy wheels in a Cross-Spoke Challenge design. For the interior, the three-spoke steering wheel gets sporty red stitching on the black leather, JCW-badged door sills and a JCW adorned gear shift for manual gearboxes. The JCW tuning kit also provide power upgrades for the MINI Cooper S, MINI Cooper S Clubman and MINI Cooper S cabriolet. The twin-scroll turbocharged 1.6 liter 4-cylinder engine can be optimized to produced 200 bhp and 250 Nm of torque. To enhance the safety aspects, Dynamic Traction Control and Electronic Differential Lock functions are fitted to compliment the stability system.