2012 Mini Cooper Clubman on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: Audi R18 e-tron Quattro wins WEC opener, Toyota Mirai goes to DC

The Audi R18 e-tron Quattro has won the World Endurance Championship season opener at Silverstone. Drivers Marcel Fassler, Andre Lotterer and Benoit Treluyer piloted the number 7 hybrid racecar to a hard-fought win in the six-hour UK race. "This victory is a dream start of the season and a great reward for the whole squad for the hard work last winter," says Audi Motorsport boss Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, congratulating the team. Audi's second R18 took fifth place in the race after a couple of unscheduled pit stops ate up precious time. Read more in the press release from Audi, below. Mini and Spanish designer Jaime Hayon are presenting new versions of the Mini Citysurfer electric scooter concept at Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy. The installation, called "Urban Perspectives" depicts an idea of the future of urban mobility. The imaginary living space houses two examples of the Citysurfer concept designed by Hayon. The first is painted to resemble blue and while porcelain, with dots and stripes to give it an upbeat look. The second uses more upscale materials like anodized metal, copper and leather to blend modern and classical elements. The foldable Citysurfer scooter can travel 10 to 15 miles on a charge, and is designed fit and charge inside the trunk of a Mini Cooper. Read more from Mini. Tesla has announced the locations of its first Superchargers in Australia. It will install eight charging booths at the Goulburn Visitor's Centre, about 120 miles southwest of Sydney. The Goulburn superchargers will be powered by renewable energy. Tesla plans to install a network of Superchargers in cities along the route connecting the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane south to Melbourne. Read more at Clean Technica. The Toyota Mirai will be on display at the National Mall in Washington DC to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Earth Day. Toyota is a sponsor of Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day from April 17 to 19, which will include speakers, musical performances and, of course, Toyota's new hydrogen fuel cell car. "Earth Day 2015 is a great platform to educate the public about hydrogen fuel cell technology and the potential of hydrogen as a future fuel," says Toyota's Bob Carter. Also in April, Toyota will continue to enlighten the public about the Mirai and hydrogen technology in Union Square Park in New York on April 19, and at Waterkeeper Alliance's "Keep it Clean" comedy event in Los Angeles on April 22. Read more from Toyota.

John Cooper Works GP Pack transfers feisty visual cues to Mini JCW

Mini made just 3,000 examples of the 302-horsepower, $45,750 John Cooper Works GP. Now that they're all gone, Mini designers have put together a cosmetic kit called the John Cooper Works GP Pack that lends some of the genuine GP aura to the standard Mini John Cooper Works. The Racing Grey Metallic paint and contrasting Melting Silver Metallic roof, rear spoiler — in standard form as opposed to the lurid unit, and mirror caps are ported over. They're offset by the black engine scoop, door handles, and fuel filler door, red trim across the grille, and piano black headlight surrounds with black headlight and taillight inserts. The exterior Mini badges go all Johnny Cash black, too, and the 18-inch John Cooper Works Cup Spoke lightweight wheels show GP on their center caps to match the GP logos on the door sills.  The cockpit amps up its edge with JCW leather-trimmed Dinamica suede sport seats in front, bearing GP badges — the two-door keeps its four seats, though, unlike the two-seater JCW GP. A 3D-printed metal stripe marks 12 o'clock on the Walknappa leather-corvered steering wheel, Walknappa being a fancy BMW Group name for one of its Nappa leather finishes. Buyers that go the eight-speed automatic route will get 3D-printed shift paddles with more GP logos. Floor mats front and rear pop with red cross stitching, and yet more GP logos. As a look-fast instead of a go-fast package, nothing changes under the hood or under the skin, the JCW sticking with its 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder with 228 hp and 236 pound-feet of torque. Mini hasn't coughed up a price yet, but we're told the John Cooper Works GP Pack will be available sometime next month. Related Video:    

David Brown Mini Remastered Marshall Edition is amped-up

This year marks the 60th anniversary of British audio brand Marshall Amplification, and the company is celebrating with a special version of another British icon with the help of David Brown Automotive. The result is a limited run of David Brown's Mini Remastered Marshall Edition, packed to the gills with equipment and design references to the audio company. The Mini Remastered is painted entirely black, even most of the chrome trimmings. Gold accents such as the stripes, grille and wheel rims complete the Marshall look. The grille itself is also made to look like the grilles on Marshall speakers. The interior turns up the Marshall influence to 11. Even more gold accents appear from the stitching to the knurled control knobs and handles. The door panels feature fabric sections designed to match the speaker covers of Marshall amplifiers. The sound system features a Pioneer head unit, but all the speakers are from Marshall, including lower units with the signature white logos. Inside the glovebox is a pair of wireless Marshall headphones that sit atop a wireless charging point. And finishing it all off are the pedals with skip track (clutch), pause (brake) and play (gas) symbols. The trunk is the highlight of the car, though. It contains a Marshall guitar amplifier with its own power supply so that you can rock out wherever you park. A Marshall Bluetooth speaker is also packed into the back, in case you need tunes somewhere else. Only 60 Marshall Editions will be built. They all come with a 1.3-liter four-cylinder making 83 horsepower and 98 pound-feet of torque. The only transmission is a five-speed manual. Both left- and right-hand drive models are available. Pricing hasn't been announced, but part of the sales will go to a British charity called Music Venue Trust that has been providing concert venues funding during the pandemic. David Brown Automotive is taking reservations now, and deliveries will come later this year. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.