09 Red S Hatchback 1.6l Low Miles Keyless Cd/mp3 Turbocharged Rear Spoiler Esc on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2019 Mini Cooper JCW Knight Edition Drivers' Notes | Drama in a tiny package

The Mini Cooper John Cooper Works Hardtop is the most performance you can buy in a Mini. More powerful JCW Clubmans and Countrymans are over the horizon, but those are much larger cars. A two-door hardtop with a hatchback is the traditional Mini shape, and we were thrilled to have a go in it. Being the JCW, our tester was equipped with the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that makes 228 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque. Those power figures aren’t tantalizing, but theyÂ’re enough to make this little car a real hoot to zip around town in. We also had the six-speed automatic, which costs $1,500 more than a manual — donÂ’t worry, the automatic is still fun. After adding options and the all-important Knights Edition package, the sticker was up to $42,565. That is far more expensive than a lot of cars with more performance than what this little Mini has to offer. However, the Mini lifestyle is about more than just performance — customizability is huge, allowing you to personalize your brand-new car to a much higher degree than competitors. Additionally, there are only going to be 150 Knights Edition models made, so youÂ’ll have a car that could be rather appealing to a Mini enthusiast in the future. Road Test Editor Reese Counts: I love hot hatches. Even in the hatchback-averse American market, there's a wide variety to choose from. There's the tried-and-true Volkswagen Golf GTI (I used to own a MkV), its more powerful all-wheel-drive Golf R sibling, the unfortunately styled but extremely fun Honda Civic Type R, and the soon-to-be-extinct (if possibly already) European-American hybrid Ford Focus RS. Few cars at any price point are as consistently fun as hot hatches. Good ones are always eager to play, even putting around town. The Mini Cooper JCW has always been one of the more wild of the bunch, a hopped-up version of the Cooper S that spits and pops and burbles like oil on a cast iron pan. Past models were for Mini enthusiasts that were willing to pay more for the most hardcore Cooper around. The current car debuted in 2015, and while I've driven a few current-gen Coopers, this is the first time I had a chance in a JCW. My complaints hold true — visibility isn't great and it's expensive for what you get — but it's a hell of a lot of fun and not nearly as punishing as I expected. The ride was pretty compliant on Detroit's moon-cratered streets, even with our tester's 17-inch wheels. It was firm, sure, but not nearly as bad as I'd heard.

2014 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman All4

The standard Mini Countryman is a bit of an odd duck against the backdrop of 'normal' small crossovers like the Mazda CX-5 and the Ford Escape, but I sort of get it. Apply the same winning Mini formula to a CUV, and you get a smaller-than-average entry in the segment, one that is far more entertaining to drive than the norm, more stylish inside and out and pretty expensive when cross-shopped. That list of qualities doesn't appeal to all crossover shoppers, sure, but it intrigues a big enough list that the Countryman has reason for being.
Now, add the expensive John Cooper Works package to the Countryman's already niche goodies list, and Mini starts to lose me. So, I'm getting the softer suspended, taller, generally less dynamically joyful version of the brand's core values, but now you're charging me at least $35,000 ($13k more expensive than the basic, front-drive Cooper Countryman and $7k more than the MSRP of the Cooper S All4 version)? What's that? You're going to make it look like a garish, tippy-toed tuner car in the process? Take my money.
Or, actually, let me keep it. I can swing with a lot of the weirdness that Mini has to offer, but this car pushed me past my limit.

2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP will start at $39,950*

Get your wallets ready, folks. The 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP arrives this fall, and we've now learned that the cost of entry for the potent little hatchback is $39,950, (*) including $700 for destination.
Aside from an adorably tough appearance, that just-under-$40,000 price tag gets you a whole host of performance goodies, including a turbocharged four-cylinder engine good for 218 horsepower and as much as 207 pound-feet of torque. No, that isn't any more oomph than what you get in the standard JCW Hardtop, but there's a whole lot more to the GP kit. For starters, there's a fully adjustable coilover suspension, not to mention a reduction in overall weight - at 2,558 pounds, the GP is 121 pounds lighter than a normal John Cooper Works Hardtop.
A Mini spokesperson confirmed to Autoblog that the JCW GP can only be purchased one way, and will be offered as an option package on the standard John Cooper Works Hardtop. Its starting price represents a $5,150 increase over a standard JCW model, and is the most expensive model in the Mini range (the next being the $35,550 John Cooper Works Countryman).