2009 Mini Cooper Base Hatchback 2-door 1.6l on 2040-cars

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BMW names new chief for Mini

Mini is still transitioning models over to its new platform, and in the US market at least, the diminutive brand is dealing with a sales decrease of 15.6 percent in 2014. The low gas prices aren't helping either. But as of March 1, there's a new boss running the company across the world as Sebastian Mackensen (right) is promoted to the top spot from his current role as head of sales. Mackensen has been with Mini since October 2013, and according to Automotive News, before that he headed North and South American sales for Audi. Current brand boss, Jochen Goller is staying with BMW family and moving to China to take over as marketing chief for the BMW Brilliance joint venture. He had been the leader at Mini since 2013. Among several other personnel shifts, the BMW brand is also promoting Uwe Dreher to be its new head of marketing. He is currently in charge of those duties for the company in the Great Britain region. Personnel changes at MINI and BMW Group sales Munich . From 1 March 2015, Peter van Binsbergen will be Senior Vice-President, Sales and Marketing of BMW Group Germany. The 47-year-old mechanical engineer is currently Head of Sales and Marketing at the BMW Brilliance Joint Venture based in China. Mr van Binsbergen's career with the BMW Group began over 20 years ago when he assumed senior positions responsible for product planning, marketing and sales at BMW South Africa. He then moved to BMW Japan, where he was Director of Marketing, followed by a move to BMW Group headquarters in Munich, where he led the department responsible for sales channel development and the Group's "Future Retail" programme. Jochen Goller will move to China where he will take over an extended role with overall responsibility for Sales and Marketing at the BMW Brilliance Joint Venture in China. Mr Goller (48), who has headed up the MINI brand since 2013, already has experience when it comes to the Chinese market. During his 15-year career with the BMW Group, he was previously Head of Marketing at BMW China before returning to Europe, where he first took over responsibility for the MINI brand in Great Britain and Ireland ahead of moving to his current job. From 1 March 2015, Sebastian Mackensen will take on responsibility for the MINI brand. Mr Mackensen (43) joined the BMW Group in October 2013 as Head of MINI Sales.

David Brown's newest Mini Remastered is a tribute to James Bond's Lotus Esprit

England-based David Brown Automotive introduced a one-off version of its restomodded Mini Remastered built as a tribute to the Lotus Esprit Turbo driven by James Bond. It's a unique, unabashedly British creation that shares very few parts with the city car it started life as, and nothing but looks with the sports car that inspired it. Think of David Brown Automotive as the Singer of the classic Mini world. Its cars aren't cheap, especially when customers commission a one-of-a-kind build, but collectors get what they pay for. Its latest project resembles the Esprit Turbo that starred in the 1981 movie For Your Eyes Only thanks to a orange paint job with copper stripes above the rocker panels and gold-painted 13-inch alloy wheels shaped like the BBS units worn by the Lotus. The front end receives Cibie driving lights, while black paint on the wheel arches and the roof completes the look. The retro-flavored Hollywood inspiration is only skin-deep. Inside, the Mini gained white leather upholstery, walnut inserts on the dashboard, plus a 7.0-inch touchscreen compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Thicker carpet, more sound-proofing material and a push-button ignition integrated into a redesigned center console also appear on the build sheet. The extra equipment inevitably adds a little bit of weight. The average Mini Remastered tips the scale at approximately 1,630 pounds, which represents a 200-pound increase over a stock 1275 GT model, but it's nonetheless about 700 pounds lighter than a fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 Miata. Don't pay much attention to the turbo stickers on both sides; they were added to create an additional visual link between the Mini and the Esprit that inspired it. Lifting the tiny hood reveals a 1,330cc evolution of the Mini's naturally-aspirated four-cylinder tuned to 83 horsepower. It spins the front wheels via a five-speed manual transmission. It's bigger than the engine that powered the standard Mini, whose displacement never exceeded 1,275cc, and it receives a generous 20-horsepower bump that accentuates the go kart-like feeling. David Brown Automotive published a photo of television personality Simon Cowell behind the wheel of the Lotus-inspired Mini, which seemingly confirms he's the lucky enthusiast who commissioned it.

2022 Mini JCW Convertible Road Test | A champion of fun

The 2022 Mini John Cooper Works Convertible just wants to have fun. It’s not the best performance bang for your buck. Beauty isnÂ’t its strong suit. And the interior isnÂ’t making up for other shortcomings — LOL if you want to make use of the trunk or put an adult in the backseat. But dammit. The JCW Convertible sure knows how to spread a smile across your face. It all starts with the little 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder under the striped hood. Mini attaches one of the shoutiest exhausts available on any car to this engine, and itÂ’s literally popping and crackling with character. Lose the roof, and youÂ’re simply that much closer to the theatrics. Nobody expects this tiny car to make such angry sounds, but no matter what mode or setting youÂ’re in, the JCW makes it known that the drive is about to be an experience. We knew all of the above from driving past JCW models, but Mini made a number of changes to the 2022 JCW lineup that applies to both the Hardtop and Convertible. WeÂ’ll start with the looks, as theyÂ’re easily the most controversial of the bunch. Mini gave the JCW a totally new front with updated LED headlights and a much larger grille with squared-off openings for greater engine cooling capacity. It all looks drastically meaner than the previous JCW. What that car's grille was still ensconced in honeycomb, the face had a playful and friendly demeanor. The new JCW face is looking at you with a bloodthirsty hunger for air and incoming bugs. We will say that photographs donÂ’t portray it in the best light, as even though it may appear tall and menacing without scale, the MiniÂ’s small overall size dampens the grilleÂ’s effects. Beyond the changes up front, Mini has fitted the JCW with a new rear diffuser and retained its signature Union Jack taillights that are oh-so-fun to see at night. It all hangs together well enough, but we canÂ’t be calling the Mini cute anymore. Instead of resembling a soft, friendly rabbit, itÂ’s much more of a rabid raccoon now. Another important change for 2022 is a newly-tuned and optional adaptive damping system. Mini says new frequency-selective damper tech allows the car to ride a hair smoother on poor roads. Meanwhile, its stiffest setting is 10% more aggressive than before, increasing agility even further on the track, Mini claims. However! Our test car was not fitted with these dampers, and instead had the standard, fixed JCW Sport suspension.