The new MINI

The MINI Cooper S is powered by a new 1.6-litre turbocharged engine with extremely high specific output of more than 100 hp per litre allowing a rapid sprint from zero to 100 km/h in 7.1 seconds and a top speed of 225 km/h. The innovative normally-aspirated power unit in the new MINI Cooper also displaces 1.6 litres and features fully variable valve control, accelerating this agile two-door go-kart to 100 km/h in 9.1 seconds, with top speed of 203 km/h.

Despite their much higher level of dynamic performance and sporting character, both new MINIs ensure superior fuel economy at all times,
the MINI Cooper S consuming just 6.9 litres/100 kilometres in the EU test cycle, with the MINI Cooper being even more economical at 5.8 litres/100 kilometres.

A wide range of optimisations on the engine, transmission, suspension, steering and brake system serves to further enhance the go-kart feeling so typical of the MINI. A low centre of gravity, wide wheel track, and the
wheels moved far out to the extreme corners of the car guarantee extremely agile and nimble driving behaviour at all times. The modified structure of the bodyshell as well as a wide range of safety features, in turn, help to ensure that the new MINI by far outperforms all international legal requirements in terms of accident protection.

Clear look and a friendly face.

“From the original to the original” – this was the philosophy in creating the body design of the new MINI. With this in mind, the entire car has been completely re-designed from the ground up, with many details and features being modified and enhanced in the process. However, in its exterior look the MINI remains truly unmistakable, the radiator grille and large circular headlights characterising the front end of the car and giving it a truly friendly appearance.

Contrary to the grille on the former model, the new hexagon radiator grille is now one complete, single-piece unit. The direction indicator lights on the new MINI, in turn, are fully integrated into the headlights, giving the front end of the car even greater clarity and an even more uncomplicated appearance, with just two “beauty spots” instead of four in the past serving as an additional eye-catcher. These are the positioning lights beneath the headlights also taking up the optional foglamps where fitted.

Although the new MINI is longer than its predecessor, this increase in length is hardly noticeable, with the car’s overall proportions being smooth, uncluttered and particularly harmonious. The larger exterior dimensions provide not only more space within the engine compartment, but also the foundation for even the strictest safety regulations scheduled for the future. Even today, therefore, the MINI fulfils the requirements for maintaining the pedestrian safety standards soon to be introduced, with the new MINI being approximately 60 millimetres longer than its predecessor.

The front end and front design of the car also serves to distinguish the individual model variants. One significant difference in looks setting the
MINI Cooper S apart from the MINI Cooper is the car’s more powerful and muscular powerdome – 20 millimetres higher than on the MINI Cooper – while another feature is the stylised air intake scoop in the engine compartment lid.

Taut side-line, powerful rear end.
Seen from the side, the new MINI is firm, taut and striking, resting powerfully on its wheels in a look well-known to friends and aficionados of the brand as that typical “stance on the wheels”. A characteristic feature is the seemingly uninterrupted “flow” of windows around the car, adorning the new MINI with an almost-complete, 360° band of glass.

The window line rises up slightly towards the rear end of the car, reaching a level 18 millimetres higher up the B-pillar than on the former model. This also allows the “greenhouse”, the glazed part of the passenger cell, to taper out more distinctly towards the rear end of the car than before.

All together, these modifications accentuate the wedge design of the
new MINI and underline its particularly powerful and dynamic look.

At the rear, the new MINI stands out in particular through its more distinct shoulders, with a sporting and powerful design forming a distinct counter-element to the longer front end of the car. But since the well-known proportions are maintained in every respect, the larger body dimensions are hardly noticeable.

The premium insignia of the new MINI, in turn, stand out all the more clearly, with chrome glistening on the door handles, headlights, rear lights and the radiator grille, on the tank filler cap and around the car’s window line. So it is fair to say that in its elegant look and well-balanced, compact structure,
the new MINI resembles a sculpture on wheels.

Upgraded Centre Speedo and additional toggle switches.

Inside, the new MINI has been fundamentally revised and updated,
with the intelligent design concept helping to reduce the number of instruments to a minimum.

Combined with the firm horizontal geometry of the interior and, in particular, the dashboard, the displays in their purist, round design characterise the overall design language of the cockpit. The Centre Speedo, which is also the central element of the interior of the new MINI, is the now even larger in size and with an enhanced range of functions serving far more purposes and requirements than on the former model. Now, for example, the displays and controls for the entertainment system as well as the display for the optional navigation system are all integrated into the Centre Speedo, while the rev counter remains a separate unit in its own right positioned, as befits a particularly sporting car, right behind the steering wheel in the driver’s direct line of vision.

The particularly slender design and shape of the centre console ensures extra space in the footwells on both the driver’s and passenger’s side. Not only are the structures making up the cockpit as such horizontally aligned, but also the control elements accommodated in one group in the Centre Stack right beneath the Centre Speedo.

The vertically arranged rotary knobs for the ventilation, the two cupholders integrated into the bottom section of the centre console, and the toggle switches carried over from Motorsport, are also typical of MINI in every respect. Indeed, these characteristic metal toggles serving, inter alia, to operate
the window lifts and central locking, are now even larger than before on the new MINI. And for the first time there are also toggles in the roof lining.

A round signal transmitter finished in typical MINI style now takes over the functions of the conventional door and ignition key, with the driver starting and stopping the engine by means of a start/stop button. All instruments and controls are naturally very smooth and easy to operate and are positioned at exactly the right point for optimum ergonomics.

Background illumination in five colours.

New ambient illumination included in the optional Lights Package sets unique highlights in the new MINI. Once again reflecting that typical MINI style and class, the ambient lights can be varied in five stages all the way from warm orange to sporting blue. Serving as discreet “waterfall illumination” from above and as indirect illumination of the roof lining, the door storage boxes and the door handle recesses, this very special illumination scheme creates a truly unique atmosphere inside the new MINI.

Natural wood, hand-sewn leather, and classy chrome as special interior options.

Available with a wide range of attractive options and special equipment, the new MINI meets all the demands of even the most discerning individualist. Featuring appealing materials such as natural wood and hand-sewn leather with their wonderful, unique fragrances, the interior arouses the emotions of even the most demanding MINI customer. And with the help of various trim features as well as the Colour Line Package available in different colours, the interior can be adjusted perfectly to the personal taste and preference of the individual driver.

The new MINI comes as standard with no less than 12 body colours, eight of which are metallic. The wide range of choice provided in this way from the start is further expanded by additional colour options for the roof, which is available in both white and black as an alternative to the original body colour.

As an option, both the MINI Cooper S and the MINI Cooper are available with Chromeline featuring chrome surrounds on the instruments and a chrome bar on the lower air intake in the front air dam, on the foglamps and the rear fog warning light on the MINI Cooper, plus, on the MINI Cooper S, chrome bars in the air outlet on the rear air dam and on the rear lid handle.

New turbocharged engine in the MINI Cooper S.

The MINI Cooper S is powered by a brand-new 1.6-litre turbocharged engine developing maximum output of no less than 128 kW. This superior power is provided by a twin-scroll turbocharger driven by the separate flow of exhaust gases coming out of two cylinders on each side.

This configuration enables the turbocharger to build up its extra power and boost with virtually no delay even from low engine speeds. And the effect achieved in this way is most significant, with the 1.6-litre four-cylinder power unit of the MINI Cooper S developing its power and performance in a style quite exceptional for an engine of this size. Maximum torque of 240 Nm is maintained consistently between 1, 600 and 5, 000 rpm, and when accelerating all-out torque is raised to an even higher peak of 260 Nm by a brief increase in charge pressure (overboost)

Variable valve management in the power unit of the MINI Cooper.

The MINI Cooper likewise boasts a 1.6-litre four-cylinder, in this case with normal aspiration, maximum output of 88 kW and peak torque of 160 Nm. Intake valve timing incorporates advanced control and management based on the BMW Group’s VALVETRONIC technology, and is naturally fully variable, with valve lift and opening times being adjusted infinitely and with electronic precision to the driver’s current requirements in terms of power and performance.

This innovative valve management ensures not only a very smooth and dynamic response as well as supreme motoring culture, but also low fuel consumption and optimised emission control at all times.

Engines with innovative features, six-speed gearbox fitted
as standard.

Both engine variants on the new MINI are fitted transversely and convey their power to the front wheels. Composite – instead of conventional cast – camshafts and a weight-optimised crankshaft are part of the lightweight concept of the all-aluminium power units. Fuel consumption, in turn, is optimised by a volume flow-controlled oil pump and an electronically controlled water pump for the coolant circuit – two technical features so far only to be found in larger and more expensive model segments.

The new MINI Cooper and the new MINI Cooper S both come as standard with a six-speed manual gearbox. As an option, both models are available with automatic transmission again boasting six speeds. And incorporating the
latest state of the art in every respect, all transmission variants help to minimise gearshift forces and ensure a particularly smooth and efficient gear change
at all times.

Electromechanical power steering for enhanced driving pleasure.

Like its predecessor, the new MINI naturally offers that go-kart feeling so typical of the brand and responsible first and foremost for the unique driving experience. Indeed, with its excellent handling and enhanced agility, the MINI is able to bring out its unique character even more than before.

Compared with the MINI Cooper, the MINI Cooper S has an even more sporting suspension set-up, and as an option both models are available with sports suspension for an even higher standard of driving pleasure.

New EPAS Electrical Power Assisted Steering helps to make the new MINI even more nimble and agile on the road, speed-related assistance ensuring low steering forces when parking and precise control at high highway speeds. In conjunction with the optional sports switch, EPAS power steering even offers a special sports mode specifically increasing steering forces for an even more direct driving experience.

Complete range of safety equipment.

Benefiting from its strong and stable body structure, the new MINI offers a standard of crash safety quite unique in its segment. In the event of a collision, optimised load paths within the body structure serve to effectively divert forces acting on the car, despite the short overhangs front and rear.

Reflecting the premium standard of the MINI, both model variants naturally come with a wide range of safety equipment, with no less than six airbags fitted as standard and serving to ensure all-round occupant safety on all seats.

Enhanced active safety is ensured in critical driving situations by ABS anti-
lock brakes, EBFD Electronic Brake Force Distribution, CBC Cornering Brake Control, ASC+T Automatic Stability Control + Traction standard on the
MINI Cooper S with individual on/off control, as well as DSC Dynamic Stability Control optional on both models.

The Brake Assistant on the new MINI detects emergency operation of the brakes and builds up maximum brake pressure as quickly as possible. A new feature is Hill Assist start-off assistance featured in conjunction with DSC and activating the brakes when setting off on an uphill gradient to prevent the car from rolling back.

The new MINI proudly takes up the concept of success already featured by its predecessor now looking back at a production run of more than 800,000 units and a growing group of fans and aficionados the world over. Proceeding from the high standards of quality, technology, and safety, characteristic of the BMW Group, the new MINI maintains its claim to leadership in its segment.

Making its premiere just after the 100th birthday of Sir Alec Issigonis.

The new MINI is built in the British production triangle formed by the BMW Group Plants in Oxford, Swindon, and Hams Hall. In recent years the BMW Group has invested GBP 200 million (approximately Euro 290 million) in the expansion and modernisation of this fully integrated production network, where the various tasks and functions handled by the Plants in Oxford (final assembly), Swindon (press shop) and Hams Hall (bodyshop) are focused clearly and consistently on the requirements of the market.

Together, the three plants currently employ some 6,350 associates, with the workforce scheduled to grow to 6,800 in the medium term. When that happens, production capacity will increase from currently 200,000 to 240, 000 MINIs a year.

The media launch of the new MINI in South Africa is exactly 6 months, to the day, after the 100th birthday of Sir Alec Issigonis, the creator of the legendary classic MINI whose concept, philosophy, character and flair all live on in the new MINI.

This revolutionary compact car was presented to the public for the first time in August 1959, front-wheel drive, the engine fitted transversely at the front,
short body overhangs, the long wheelbase and wide track making the MINI the role model for generations of cars to follow in its segment. And indeed, the special style of big city life, universal appeal beyond all classes and segments, and outstanding success in Motorsport quickly made the MINI a genuine milestone in the history of the automobile, with production of the classic MINI amounting to almost 5.4 million units by the year 2000.

The creator of the MINI was knighted in 1969 by the Queen and died in
1988 – at a time when production of the classic MINI had already exceeded four million units – at an age of almost 82.

Pricing

MINI Cooper 6-speed manual:                       R190 000.00

MINI Cooper 6-speed automatic:       R205 060.00

MINI Cooper S 6-speed manual:        R240 000.00

MINI Cooper S 6-speed automatic:   R250 060.00

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3.     More Space, More Style,
More Sports.
Interior Design.

The interior of the new MINI is the result of a genuine revolution in design covering all areas and features within the car. The result – more features and an even wider range of equipment, optimised ergonomics, more space, even more sophisticated and stylish materials, and a quality of finish that reflects the premium character of the new MINI all the way to the smallest detail – is impressive.

“Focusing on the interior, we decided to revolutionise the car’s design in order to really highlight the sporting and masculine character and technical progress of the new MINI”, states MINI’s Chief Designer Gert Hildebrand.

The high shoulder line of the body creates a sporting cockpit ambience
within the interior of the new MINI, concentrating the overall look and impression of the car on just a handful of distinctive highlights which again serves to emphasise the new and even more striking character of the interior.

One example is that a smaller number of instruments now offer a wider range of functions. And a significant improvement is the experience of space and roominess within the new MINI, even though the car’s exterior dimensions have grown by only about 60 millimetres.

“Enhancing and upgrading the design of the car, we sought from the start to offer maximum interior space within minimum dimensions”, states MINI’s Interior Designer Marc Girard.

And indeed, the slender centre console provides additional legroom for the driver and front passenger, the horizontal arrangement of the instrument panel, in turn, emphasising the sheer generosity of the interior.

Round air vents moved far to the outside serve furthermore to accentuate the greater width of the dashboard, emphasising the horizontal orientation of the cockpit and at the same time acting as a transition leading over smoothly and harmoniously to the door linings.

Excellent ergonomics and easy control.

Focusing on the arrangement of the instruments within the cockpit, the car’s developers attached utmost importance to simple and ergonomic control by the driver. Hence, all control elements are in strict hierarchic arrangement as a function of their frequency of use and need for operation.

The principal highlight is of course the round Centre Speedo thoroughly
re-interpreted from the ground up. The Centre Speedo is now even larger than before, stands out even more distinctly and underlines the cockpit ambience on board the new MINI. Apart from the analogue-face speedometer, the Centre Speedo for the first time incorporates the audio controls as well as the optional entertainment and navigation functions. Certainly the most distinctive feature, however, is the speed indicator surrounding all other functions like a 360° ring. And with the entire unit being placed high up within the instrument panel, all function buttons allow optimum ergonomic control, with the Display positioned right in the middle of the central instrument.

Absolutely unique: Centre Speedo and toggle switches.

The horizontally oriented structure of the cockpit is also reflected by the arrangement of the controls and instruments housed within the Centre Stack right beneath the Centre Speedo. And other features typical of MINI are the vertical arrangement of the rotary air ventilation knobs, the two cupholders integrated in the base section of the centre console, as well as the toggle switches carried over from Motorsport. Serving inter alia to activate the window lifts and central locking, these toggle switches are larger than before on the new MINI. And for the first time they are now matched by toggle switches in the roof lining, operation of the optional sliding roof again reflecting that typical style and class so characteristic of MINI.

As in Motorsport, the rev counter is directly behind the steering wheel exactly in the driver’s line of vision. Additional clarity and information at very first
sight is added by a supplementary digital speedometer within the rev counter as well as the on-board computer.

The conventional ignition key is replaced in the new MINI by a round, electronic signal transmitter also in typical MINI style. Once inserted into the shaft next to the steering wheel, this signal transmitter enables the driver to start the engine easily and with utmost convenience simply by pressing the start/stop button. And with optional Comfort Access, the driver is even able to leave the signal transmitter in his pocket, the only requirement being that the transmitter is on his body or within the car in order to open the doors and start the engine.

Pure pleasure for all your senses.

Encountering the new MINI is an experience not only for your eyes and ears. Within the interior the discerning customer will also find numerous highlights appealing to his sense of touch and smell.

“The touch effect, the impression you get when feeling a material, is extremely important”, states MINI’s Materials and Colour Designer Annette Baumeister.

Particularly sophisticated materials, clear structures, and fine surface grain highlight the car’s supreme quality in every respect. The individual panels and trim surfaces have intentionally been kept small, the rings and surrounds particularly filigree in design in order to emphasise the great attention given to every detail and the sheer value of the materials used.

The design language of “circular elements” combined with horizontal structures also comes out particularly clearly in the door panels and linings,
the elliptical main element on the door lining now extending all the way back to the rear. This elliptical frame encompasses the light-looking armrest,
a door pocket, and the round door openers all in one.

The wide range of colours for the interior offers the customer a choice of Carbon Black, Gotham Grey, Tuscan Beige, and Redwood Red, either in harmony with the body colour and trim chosen or kept apart intentionally
as an exciting contrast.

The dashboard in the new MINI is made up of two horizontally separated sections with a trim division in between. The plastic surfaces, in turn, come in particularly fine grain highlighting the supreme value, class and style of the material.

Authentic and sophisticated: materials in premium quality.

Different seat upholstery also serves to distinguish between the MINI Cooper and MINI Cooper S, with yarn seams enhancing the lifestyle ambience within the MINI Cooper on the consciously purist “basic” upholstery. The seat covers on the MINI Cooper S, in turn, come in chequered design reminiscent of the chessboard pattern of the chequered flag in Motorsport and serving as a particularly outstanding graphic element.

The chequered cloth used for this purpose emphasises the sporting touch of the MINI Cooper S, and may be replaced by classic pinstripe design combining an elegant and fine woven look with leather available in four colour variants on the side panels of the seats. Clearly, this particularly sophisticated and stylish material follows the example of a classic pinstripe suit.

The wide range of cloth materials, leather, interior colours, panels and trim options offers each and every aficionado of the MINI exactly the right option to personalise his or her car according to his individual taste. The ambience
thus created within the car ranges from high-class elegance through outright sportiness all the way to superb extravagance. And quite regardless of the customer’s individual choice, premium quality and love for every detail naturally come out most distinctly in every new MINI.

The optional Colour Line enables even the most discerning customer to individualise the cockpit according to his or her personal taste, colour highlights in the lower sections of the dashboard continuing into the door linings and providing a particularly effective and attractive combination
with the trim materials. Colour Line is available in the five colours Dark Grey, Cream White, Pacific Blue, Rooster Red, and Mellow Yellow, with trim coming not only in its standard versions on the MINI Cooper and MINI Cooper S, but also in four exclusive, very special variants: glossy black piano paint, dark brown grained oakwood, brushed aluminium, and a fine glossy surface inspired by the structure of liquid metal.

A further expression of the authentic premium character of the new MINI is the use of natural wood and aluminium, while a fully closed glove compartment or a CD changer may be integrated in the trim surface on the front passenger’s side.

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4.     High-Tech for Even
Greater Driving Pleasure.                           Power Units.

Winding roads and serpentine routes are its favourite “hunting grounds” – for just like its great-grandfather back in 1959, the new MINI excels in particular through a standard of agility absolutely reminiscent of a go-kart. Naturally, the powerful, high-torque and very responsive engines make a decisive contribution to the fascinating driving characteristics of the new MINI.

The MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper are powered by all-new four-cylinder petrol engines boasting a wide range of innovative details. Both power units are made of light alloy and displace 1.6 litres, benefiting from the BMW Group’s know-how in engine development and high-tech from Motorsport.

In terms of their technical features and overall philosophy, the new engines in the MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper differ in numerous respects – and particularly in their fuel preparation and supply system. The new MINI Cooper S features a 128 kW turbocharged power unit with direct gasoline injection,
while maximum output of the naturally aspirated power unit in the new MINI Cooper is 88 kW, boasting fully variable valve management based on the BMW Group’s VALVETRONIC technology.

Both of these four-cylinders naturally guarantee superior performance on the road, making the new MINI a genuine athlete easily able to clinch pole position in the compact car segment.

MINI Cooper S: turbocharged power unit for maximum
driving pleasure.

The 1.6-litre turbocharged power unit featured in the new MINI Cooper S offers particularly impressive performance on the road. Maximum output of 128 kW and specific output of 80.1 kW/litre (109.5 hp/litre) are figures which definitely set the standard for a four-cylinder light-alloy power unit in this class.

The power unit featured in the new MINI Cooper S achieves its peak output at an engine speed of 5,500 rpm. Maximum torque is 240 Nm and is maintained consistently throughout the engine speed range from 1,600–5,000 rpm. When accelerating, torque is indeed briefly increased even further to 260 Nm by the special Overboost function, an increase in charge pressure which gives the new MINI Cooper S even more powerful “punch”. And a particular feature about Overboost is that it acts exclusively on engine torque, not on overall engine output.

With this kind of superior power, the new MINI Cooper S is obviously a dynamic performer responding instantaneously to the driver’s commands. Acceleration from 0–100 km/h is achieved in 7.1 seconds, and the new
MINI Cooper S accelerates in top gear from 80–120 km/h, typical of an overtaking manoeuvre on, say, country roads, in 5.5 seconds, while the top speed of the new MINI Cooper S, finally, is 225 km/h.

Apart from offering truly impressive performance, the new engine also stands out through a high level of all-round efficiency. As a result, average fuel consumption of the new MINI Cooper S in the EU test cycle is a moderate
6.9 litres/100 kilometres.

MINI Cooper S: direct fuel injection applying the common rail principle.

Like the naturally aspirated version in the MINI Cooper, the new turbocharged power unit offers the highest and most advanced standard of engine construction. The four valves per cylinder are masterminded by two overhead camshafts, roller-type drag arms optimised for minimum friction, and hydraulic valve play compensation elements. The outlet valves, in turn, are filled with sodium in order to meet the greater cooling requirements made of a turbocharged power unit. The intake camshaft, to mention another example, comes with infinite phase adjustment setting the engine’s valve timing to the driver’s respective power and performance requirements.

The result is optimum output and torque on low fuel consumption and emissions reduced to a minimum.

Fuel is injected into the turbocharged four-cylinder by means of common rail direct injection technology. The stainless-steel common rail connecting all cylinders is filled with fuel under high pressure by a pressure pump at the rear end of the intake camshaft. Injection valves positioned at the side in the cylinder head deliver fuel within fractions of a second and in exactly the right amounts from the rail directly to the combustion chambers, four valve pockets and the combustion trough in the middle of each piston ensuring optimum stratification of the homogeneous fuel/air mixture with a lambda factor of 1.0.

Running in cast-iron bushes and operating with a compression ratio of 10.5 : 1,  relatively high for a turbocharged power unit, the pistons subject to high thermal loads are cooled by splash oil.

MINI Cooper S: turbocharger with twin-scroll technology.

Featuring a twin-scroll turbocharger, the new MINI Cooper S comes with yet another feature never seen before in this segment. Through its underlying philosophy and principle, the twin-scroll turbocharger builds up power and performance with unprecedented spontaneity. In both the exhaust gas manifold and the turbocharger itself, the ducts leading to two cylinders at a time are separated from one another. Reducing exhaust gas counterpressure at low engine speeds, this arrangement is able to capitalise on the dynamic effect of the pulsating gas columns within the manifold in a special process enhancing the response of the turbocharger and accelerating its charge rotors to an optimum speed of rotation right from the start at low engine speeds.

The charge pressure limited by a wastegate to 0.8 bar starts to build up as of an engine speed of 1,400 rpm, almost totally eliminating the “turbo lag” so typical of conventional turbocharged engines. As a result, the MINI Cooper S accelerates smoothly and instantaneously, the 1.6-litre turbocharged power unit demonstrating the same kind of response and behaviour as a far larger normally-aspirated engine.

“The principle of achieving the same output as a larger engine on a smaller and more fuel-efficient power unit is referred to as ‘downsizing’”, states
Erich Sonntag, Drivetrain Project Manager in the development of the new MINI. “With its specific output of approximately 110 horsepower per litre,
the turbocharged power unit of the new MINI is a wonderful example of this philosophy.”

MINI Cooper: powerful but fuel-efficient normally-aspirated engine.

Also displacing 1.6 litres, the new MINI Cooper combines superior driving pleasure with truly outstanding all-round economy. Maximum output of 88 kW comes at 6, 000 rpm, with the torque curve reaching a significant 140 Nm at just 2, 000 rpm and continuing to a peak of 160 Nm at 4,250 rpm. The wide useful torque curve provided in this way combines superior power and performance with equally superior fuel economy in a compact and highly efficient power unit.

The new MINI Cooper accelerates from a standstill to 100 km/h in 9.1 seconds and has a top speed of 203 km/h. Acceleration at speed is just as impressive, with the high-torque four-cylinder pushing the new MINI Cooper from 80–120km/h in top gear in just 9.4 seconds. And fuel consumption in the EU test cycle, finally, averages just 5.8 litres/100 kilometres.

MINI Cooper: variable valve management for optimum power
and performance.

Fully variable valve control based on the BMW Group’s unique VALVETRONIC technology is one of the innovative technical features boasted on the new four-cylinder. With this sophisticated valve management, the stroke and opening period of the intake valves are adjusted within fractions of a second
to the respective power requirements, the camshaft acting on the valves not directly via a drag arm, but rather through an additional intermediate lever adjusted in its pivot point by an eccentric shaft driven by an electric motor.

Depending on the position of this lever arm, intake valve lift is varied infinitely between 0.2 and 9.5 millimetres, the entire process of changing over
from minimum to maximum valve lift taking only about 300 milliseconds.

Over and above variable management of valve lift on the intake side, valve timing on the intake and outlet sides is spread out variably as a function of engine speed. Again, this is also an infinite process switching over when necessary from one extreme to the other in just 300 milliseconds.

This enormous speed and incredibly fast reaction is ensured by a high-performance 32-bit processor integrated into the engine control system.

Variable valve lift and speed-dependant camshaft control serve together to optimise the torque curve and the engine’s power output. As a result, the power unit of the new MINI Cooper develops superior torque right from the start at low engine speeds, at the same time generating significantly more power at high engine speeds than a conventional engine.

Yet a further advantage of these two technologies acting together is a significant reduction of fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent, depending on the route the driver is taking. In the EU test cycle fuel consumption is down
by approximately 16 per cent in the MINI Cooper and by almost 18 per cent in the MINI Cooper S. And a further advantage in this context is that the engines are able to develop this superior power and efficiency regardless of fuel quality – again an important criterion for a world player like MINI, with substantial sales in many countries all over the world.

New range of engines with innovative design features.

The new engines featured in the MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper are built
in the BMW Group’s Engine Plant in Hams Hall, Great Britain. Compared with the former model, both engines have been turned around by 180°, with the exhaust side now facing to the front.

The basic engine block is quite similar in many respects on both the normal-aspiration and turbocharged version, both power units sharing a distance between cylinders of 84 millimetres, bore of 77 millimetres, stroke of 85.5 millimetres and, accordingly, engine displacement of 1,598 cubic centimetres.

The two-piece bedplate structure of the crankcase is a technology carried over from Motorsport, with the cylinder block and bearing housing both made of cast aluminium. Integration of the chain box within the engine housing helps to save weight, reduce running noise, and minimise the number of components.

The camshafts on both engine variants are composite structures, with cam rings made of high-strength stainless steel shrunk-fitted on to the camshaft as such (unlike the process in conventional casting). The next step is to fine-polish the cams down to an accuracy of 1∕1000th of a millimetre.

The eccentric shaft for phase adjustment is also made in this process,
helping once again to reduce weight to a minimum.

Compact dimensions and high efficiency.

The lightweight concept applied in developing the power units of the new MINI also involve consistent reduction of frictional losses. This is precisely why the crankshafts on both engines are weight-optimised in their design and structure, and come with special bearing shells and comparatively small journals measuring only 45 millimetres in diameter.

On both engines the alternator and a/c compressor are driven by one and the same poly-V-belt, while the coolant pump is driven by a friction wheel gearing. Again, both of these design concepts help to make the drive units of the new MINI particularly compact – indeed, they are among the shortest four-cylinder engines in their engine displacement capacity class.

A brand-new feature in the MINI segment is the use of a volume flow-controlled oil pump on the engines. Driven by a chain, this innovative pump delivers only as much oil at any given point in time as the engine actually requires. The result is a reduction in power uptake by the ancillary engine units of approximately 160 W, adding up to some 1.25 kW at an engine
speed of 6, 000 rpm and reducing fuel consumption by about 1 per cent.

The on-demand water pump on the coolant circuit offers a similar effect, cutting in only when the engine reaches its operating temperature. This helps to save fuel in the warm-up phase, while at the same time the catalyst reaches the temperature required for optimum efficiency even faster and with a better effect.