2012 MINI John Cooper Works Coupé

MINI is expanding its product family with the launch of a model geared squarely to maximizing driving fun. The MINI Coupe indulges the keen driver with a level of agility unmatched in the small car segment, along with a unique body and interior concept and the brand’s customary commitment to premium levels of design, quality, equipment and personalization.

The first two-seater in its line-up sees MINI not only breathe new life into its successful racing history but also provide a shot in the arm for the super-compact sports car class. The selection of engines, chassis set-up, weight distribution and aerodynamic properties of the MINI Coupe are all focused on delivering optimum performance. As a result, the new car radiates the brand’s hallmark go-kart feeling with a whole new depth of intensity and achieves the best performance statistics ever recorded by a volume-produced MINI… it is the fastest-accelerating MINI ever and has the highest top speed.

The MINI Coupe is the brand’s first model to adopt a three-box body structure with a strikingly stepped rear end. Its distinctive lines are expressed in the customary MINI design language and combine with unmistakable styling features. All of which accurately showcases both the new model’s distinctive characteristics and its brand identity. Its flat silhouette and innovative steel “helmet roof” lend the MINI Coupe a sporty and individual allure. In addition to the integral roof spoiler, an active rear spoiler optimizes airflow at higher speeds.

Inside the car, the two-seater concept is emphasized by features such as oval recesses in the roof liner. With its extremely high-opening tailgate and large luggage area with through-loading facility, the MINI Coupe displays outstanding versatility in day-to-day driving, when transporting leisure items or sports gear, and on trips.

MINI John Cooper Works Coupe

The exceptionally sporty MINI models bearing the John Cooper Works badge hold a very special status within the model range. Features such as engine technology derived directly from motorsports mark them out from the norm. The MINI John Cooper Works Coupe adds another top-class athlete to the MINI ranks. A 208 hp four-cylinder engine with twin-scroll turbocharger and direct injection imbues it with unrestrained power, giving it the tools to do what MINI does best – entertaining drivers – even better.
The 1.6-liter engine under the bonnet of the MINI John Cooper Works Coupe is largely the same as the unit powering the competitors in the MINI CHALLENGE Clubsport series. Numerous technical details originate directly from developments in motorsports, including the aluminum cylinder block and bearing mounts, reinforced pistons, a particularly high-strength cylinder head and lightweight crankshafts. The exhaust valves are sodium-filled to provide the extra cooling required by a turbocharged engine, and the intake camshaft features infinite phase adjustment. The modified turbocharger develops even greater charge pressure than the engine in the MINI Cooper S Coupe. The model-specific exhaust system can be identified from the outside by its polished stainless steel twin tailpipes, while its resonant soundtrack – best sampled from inside the cabin – adds a distinctive extra layer to the extreme sports machine’s character.

The engine generates peak output at 6,000 rpm and produces maximum torque of 192 lb-ft; the Overboost function pushes this figure up to 207 lb-ft for a short time. The instantaneous power development ensures imposing acceleration, the MINI John Cooper Works Coupe rocketing from a standstill to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds on the way to a top speed of 149 mph. And yet average fuel consumption in the EU test cycle is kept at an unusually low level for cars in this output class; the MINI John Cooper Works Coupe burns just 7.1 liters of fuel per 100 km and has CO2 emissions of 165 grams per kilometer.

In Detail

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