oldtin
oldtin HalfDork
11/22/10 12:46 p.m.

It looks unhappy. Kinda tired of all the angy looking cars. Heard a rumor that female buyers prefer aggressive looking grills/fronts.

TJ
TJ SuperDork
11/22/10 12:51 p.m.

The grille reminds me of this.

2002maniac
2002maniac HalfDork
11/22/10 12:55 p.m.

Not so 'mini' anymore is it?

fastclown
fastclown Reader
11/22/10 1:00 p.m.

It's GREAT to see that BMW is keeping with the heritage of the real Mini.... I guess their target buyers are women and those that buy into their marketing campaign.

triumph5
triumph5 HalfDork
11/22/10 1:04 p.m.

If the price is close to a 3-series, they might be competing against themselves.

That things an abortion. The Clubman, while bigger, could still be called a Mini. That. That's a 4-door 1-series BMW.

mistanfo
mistanfo SuperDork
11/22/10 2:07 p.m.

I did enjoy the ad I saw in a magazine this weekend, of the car making a snow angel. Then again, I have been known to spontaneously make them myself. Still, I cannot see myself buying one, new or used.

mndsm
mndsm Dork
11/22/10 2:12 p.m.

I'm actually quite interested in the Countryman as a possible supplement to the current CooperS we have, when I finally convince the wife to let me race that car.

oldtin
oldtin HalfDork
11/22/10 2:22 p.m.

Just occurred to me it's the pedestrian safety stuff for the taller front end.... wanders off mumbling about remembering when cars could cut you off clean at the ankles, not splatter you on the grill like a mack truck.

ahutson03
ahutson03 New Reader
11/22/10 3:49 p.m.

Wheres the wood body molding? It can't be a countryman without wood. I guess I should also ask then why the Cooper is the base model and the Clubman has the same nose as a Cooper but all that just brings up a whole host of reasons I probably will never have a MINI product parked next to my MK1 Cooper S in the garage

triumph5
triumph5 HalfDork
11/22/10 3:56 p.m.

So whose going to build the first stretch limo Mini? Oxymoron if there ever was. Somone's probably already done it, like that 4-door MGB that showed up in hotlinked section a while ago....

m4ff3w
m4ff3w GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
11/22/10 4:08 p.m.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressnews/251476/mini_countryman_vs_morris_mini_minor.html

triumph5
triumph5 HalfDork
11/22/10 4:15 p.m.

So when busted for speeding in the 4-door, can one plead 'roid rage'?

Looks ridiculous. No it looks like a Ford.

EDIT: Which is NOT to say all Fords look ridiculous.

fastclown
fastclown Reader
11/22/10 4:27 p.m.

A picture is worth a thousand words, you don't want to hear mine.... But I will say you have to have forks stuck deeply into your eyes with the points of the fork penetrating into the brain, and then twisted half a dozen times to fully detach the eyes while scrambling the brain, to think that has anything to do with a Mini.

I can't wait to see those things show up at British car shows. I promise they won't be participating at a Classic Minis United event.

I'm constantly amazed at what people will buy in to. I bet someone could make millions if they marketed a rock in a box...

triumph5
triumph5 HalfDork
11/22/10 4:33 p.m.

In reply to fastclown:

But think of all the circus clowns you could stuff in ......oh, sorry, my bad...

You can bet there will be someone out there who will show up, and then another, and a, "I didn't know they made small ones, I didn't see any of those at the dealer."

Pretty graphic on the fork description.....got your point across.

integraguy
integraguy Dork
11/22/10 5:11 p.m.

I think it's DEFINITELY time BMW trotted out that other "classic" Austin nameplate for this.....thing(?).

How about the Maxi Countryman? Wait, I would guess that sounds too much like a personal feminine product....yet, considering the "target" demographic?

RealMiniDriver
RealMiniDriver Dork
11/22/10 5:46 p.m.

It's ugly. It's lost the 'mini'.

Make a Moke, instead.

JoeyM
JoeyM Dork
11/22/10 5:48 p.m.
oldtin wrote: It looks unhappy. Kinda tired of all the angy looking cars. Heard a rumor that female buyers prefer aggressive looking grills/fronts.

smile

triumph5
triumph5 HalfDork
11/22/10 5:49 p.m.

Competition(?) for Nissan's Juke?

jstein77
jstein77 Dork
11/22/10 6:36 p.m.

That's not a smile. This is a smile:

ahutson03
ahutson03 New Reader
11/22/10 8:18 p.m.

it doesn't look angry, scary, or happy... It's the exact disgusted/horrified face Sir Issigonis is making in his grave right now.

fastclown
fastclown Reader
11/22/10 9:14 p.m.
ahutson03 wrote: it doesn't look angry, scary, or happy... It's the exact disgusted/horrified face Sir Issigonis is making in his grave right now.

My favorite quote of the week, thanks!

Since it's big enough to live in, and it's still considered British (some how), it would be a Maxi Pad. When the rally car comes out it should be pretty fast (BMW$$$), so it would be a Maxi Pad with wings... I look forward to the marketing campaign.

Luke
Luke SuperDork
11/23/10 5:47 a.m.

To still be branding that behemoth as a 'Mini', is not cool ...If only the opinions of outraged enthusiasts on internet message boards carried more weight .

Tim Baxter
Tim Baxter SuperDork
11/23/10 7:08 a.m.

Fastclowns Rock in a Box comment, along with the general size, shape and probably buyer of the Maxi, reminded me of... http://www.hulu.com/watch/1596/saturday-night-live-dick-in-a-box-uncensored

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