TopGear - August 2015 PH

(National Geographic (Little) Kids) #1

WORDS By niky tamay


O PHO


t
OGRaPHy By ERWin BaRLEta


2006-2014 Mini Cooper S


History


It’s easy to become cynical about


retro-styled lifestyle vehicles, which


are often nothing more than ordinary


cars under pretty sheet metal. Thank-


fully, when BMW reinvented the Mini


brand way back in 2000 , it produced a


car that was both stylish and fantastic


to drive.


Demand was so great for the hatch-


back that importers made good busi-


ness bringing it in, until Mini officially


opened its doors here in 2010 , offering


a fuller lineup of cars and services than


any gray market importer could.


But while few other cars offer as


much driving fun as the Mini Hatch,


there are a number of things to con-


sider when buying one secondhand.


Value and costs


If you’re looking for secondhand bar-


gains, good luck. Minis are typically in


high demand, keeping the resale value


on the high side. First-generation


gray-market supercharged units can


be found for under P 1 million, but


second-generation turbocharged R 56


cars go for P1.3 million to P1.6 million.


Don’t turn your nose up at regular


Coopers—the naturally aspirated


port-injection motors cost less to run,


and manual variants are massive fun.


The much cheaper Mini One was also


sold here for a time, but those are rare


as hen’s teeth.


Don’t be afraid of newer units with


higher mileage. The direct-injection


engine in the R 56 needs to be driven


regularly (and occasionally spiritedly)


to prevent carbon buildup and pump


fouling. This is something you will also


want to do after you’ve bought the car!


Exterior and interior


The modern Mini design language


hasn’t been updated much since its


debut in 2000. The floating roof, the


ENGINE: 1.6-liter turbo I4 gasoline GEARBOX: 6-speed manual or auto POWER: 184hp @ 6,000rpm


TORQUE: 260Nm @ 1,600rpm ECONOMY: 6-8km/L (city) 14-16 km/L (highway)


PRICE NEW: P2,300,000


PRICE NOW: P1,600,000


cheery headlights, the clamshell hood and


the bubbly fender flares echo the looks


of the old Morris Mini. Second-gen R 56 s


have a longer nose than the original, and a


cleaner lower grille. The intercooler slot


on the hood is merely cosmetic; the inter-


cooler is behind the bumper, not on top of


the engine as in the older car.


The interior is retro-cute, filled with


circular gauges and design cues. The


gigantic center-mounted speedometer


lets everyone know how fast you’re going,


and mood lighting in the doors brighten


the interior at night. The switchgear will


confuse the uninitiated—door locks and


windows are all controlled via chrome dip


switches in the center console.


Standard fabric seats give good lateral


and thigh support for track work, and are


comfortable for commuting. The rear


seat, on the other hand, lacks decent leg-


and elbow room. For those who might


actually need to use the rear bench, the


Clubman variant is a more realistic prop-


THE GARAGE


USED CAR


The JCW is a great
drive, but don’t ignore
the practical variants.
They’re fun, too

1


3


We wanted to go with the most
iconic shape, so we went with
this particular model

2


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