Boasting the best of England and Germany, these vehicles are designed for car enthusiasts
There are not many cars on the market truly made for the car enthusiast under the $50,000 mark. One car that does fit into that category is the MINI, equipped with the John Cooper Works (JCW) package. I not only had the pleasure of testing a MINI but I had the extra thrill of it being a convertible as well.
Since MINI is owned by BMW but made in England, it has the best of English old time style and solid German engineering behind it. One of those “Old English” features was the convertible top.
Unlike other tops that just fold down, the MINI’s top opens like a sunroof over the driver and passenger, but stays covered over the back seats. This I have to say was a real nice feature, as a few of the days I was driving the car, it was just too cold to put the roof down totally.
Later in the test week, temperatures did rise and the top came all the way down. A feature of the MINI convertible is the wind deflector. This mesh or screen device sets up like a little window behind the front seats plus across the back seats. By deflecting the wind, noise drops as well as swirling wind in the front seat area well worth the $150 extra cost.
Despite its rather small size, front seating and legroom are fairly generous even for those taller people as the seats drop to a very low position. All the switches or better referred to as toggles are placed in the lower centre dash or over the interior mirror. The centre speedometer is not easily read due to all the other functions housed in the speedometer area. But this isn’t too important as there is another digital speedometer built into the tachometer mounted on the steering column. Everything else is well placed making the driving experience easy.
One thing the MINI and especially the convertible is not noted for, is its ability to carry much including rear passengers. A couple of suitcases in the back seat area, or small children and maybe some small soft luggage in the trunk or boot as the English say.
With the John Cooper Works package, engine power is increased to 208hp due to the twin scroll turbo charger. Keeping this power in check are anti-lock, 4-wheel disc brakes, standard on all MINI’s. So, what does all this mean? Well, this means that the JCW convertible MINI is one of the best handling cars in this price range bar none.
The cars short wheelbase made it easy to zip around in traffic and have fun doing it. Even at highway speeds, the car was very solid giving the driver an abundance of confidence.
As you might have gathered by now, I really enjoyed driving the MINI. To quote an old friend, “This car is more fun than I am legally entitled to” and that is just how I felt. At about $42,000, the convertible is not inexpensive, but the sheer fun factor is well worth the investment.
By Glen Konorowski