Mini Clubman adds to NSW Police fleet

Almost fifty years ago, an unusual police vehicle patrolled Australian roads, partnering with the likes of the Ford Falcon, Holden Kingswood and Valiant Charger - the humble Mini Cooper.

About a thousand Mini Cooper Ss were built to ‘special production orders’ in the early 1970s to serve and protect in both highway patrol and general duty guise, with a handful surviving today.

Now, the Mini rides again… only this time, it’s assigned to more mundane tasks.

Mini Garage Sydney has provided a 2017 Mini Cooper Clubman wagon to detectives in the Sydney suburb of Newtown, with all costs to be covered by the dealership.

The Mini lacks the ‘blues and twos’ typical to a regular general duty car, but has been wrapped in full police livery. It will be used in community engagement work throughout the Newtown command area.

It follows in the wheeltracks of a BMW i8 hybrid that was assigned by the dealership to the Rose Bay area command, just 15km away, last year.

Priced from $34,900, the Cooper Clubman runs a three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engines that makes 100kW and 220Nm.

Newtown’s Detective Chief Inspector Crime Manager Damian Goodfellow welcomed the arrival of its newest recruit.

"Newtown Police are appreciative and very excited to accept the keys to the Mini Clubman," said Mr Goodfellow.

"We know it will be a great conversation starter as it will turn a lot of heads and generate a lot of interest in our local area.”

Police forces across the country continue to assess various vehicles to replace locally produced cars like the now defunct Ford Falcon and Territory and soon-to-be-gone Holden Commodore.

A brace of Volvo XC60s have recently been pressed into highway patrol duties in the west of NSW, while Chrysler, Kia, BMW and Subaru all vie for a slice of a burgeoning police fleet pie.

Do you remember the original Mini Cooper police cars? Tell us your stories in the comments below!