Mini Coupe two-seater launched

The little Mini will have a starring role at this week’s Frankfurt motor show and will arrive here very early next year, with pricing announced in a few months. The Australian line-up will start with the 135kW MINI Cooper S Coupé and the sports performance of the 155 kW/211 hp MINI John Cooper Works Coupé – both of which will be available with a six-speed manual transmission as standard but a six-speed automatic as an option. A 90kw MINI Cooper Coupé and a 105kW diesel MINI Cooper SD Coupé will be available overseas, but not in the initial range here.

“We can’t comment on price at this stage,” Mini spokesperson Lucy McLellan says. We’ll have some idea closer to the Australian launch. It will be arriving at the very beginning of next year so we’ll know more about price towards the end of this year."

Acting Australian head of Mini, Matt Schmidt, acknowledges there will be a small premium over similar models in the current range.

“As far as pricing goes, locally we will see a small uplift over the current Hatch, Clubman and Cabrio,” he says.

That suggests the Cooper S Coupe is likely to be no higher than $45,000, and the John Cooper Works about $10,000 more.  While you don’t often think of two-seater coupes as being ‘practical’ cars, McLellan says the Mini Coupe will fill a practical need for buyers.

“Lots of Mini owners never put anybody in the rear seat of the car, so this will appeal to those who want more load space but still want the qualities of a smaller Mini,” she says. The Mini Coupe’s boot space is fantastic and it’s probably the most practical mini yet.”

McLellan also says the addition of the Mini Coupe is helping to extend the brand. “We’ve moved from just having an iconic car to having an entire brand,” she says.