Mini Countryman to start at $22,350

The 2011 Mini Countryman has a price: $22,350. Mini USA head Jim McDowell announced the starting figure at the North American launch of the compact crossover in Austin, Texas with our own Jeremy Korzeniewski in attendance.

According to McDowell, the Countryman's interior room compares favorably with the Nissan Rogue, so for comparison's sake, the Rogue starts at $20,810 and the larger Volkswagen Tiguan at $23,200. Nissan's funky new Juke, on the other hand, runs just $18,960, although we'd wonder how many Mini-philes could also be considered Juke-philiacs.

A "well-equipped" All4 all-wheel-drive Countryman will ring the register well under $30,000, but with an entry price less than $4,000 over a base Cooper and just $550 above a Clubman, and a slew of people looking for a Mini with more room, they might sell more of these than many expected. The Countryman's fuel economy figures probably won't hurt, either. Mini quotes EPA estimates of up to 35 miles per gallon for the manual transmission Cooper model, with 32 mpg highway for the Cooper S model and 31 mpg for the All4 Cooper S Countryman with either gearbox.

Photos copyright ©2010 Steven J. Ewing / AOL