Click above for a hi-res gallery of the MINI Crossover Concept

Some concepts are purely design exercises, while others serve as previews of upcoming production models. It's rare for one show car to serve as both, but then MINI is unique in the business. The Crossover concept that the BMW subsidiary unveiled here at the Paris Motor Show has a bit of a Dark Knight villain thing going for it. On one side it's got an unusual door configuration, big show-car wheels and a decidedly conceptual turquoise-highlighted paint scheme. On the other it's more staid, with conventional doors, a more conventional color palette and an altogether more production-feasible appearance. Up top and inside everything's all fantasy, however, with the cloth roof and trick glass infotainment system we reported on earlier. Click the thumbnails below to see the MINI Crossover Concept live from the Paris show floor, and the gallery below that for the factory studio shots, and let us know what you think of the two-faced concept car in our comments section.

Years ago, in Sydney, Australia, the MINI Garage -- a dealership -- had a restaurant. Patrons dined in a decidedly upscale garage-ish atmosphere, while (then) brand new and artfully lit MINIs rested on plinths. The restaurant is no more, but the idea lives on, this time in Paris. Groupe Luderic, an events company, paid $1.5 million to renovate an area of the Grand Palais, a museum, in order to create the MINI Palais restaurant. Grand Palais. Mini Palais. Get it?

This is simply more lifestyle marketing which seeks to advertise to you while you actually enjoy yourself -- MINI is a client of Luderic. The restaurant is, though, very discreet about the MINI. There are no MINIs in the restaurant, and references to it don't go far beyond using MINI type in various places. Otherwise there are two Union Jacks, a few posters, and clocks that resemble MINI IP's. And a neon sign above the entrance that reads: MINI Palais. That's it.

Food is -- in keeping with the MINI ethos -- not cheap, but not crazy. However, there are not even any MINI themed items on it. We would have at least thought they could offer a Clubman sandwich. Now, who wants to open a Ford Edge restaurant on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon?

[Source: Ad Age]