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2014 Mini Cooper Clubvan

Matt Davis — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Minivan/Van, Europe, Work, Mini, First Drives

A Premium Van For The Modern-Day Milkman

We first saw the Mini Clubvan at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2012, then in December again at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Based on a stock Mini Clubman, the Clubvan's dimensions are identical, while all side windows aft of the middle pillar are blocked out from the inside with handy polycarbonate liners (read: fancy plastic) and have body color skin on the outside, while the rear windows are tinted to boot. It looks like a van and works like a van, so it must be a van. A Mini-van, though.

Where is Mini going with this relatively low-cost (to the company) product line extension? The chief market for this nimble little hauler is cities in Great Britain where they were frequently in bygone days identified as milk delivery vans. These days, though, there are - even in the US now - lower cost smaller urban delivery vans from Ford, Ram and Nissan. Therefore, the spin is that the Mini Clubvan is designed to cater to smaller boutique firms in need of making a fashionable impression while delivering the goods to people living in penthouses and such. Think: Florists, caterers, and so on.

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2014 Mini Cooper Clubvan originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Apr 2013 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mini Clubvan ready for boutique chic delivery duty from $25,985

John Neff — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 10:59:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Minivan/Van, Work, Mini

The light commercial vehicle market has exploded in recent years. With a too-large full-size van no longer the only option for small businesses looking for an enclosed cargo carrier, options like the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, Ford Transit Connect and now this, the Mini Clubvan, are now available to suit every size need.

Unveiled at last year's Geneva Motor Show, the Clubvan will soon be on sale here in the US and we finally have details about what that transaction will cost you. Motoring File reports that the Clubvan's price will be $25,985, which includes the so-called "chicken tax" and a $700 destination and handling charge.

Other questions that were answered include whether or not the Clubvan can be ordered as a Cooper S or even John Cooper Works model, and the answer is no (why do need to deliver cakes that fast anyway?). Also, Mini has confirmed you can't take the shortcut of creating your own Clubvan by purchasing a standard Clubman and removing the rear seats. The factory Clubvan features steel side panels instead of vinyl coverings over the rear windows, as well as a fully flat load floor and a safety cage protecting front seat occupants.

The Clubvan's price slots in just above the $25,100 Clubman Cooper S model (a standard Clubman starts at $21,400). It has a payload capacity of 1,102 pounds and will consume about 30.37 cubic-feet of stuff in its cargo area, which features six attachment loops and is fitted with 12-volt sockets. The Clubvan, of course, also features the Clubman's unique arrangement of five doors that includes a mini front-hinged door behind the front passenger's door, and two side-hinged vertical doors in the rear.

Mini Clubvan ready for boutique chic delivery duty from $25,985 originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 23 Mar 2013 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mini releases official Clubvan details, on sale this August

Jonathon Ramsey — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 11:29:00 EST

Filed under: Minivan/Van, Mini

"Trend-conscious commercial users" isn't a phrase we've heard ~~recently~~ ever, but perhaps we're just fraternizing in the wrong circles. Mini, on the other hand, knows so many of them that it has created the Clubvan, a two-seat, five-door, panel-style version of the Clubman that is "the world's first premium compact delivery van."

As the word "van" might indicate, instead of back seats the Clubvan has a cargo bay and a fixed grate to keep breakables and bulldogs from sliding into the cockpit. According to Mini, those aren't actual panels where the Clubman windows usually reside, it's just that the windows have been blacked out so as to be opaque and further bolstered with an inner layer of polycarbonate. The glass in the rear doors has also been blacked out.

The 860-liter loading area is lined with carpeting and an acrylic roof, has 12-volt sockets, attachment loops, and can handle up to 500 kilograms.

Trend-conscious grunt will come in three flavors: gas options in 98 horsepower and 122 hp, and a diesel with 112 hp. A six-speed manual will be standard, a six speed automatic an option on the diesel. This being classified as a commercial vehicle, your trendiness does get curbed slightly: only four colors will be available outside, and the interior will be black.

It goes on sale this August, and you can find out all about it in the press release below.

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Mini releases official Clubvan details, on sale this August originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 24 Jun 2012 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mini Clubvan concept gets green light, headed for U.S. showrooms

Chris Paukert — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:28:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Minivan/Van, Wagon, Geneva Motor Show, Work, Mini, Specialty

Color us unsurprised. Car and Driver reports that Mini officials have confirmed a production version of the company's Clubvan concept first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in March. We expected as much - after all, parent BMW has demonstrated real adeptness at building a myriad of derivatives from the basic Mini Cooper architecture, and the boutique brand already markets more spinoffs than Law & Order, so what's one more?

Essentially a panel van version of the Clubman, C/D says the Clubvan will appear in U.S. showrooms this September as a 2013 model. It isn't immediately clear if the model will offer both the standard 121-horsepower four and the Clubman S' 181-horsepower turbo, but C/D says we shouldn't expect a John Cooper Works version.

Interestingly, it doesn't appear that Mini will weld in sheet steel where the Clubman's rear side windows normally go - instead, C/D reports the company will employ body-color foil on the outside and plastic and safety foil liners inside. Other changes will include a trimmed-out cargo hold with power sockets and tie-downs. As with the concept, a stainless-steel grille will be fitted to keep cargo from intruding on the passenger compartment.

No word yet on whether the loss of rear seats will make the Clubvan any lighter, but Mini says the vehicle will offer more cargo capacity than its passenger-minded brethren. No guidance yet on pricing, either, but we're guessing that like other Mini models, boutiques and delivery services will have to shell out a pretty penny to get their hands on this dutch-door cutie. Our only question now is... how long will it take for Mini to come out with a panelized version of its Countryman softroader?

Mini Clubvan concept gets green light, headed for U.S. showrooms originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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