Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[BMW planning "extreme" next-generation MINI racecar]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/07/27/bmw-planning-extreme-next-generation-mini-racecar/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/07/27/bmw-planning-extreme-next-generation-mini-racecar/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/07/27/bmw-planning-extreme-next-generation-mini-racecar/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

An all new MINI Mk2 racecar is reported to be under development by BMW for a new one-design racing series to start in 2008. 4Car reports that the new racer will be "more extreme" than the racing versions of the current MINI Cooper S, and built strictly for racing.

The Mk2 racecar sounds like it will follow in the wheeltracks of BMW's other factory racers, like the BMW 120d and Z4 M Coupe, with more sophisticated aerodynamics, including a rear diffuser. The car will not be street-legal, with the interior completely stripped down to seat, instruments and a roll cage. Like BMW's other customer racecars, the car will be ready to race, complete with a fire control system and car-to-pit radio system. We're guessing that the racecar will use a version of the 1.6-liter turbocharged engine from the new Cooper S.

Good news for U.S. racers - BMW will be setting up a MINI motorsports division in the U.S. to provide organized support for customers interested in racing the new MINI.

The racing MINI is intended to compete in a new BMW-sponsored international one-design series, with championships planned for Asia and North America.

[Source: 4Car]

BMW planning "extreme" next-generation MINI racecar originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Jul 2006 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scribes on the European side of the Atlantic were pounding the keyboards Thursday, eager to report on their test drives of a prototype of the MINI Mk2. The barely-disguised test car was wrung out by journalists at the ex-Formula 1 racetrack at Zandvoort in Holland, and first reports are encouraging, with phrases like "polish and precision," "greater civility," and "very quick" sprinkled through Autocar's test drive report.

The biggest change in the Mk2 is up front - the new MINI is powered by a 1.6-liter all-aluminum engine co-developed with Peugeot-Citroen, which in Cooper S trim features direct injection and a twin-scroll turbocharger, boosting output to 175 hp and 177 ft-lb of torque. (An overboost system yields 192 ft-lb of torque under wide-open acceleration.) The normally-aspirated version puts out 118 hp. What Car? is guesstimating a 0-60 time for the Cooper S of around 7 seconds.

(Full press release after the jump)

Continue reading New MINI rolled out for the European press

New MINI rolled out for the European press originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Jul 2006 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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