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Mini is a brand of small cars that began with the Mark I designed by Sir Alec Issigonis in 1959. Originally sold under the Austin and Morris brand names, Mini became the small car's actual name in 1964. Made famous by one of cinema's best car chases in the film "The Italian Job," the car's design remained relatively unchanged except for different front ends until the all-new Mini Cooper was launched by BMW in 2001.

Mini Vehicles:

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Report: Mini might not replace Paceman, Coupe, Roadster 1394544660

Nobody could argue at this point that Mini (like its parent company BMW) has not mastered the art (if you could call it that) of filling every niche with its own model. But with the third generation of Mini now upon us, some of the company's strategists are asking themselves what the point is of it all. The outgoing second-generation Mini spawned too ...
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Report: Mini nixes plans for 7-seater, Countryman to stay largest model 1394301660

Contrary to popular belief, it seems that Mini's growth plans do have a limit both in size and number of models. During the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, it unveiled the six-door Clubman concept (pictured above) that was 4.4-inches longer and about two-inches wider than even the current Countryman crossover. Mini design chief Anders Warming says that this is ...
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Geneva: Mini Clubman Concept isn't mini, isn't a Clubman 1394029200

Hey, remember when Mini was... mini? I know, you've heard all this before. But seriously. Take this new Mini Clubman Concept, for example. As you'll recall, the current Clubman slots in between the Hardtop and Countryman models in the Mini lineup. But because the new, third-generation Mini has grown, so has everything else. And in fact, the concept car ...
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Video: Watch Jay Leno bounce around with Dakar winner Roma in his Mini All4Racing 1393894920

With Jay Leno off the Tonight Show, he has all the time in the world to focus on his passion for cars and can even travel a little. Leno teamed up with two-time Dakar Rally winner Nani Roma to jump and slide a Mini Countryman All4 racing truck around the dunes in Death Valley, CA. The Mini-branded trucks are highly modified for off-road duty. They have ...
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Official: Mini Clubman Concept throws open all six of its doors for Geneva 1393374540

Coming in just over 10 inches longer and 6.5 inches wider than the 2013 Mini Clubman, the new Mini Clubman Concept that you see above is set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week. Let's get the maximum mini jokes out of the way right off the bat... Done? Okay, moving along. Adrian van Hooydonk, Head of BMW Group Design, says that this Clubman ...

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Report: Next BMW X1 moving to smaller, lighter FWD-biased platform 1392903840

BMW's decision to make the upcoming 2-Series Active Tourer front-wheel drive has been polarizing to say the least, but like it or not, that is the direction the company will go in the near future – one rumor put the number as high as 23 front-wheel-drive models for Mini and BMW combined. The next-generation X1 won't send all its power to the front ...
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Spy Shots: Upcoming Mini 5-door hatch spied in the snow 1392669840

We are about to get a flood of new Mini models now that the new 2014 model is officially out. In just the past few months, we've seen spy shots of the next-generation John Cooper Works and so-called Traveler crossover, and here we have the upcoming five-door hatchback in Cooper S form, a model that, like the Traveler, is expected to effectively obviate ...
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ETC: Help Mini decide on its next limited-edition Cooper 1392649260

Mini likes to make a big hullabaloo about the number of ways its cars can be configured, which currently stands at 10 million. While that figure is impressive, the BMW-owned brand is always looking for new and unique design variations, a trend that has seen a number of special-edition Minis pop up over the years boasting unique color and trim items. For ...
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Spy Shots: First Mini John Cooper Works prototype spied 1392410700

The highlight of Mini's 2014 Detroit Auto Show stand was the arrival of the John Cooper Works Concept, a sportier version of the three-door hatch that presages the next JCW model on the new platform. Now, we have our first images of the production car undergoing winter testing way up north in Sweden. Really, the Mini camouflage can't hide what this car ...
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Thanks to smaller engines, vehicle dependability falls for first time in 16 years 1392390840

As automakers have made engines smaller and smaller to improve fuel economy, problems in those vehicles have gotten bigger and bigger. That's the synopsis of a J.D. Power vehicle-dependability study, which found that dependability dropped for the first time in 16 years, largely because the proliferation of four-cylinder engines is causing the vehicles to ...
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First Drive: 2014 Mini Cooper More Mini Than Ever Before 1392051420

If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone from Mini refer to 'go-kart-like handling,' I'd be retired, living on a beautiful piece of coastline somewhere in the Caribbean. Perhaps even on the shores of Puerto Rico, where Mini chose to launch its latest Cooper and Cooper S hatchbacks. As with so many frequently used phrases, though, there is indeed ...
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Video: How Mini shacked up with John Cooper 1391212800

The late Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, Alec Issignonis to his Internet friends, designed a car that was sold as the Morris Mini-Minor, the Austin Seven and later the Austin Mini. Go to the Mini USA website and check out the models, though, and every one of them is called a Cooper of some sort, e.g., Mini Cooper Paceman or Mini Cooper S ...
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Official: Mini prices new Cooper Hardtop from $19,950* as configurator comes online 1391108460

As surprised as the face of the new 2014 Mini Cooper makes the model look, customers shopping for the third-gen hatchback won't be surprised at all come spring. When the Hardtop goes on sale, it will not only offer a similar design to the outgoing model, it will also have a familiar price with a starting MSRP of $19,950 (*plus $795 for destination). That ...
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Motorsports: Mini locks out the podium at Dakar Rally 1390330800

Motor racing is often overcome by dominant forces. In Formula One these days, it's all about Red Bull. Le Mans is absolutely dominated by Audi. Citroën devastated the World Rally Championship for years. And the Dakar Rally is no exception to that particular rule, either. The Mitsubishi Pajero won the event seven years in a row and many times before ...
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Detroit: Mini John Cooper Works Concept heading wide-eyed into production 1389650280

We now know that Mini will offer a stupendous number of total models over the next few years, so it's fair to assume that most of the brand's concept cars have series production written all over them. So, a 'concept' like this new John Cooper Works Mini is more or less a mortal lock to hit showrooms in very similar trim. That's probably a good thing for ...
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Next-gen Mini E Coupe caught uncovered in Germany 1387571400

It's no surprise that Mini is working on an updated Mini E electric vehicle. Just a few weeks ago, the automaker's brand manager, Peter Schwarzbauer, said an electric Mini "fits perfectly with the brand, and I am convinced that we will offer a suitable solution." After all, parent company BMW has been evolving the all-electric powertrain from the original ...
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Video: 2014 Mini Cooper goes to the dogs 1387317480

We wouldn't buy a car to make a dog happy, but Mini's latest commercial, Bullheaded, would have you believe that dogs like the new 2014 Cooper as much as humans. Regardless of the commercial's target audience (Spike The Bulldog, or his owner?), it does show a couple new tidbits about the car, such as the new center dial touchscreen, ambient lighting and ...
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Official: Mini reveals new John Cooper Works concept ahead of Detroit 1387282500

BMW effectively hit the reset button when it unveiled the new Mini at the LA Auto Show last month, opening the door to a whole raft of new variants to follow – and this is the first. Set to be unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show next month is the new Mini John Cooper Works Concept, a showcar that previews the next hot hatch from the Anglo-Saxon ...
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Report: Production Mini Rocketman still in the cards, but not without a partner 1386025260

There's not really any way around it - the new Mini Hardtop isn't all that mini. Considering its supposed to be the smallest model in the brand's lineup, this is hardly desirable. It's good news, then, that rumors are cropping up of a smaller Mini, based on the well-received Rocketman Concept that debuted in 2011 at the Geneva Motor Show. The report, ...
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BMW could revive all-electric Mini 1385557140

BMW spent years evolving the all-electric powertrain it introduced in the Mini E back in 2008. The first big change was when the original Mini E was cancelled and the ActiveE was introduced in 2011. Then we have the quantum leap into the i3. If a report over on BMW Blog is correct, we might one day go full circle back to an electric Mini. ...