Posts Tagged ‘Mini Cooper’

Big cities are full of life, culture, and fun things to do. But when it comes to driving in a city, anyone who’s ever struggled to find parking or been attacked by a gigantic pothole can tell you that urban centers can also be extremely tough on cars.

With almost 350 cars to choose from, are some vehicles better suited to life in a big city?  We sorted out the urbanites from the suburbanites in the Honk database to find out which cars are most popular in the Big Apple, Windy City, City of Angels, and other major metro markets.  You can read through our list of the Top 5 Best Cars for City Life down below or build your own list from scratch on Honk.

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1. BMW 1-Series

The BMW 1-Series proved most popular with city-dwellers thanks to its ability to offer a premium driving experience in a compact package.  BMW’s characteristic sporty moves are magic in this small coupe, helping owners dodge crazy taxi drivers, aloof bikers, and darting pedestrians.  As one reviewer put it, “You get all the feel of driving a sports car without the lowdown seating.”

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2. Audi A4

Sometimes you need an escape from all the hustle and bustle of city life.  If you can’t make it to the Hamptons for the weekend, you might want to consider seeking sanctuary inside the beautiful cabin of the Audi A4.  As the largest car in our Top 5, there’s ample room to stretch out and you’ll appreciate the comfortable ride if you venture out onto the street.  The A4 is one of a few luxury cars to offer you the choice of an economical (but still powerful) 4-cylinder engine.  “The turbo loves to kick in when I’m weaving in and out of traffic,” notes one happy owner.

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3. Honda Fit

“This is one FUN car to drive!” brags an enthusiastic Honda Fit owner.  Thrifty and thoughtful, the Fit is a fantastic companion for the city.  It gets great fuel economy and has nimble handling to help you weave through crowded streets.  Parking this urban runabout is a breeze – but don’t let those compact dimensions fool you… there’s more cargo space inside the Fit than in some small SUVs.  The secret here is the clever back seat, which can fold up or down to accommodate cargo of various shapes and sizes.

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4. Mini Cooper

Not every car lets you reenact a car chase from The Italian Job on your way home from work every day.  The Mini Cooper has classic styling, a playful demeanor, and great parking karma.  It’s an instant pick-me-up no matter what your mood.  As one owner put it, “The Mini is perhaps the most emotionally satisfying car that I have ever owned. I highly recommend it.”

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5. Smart ForTwo

If ever there were a car suited perfectly for life in a big city, the ForTwo is it.  This Smart is the smallest car on the market and it can squeeze into tight parking spaces that even a Mini Cooper would pass up.  Owners love that the ForTwo can be optioned up with heated seats, rain-sensing windshield wipers, and other penthouse features at a studio price.

You may not like the looks but the tiny T.25 city car is revolutionary in every way.  So revolutionary, in fact, that it may very well become the world’s next Ford Model T or Volkswagen Beetle.

As with those motoring icons, the T.25 is a small car that’s affordable to build and affordable to own.  It comes from a small engineering firm in England that’s led by legendary car designer, Gordon Murray.  If you’re a fan of exotic sports cars or Formula One racing, you’ll recognize Murray’s name as the driving force behind the McLaren F1 supercar and several championship winning race cars.

Murray brought a “clean sheet of paper” mentality to the T.25 project and designed this new city car with a changing world in mind.  He wanted a car with a small carbon footprint to battle global climate change and a small physical footprint to contend with crowded mega-cities.  The resulting T.25 gets 74 miles per gallon on the European test cycle and can be built in a factory that is only 20% the size of a traditional operation.

With a length of only 94.5 inches, the T.25 makes the 106.1-inch Smart ForTwo and 145.6-inch Mini Cooper look positively enormous.  Like the Smart, the T.25’s small size allows for drivers to head-in park in parallel parking spaces in Europe (illegal here in the US).  The car is so small that three can fit side-by-side in a single parking space.

Murray also sees potential for two T.25s to share a single lane during rush hour, increasing the number of cars that can safely squeeze onto major roads.

The iconic design features a central driver’s seat flanked by two seats in the rear.  There are no traditional doors, either.  You enter by tilting the entire front portion of the cabin forward.

Even more revolutionary than the car is the process used to build it.  Murray and his team re-thought the whole factory, resulting in a facility that is only 20% the size and that outputs no chemical pollution.

What this means is that we could start to see T.25s licensed and produced in huge numbers all over the world.  Thanks to the low capital investment needed to build a T.25 factory, small companies in India, China, and Eastern Europe could compete with larger companies and start producing cars for their local markets.

Assuming the world stays on its current trajectory, the innovative T.25 – and upcoming T.27 electric vehicle – seems poised for success.  And if Murray’s team succeeds, they are likely to spark a new push toward sustainable manufacturing for established automobile companies.

Sound off below and let us know if you’d consider buying a T.25 or T.27, yourself.

A couple of weeks ago, Mini challenged Porsche to a race at Road Atlanta between the 172-horsepower Mini Cooper S and the 385-horsepower Porsche 911 via Facebook campaign, full page ad in the New York Times, and a viral video.  Needless to say, Mini’s little car is super scrappy.

Despite the fact that Porsche was favored to win, the sports car maker initially declined the challenge with a buzzkilling letter to Mini chief, Jim McDowell, that stated, “Porsche doesn’t race for fame, stunts or publicity.”

In response, Mini (no doubt in an effort to be subtle) launched an air raid on Porsche’s headquarters and released, yet another, viral video.

And all this back and forth is nothing compared to Mini’s next move – a spoof on Rocky IV:

The German sports car maker finally caved in to the pressure and accepted Mini’s challenge.  Surprise, surprise: Porsche won the race.  David did not beat the 385-horsepower Goliath:

Despite all the sensational coverage, do you think that this race was a good move on Mini’s part?

As the designated car guy in my circle of friends, it is my sworn duty to offer 24/7 support whenever someone needs help buying a new car.  I research cars, explain features, double-check market prices and personally accompany friends to the dealership whenever possible.

After supporting dozens of car purchases, I’ve come to an important realization: emotions always win.

Toss that specifications sheet and cancel your subscription to Consumer Reports because if you’re anything like my friends, you’re not going to listen to your head when it’s your turn to buy a new car.

My friend, Iris, is the poster-child for this phenomenon.  “I really like the Mini Cooper, but I need four-wheel drive for snowboarding in the winter and I also need to carry a surfboard or two inside,” she explained.  “I’m thinking about buying a Nissan Xterra or that Lexus SUV.”

We hit the ground running on Saturday and looked at twelve SUVs and crossovers, test-driving her favorite seven.  We kicked tires, calculated payments, and carefully examined cargo space.

Iris called me early the next morning.  “I know you’re going to hate me for this but I’ve decided to buy a Mini Cooper S.”

Between the anti-surfboard size and the summer tires, I knew that this was quite possibly the worst car for her needs.  But even though her change of heart was frustrating after a full day of dealership visits I could tell that she was grinning from ear to ear as she spoke.  “The Mini is a great car,” I sighed.  “You should definitely get it.”

Three years later, Iris still loves her Mini.  “I get 35 miles per gallon and my car is sooo much fun to drive!” she tells people.

And Iris isn’t the only one who took a last-minute left turn.

My neighbor, Pauline, complained of high fuel prices and was certain that she’d end up with a small car.  She ultimately bought a mid-sized Nissan Murano crossover because she loved the dark blue color and post-modern design.

An acquaintance, Lewis, was convinced that the super-efficient Toyota Prius was the best choice for his wife’s lengthy commute but purchased an Acura TSX because she fell in love with the interior.

A close friend and colleague, Trevor, had his pick of a super-discounted lease on a company vehicle but chose to spend thousands more on a Honda S2000 sports car because of the way it felt behind the wheel.

Are these people crazy?  Far from it.

I think that car-shopping is a lot like discovering a new friend.  It’s easy to find strangers with common interests but true friends are the ones who click on a much deeper level.  The same is true of cars.  They can all get you from A to B, but only a few can really move you on an emotional level.

So how will you know which car is the right car for you?  That’s easy: it’s the one that makes you smile.