Still a Mini adventure
How much pure, unadulterated driving fun can you have in car that costs under $40,000?
Well loads, actually.
Because I've just tried the Mini Cooper S auto, which has a list price of $39,300 plus on-roads (and a manual available for $36,950) and it's a little ripper.
First, a confession: I've tested two versions of BMW's reimagined Mini over recent years - the Cooper S Coupe (which was $52,510 on the road) and Cooper S Paceman ($60,848) - and would happily have sold a kidney to buy either, but especially the two- seater mini-Batmobile Coupe.
My operation wound would have been well protected too, such was the comfort and support offered as I blasted round corners and on to the freeway with a big grin on my face.
The third-generation Mini doesn't look much different to the model it replaced. It's a little longer and wider, and the bonnet has a slightly different shape, with an air-intake hole above its iconic badge. It certainly received a few admiring comments when parking at my daughter's Saturday- morning netball.
What is different is the price. The new Cooper S is a staggering $3750 cheaper to buy than its predecessor.
Underneath it's all change too, with new suspension, transmissions, safety tech and the introduction of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine.
Luckily it hasn't lost any of its glued-to-the-road agility, especially when you turn the big dial at the bottom of the gear stick and pop it into Sport mode, causing the large circular console in the middle of the dash to glow red and the excellent 8.8-inch widescreen display housed within to flash up: "Maximum go-kart feel."
It's not wrong. The car tenses up, the engine growls, the exhaust crackles and you can shift from 0-100km/h in a sprightly 6.7 seconds. And it feels quicker because you're closer to the ground than in many other cars.
The steering is sensational, meaning you can fly round corners, tackle roundabouts with ease and weave through traffic. There's also another Sport option on the gearstick, meaning more growls.
I loved it.
The other drive modes are Mid, which promises "typical Mini driving fun", and Green for "low consumption driving fun".
And, fair play to Mini here, they've reduced the fuel consumption from 6.7L/100km to 5.5L. And it's still a lot of "fun" to drive Green, just not quite as noisy.
Inside, it all looks typically Mini, with chrome touches everywhere, "black chequered" panelling and purple mood lighting.
One neat addition is a red Spitfire-like flap to start the engine with the key in your pocket, while the infotainment system is easy to navigate and the sat nav the clearest I've seen, helped by that widescreen. If you want a reversing camera, though, it's a $700 extra.
Two adults can easily fit in the back, although they might struggle to get in there through the Cooper S' two doors.
But I couldn't have told you it was 44mm wider than its predecessor. Indeed, at times it felt tighter, especially when I turned corners and found my elbows banging into the sides of the cloth-and-leather sport seats.
And don't try to pull up the handbrake without shifting the central bin out of the way - you run the risk of straining wrist ligaments trying to get at it. I'm sure BMW could have come up with an electric handbrake to go with the Mini's many other knobs.
But maybe that handbrake only annoyed me because it meant I was stopping the car, and the fun was over.
Now where's that number for the kidney surgeon?
