The Sunday News
Lovert Mafukure
The BMW Mini has been an icon since the 1960s.
The Suez canal fuel crisis gave birth to the idea of a tiny car with a very small engine and the ability to accommodate people just like a normal car. Previously owned by British Motor Corporation, later Leyland and eventually bought over by BMW in 1994, it was not until 2000 however, that the mini was reborn.
The original Mini was developed to be just that, a super mini car. It was supposed to be very small but still functional.
The designers designed something that hadn’t been designed before and weighed only 600kg. With the fuel crisis then, Britain was rationing fuel and having a Mini car was a welcome move for a lot of people. The new Mini however, isn’t the same old 600kg Mini, it’s bigger, it’s better, it’s bolder. It’s all the BS you can think of.
The BMW Mini was popularised by the 2003 Italian Job movie where it was performing some super slick manoeuvres. Bmw had an idea to resuscitate the Mini legend and let it live on. The New Mini isn’t small as the original one was.
It somehow lacks the originality of the original Mini, however, it is still charmingly beautiful and hasn’t lost the mini resemblance.
The front boasts of the iconic round lights only this time they lift with the bonnet. I’m not quite sure how I feel about the headlights that lifted with the bonnet but I’m kind of glad they did away with it in the 2nd generation Mini.
It is still a super compact small car with two doors set up, classic mini grill and the famous 4 spot lights on the Cooper S.
Interior is much nicer when compared to the old Mini. The instrument cluster remained centralised in the middle of the dashboard to keep the Mini tradition. It seats 2 adults upfront and 3 smaller people at the back. It has been criticised on a couple of forums for having cramped space at the back.
On top of the range is a Mini Cooper S which is driven by a 1,6l supercharged engine. Yes, you heard right, it’s supercharged! It’s easily recognisable with the hood scoop which standard Minis do not have.
Not to be outdone of course is the Mini Clubman which is bigger and longer and featured the split trunk doors that open like the closet in your bedroom.
A bit weird for a 20th century car but then again, what’s not weird about the Mini.
The Mini is now landing at just about the same cost as most Grey imports. The entry level Mini One has a 1,4l engine which is fuel efficient.
The 1,4l engine drives the front wheels via an automatic gearbox or a manual one. Wheels in the Mini are quite large, they are size 15s. It was quite a bit of a leap from the old Mini that came with 10inch wheels. A lot of enthusiasts eventually concluded that the BMW Mini did not do much of a good job in trying to keep the ORIGINAL Mini heritage. I’d like to agree with them to an extent.
Apart from the shape that resembles the Old Mini, the new Mini is just about the same as any other smaller car on the market.
Minis are only starting to penetrate the Zim market now. You get some advantages if you buy one of these. It’s a small compact car and you can manoeuvre easily in tight parking sports.
It is well known for having a great combination of both power and performance while maintaining great fuel economy.
The downside however, is that the BMW Mini was never assembled on Zim soil. Our neighbour South Africa however, had the Mini. It coming fully as a Grey import means parts and maintenance are solely your baby. There are no guarantees, no service plans and no after sales support.
This is basally a bmw and that means maintenance land service will be a bit on the high side. If you do go for this car for the enjoyment it offers then you will have to prepare to import the parts you will need in the long run.
BMW has always offered sheer driving pleasure, the BMW Mini is no exception. It may be a Grey import with limited support but you will enjoy what it has to offer. Till next time, Happy Motoring!
@lovert116 – Automart Used Spares Centre – Quality Used Japanese Spares -+263 772 33 99 38 – [email protected] – Facebook: @automartusc
