MINI has revealed the seventh new model in its brand portfolio – the BMW X6-inspired MINI Paceman ‘sports activity coupe’. The three-door SUV-style coupe goes on sale in early 2013.
The MINI Paceman is a three-door MINI Countryman that’s been given a sporty-style rear end. It has a raked roofline and bulging rear wheelarches while, inside, there are just four seats instead of up to five in the Countryman.
MINI reckons it’s the ideal car for the city. Occupants sit high so they have a good view out, yet the model has enough coupe-look style to turn heads. Think of it as an alternative SUV-style take on the Audi TT.
Ignore the Countryman-derived front end: the MINI Paceman’s most distinctive aspect is from the side, where the sloping roof combines with bold rear pillars and a standard rear spoiler to give a distinctive look. The flared rear wheelarches also make it look muscular.
The Paceman has two MINI firsts: it’s debuts the concept of writing the model name on the bootlid (in BIG bold silver capitals) and it’s also the first MINI to have horizontal rear lights. All new-generation MINI have, up to now, had vertical lights, just like the original. Does this signify a gentle freeing up of the design constraints within the brand?
Four engines will be offered at launch, two petrols and two turbodiesels. The standard Cooper has a 122hp 1.6 which, in turbocharged Cooper S guise, is boosted to 184hp. The Cooper D has a 112hp 1.6-litre turbodiesel, with the Cooper SD boasting a 143hp 2.0-litre turbodiesel.
For what’s intended to be a stylish premium city coupe, it’s very green. Even the pacy Cooper SD averages 61.4mph and emits 122g/km, falling to just 115g/km and 64.2mpg overall for the Cooper D. The regular petrol Cooper may be the best-seller: this averages 47.1mpg and emits 140g/km CO2.
The Paceman has a distinctive rear cabin as it is fitted with two individual seats that are modelled on those in the front. This means it has more shoulder- and headroom than normal, with legroom further boosted by cutouts in the front seats. The brand calls it a ‘lounge-style’ ambience.
It’s reasonably practical: the boot is 330 litres with the seats up, stretching to 1080 litres with them folded. The rear hatchback tailgate is large and the raised ride height should make things a bit easier to slide in and out (once you’ve lifted them off the ground, that is).
MINI geeks will love this detail fact: the Paceman is the first MINI to have side window controls integrated into the door trim, rather than sitting in the toggle pack on the centre console.
MINI says the suspension has been lowered to give ‘the trademark MINI go-kart feeling’, despite its height: intriguingly, buyers have to purposefully option regular (non-sport) suspension and ride height.
Choose an automatic gearbox on the 112hp Cooper D, and you get an upgraded engine – it swells from 1.6-litres to 2.0-litres. This is presumably a quirk that means the 1.6-litre diesel is incompatible with MINI”s automatic gearbox.
Included as standard on all Paceman is air con, front sports seats, the distinctive MINI ‘Centre Rail’, electric windows and alloy wheels. If you have the cash, the options choice is vast, including Harman/Kardon hifi, Colour Line interior, electric glass roof, even a trailer coupling.
In Australia, BMW offers 71 distinct variants of 16 models. Just 12 of those 71 variants are available with a naturally aspirated engine. The remaining 12 are on the endangered species list with several more expected to become extinct some time in 2012. By 2014, with the introduction of the turbocharged F30 M3, BMW’s naturally aspirated history will be just that. That once great atmo engine company has embraced the turbo as warmly as Audi, Mercedes and Volkswagen
Many of BMW’s great atmo engines have been impossibly smooth in-line sixes, traditionally powering models like the 528i. Nothing signifies the shift in engineering philosophy quite like the new 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder 528i that’s just arrived in Australia.
The N20 TwinPower four powers variants of the X3, Z4, 3 Series and now 5 Series ranges in two states of tune; 135kW/270Nm for 520i and 180kW/350Nm in the 528i.
Like all F10 5 Series models except the seven-speed dual clutch M5, the 528i runs an eight-speed ZF torque converter auto. It’s never short of the right ratio and never wrong footed. Neither do you ever feel that the boosted 2.0-litre four-potter is not up to the job of man-handling the Commodore-sized Five. By just 1250rpm peak torque has arrived and all 350Nm hang around until 4800rpm.
The 528i’s 180kW arrive just 200rpm later and plateau until 6500rpm. It’s a strong if not particularly characterful engine and in 528i trim delivers 0-100km/h in 6.3 seconds and 6.7L/100km. So much for the old adage that only milk and juice comes in 2.0-litres.
It’s no surprise that the rest of the package remains as we’ve grown to expect from the 5 Series range – which remains a car that divides opinion. For some, and depending on the chassis options selected, the 528i might feel a smidge too firmly sprung, a feeling sometime exacerbated by the heavy and stiff-sidewalled run flats tyres. For others, and I profess to being in the second camp, the 528i, like most Fives, is a well-round executive sedan with a finely judged balance between comfort and sports.
At $77,900, the 520i undercuts the turbo-diesel 520d by $2800 to become the new 5 Series price leader. The 520i can’t match the diesel at the pump – 6.4L/100km plays 4.7. But if you can cop the extra fuel cost (though the $2800 lower entry price will buy a couple of year’s petrol) and shorter range, you’ll love the refined performance of the petrol compared to the gruff diesel.
If the excellent $115,600 535i turbo six calls into question the need for the $179,900 twin turbo V8 550i, then the $98,200 528i does the same to the 535i.
The 528i might just be the 5 Series sweet spot. That’s often been the case over the five generations of Five, so the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Specs:
Engine 1997cc in-line four-cylinder, 16v turbo, Max Power 180kW @ 5000-6000rpm, Max Torque 350Nm @ 1250-4800rpm, Transmission 8-speed automatic, 0-100km/h 6.7sec (claimed)
Price: $98 200
On sale now.
A full five years after its release, the current Volkswagen Golf Mark VI remains the Wheels small-car leader. So what chance does this all-new Mark VII version – larger yet lighter, more powerful and more efficient – have retaining class honours? Par for the course, you’d have to say.
The exterior is clearly from the Porsche 911 school of evolutionary design, classic Golf but with a fresh, chiselled look that hints at Polo around the front-end, and Passat around the tail-lights. “One of the keys to the Golf’s success lies in its continuity,” reckons Walter de Silva, Head of Design for Volkswagen AG. “Refined”, “tweaked”, “enhanced”, and, predictably, “timeless” are the other designer-ethos buzz words de Silva uses.
However it’s beneath the evolutionary lines and designer-speak that things start to get interesting. On average, the new Golf is 100kg lighter than the old one, despite being stretched by 56mm, widened by 13mm, and lowered by 28mm. That latter figure helps reduce drag by 10 percent, to an aero figure of 0.27 Cd, 0.01 better than the Holden Volt electric vehicle, which is the slipperiest car of the GM world. The Mark VII sits on an all- new platform, dubbed MQB (or Modular Transverse Matrix), the architecture of which has been engineered to suit everything from Tiguan to Passat, and their Skoda and Audi equivalents. For example, most parts from the A-pillar forward, including the powertrain and suspension components, are common to a broad range of models. Think of MQB as a ‘superstructure’, not for its sheer size, but for the breadth of platform-sharing (and, by extension, cost saving) it allows. VW claims this saving allows the (high) cost of top-end technologies and weight-saving componentry to be amortised by sheer, communal-model volume.
The new body structure saves a claimed 37kg, only slightly less than the all-new breed of engines (-40kg). Highlight of the entry-level variants is the 1.4-litre direct-injection turbocharged four-cylinder. Essentially an overhauled version of the current 90kW unit, it now produces 104kW, while two-cylinder deactivation system helps lower combined consumption to 4.8L/100km, a 1.6L improvement. The only current competitor to get close to that figure is the Alfa Giulietta 1.4 turbo, which returns a claimed 5.2L/100km. On the diesel front, a 1.6-litre unit claims 77kW/3.8L/100km, identical to the current Golf Bluemotion; a new 2.0-litre unit produces a more impressive 112kW and returns 4.1L/100km – up 9kW and down 0.8L on the outgoing Golf 103TDI. The multi-link rear suspension design is carried over, but added to the electro-mechanical steering set-up is the option of a variable ratio, for the first time.
Back to the bits buyers see and touch, and the new cabin looks more premium than the old Mark VI, with a larger, colour trip computer screen, standard central touchscreen, and new switchgear the highlights. Unfortunately for those who, like us, see no flaw in a mechanically-operated handbrake lever, the downside is that it has been replaced by a push-button parkbrake. Premium features such as an auto-braking function, adaptive cruise control, a driver alert system, and lane-keeping assistance, will be available on Golf (at extra cost) for the first time.
The current Golf is posting strong sales this year, thanks primarily to an entry sticker lowered from $26K when the Mark VI launched here in mid-2009, to $20,990 driveaway in this month’s round of run-out deals. If the MQB architecture can help reduce costs, then there’s no reason the Mark VII can’t continue its sales stealth against the perennial favourites when it arrives here in March. If it drives as well as its on-paper stats read, then retention of its class crown seems certain.
A tender to turn the London 2012 Olympic stadium into a post games Formula One venue has been officially received, according to the London Legacy Development Corporation.
The bid to host a Formula One Grand Prix at the arena is one of four submissions for development of the stadium in Stratford, East London following this summer’s Olympics.
In a statement issued by the LLDC, the organisation outlined that, “following an extension to the bidding period, the Legacy Corporation can reveal that it has received four bids for the venue.”
“Bids from West Ham United, Intelligent Transport Services in association with Formula One, UCFB College of Football Business and Leyton Orient will now be assessed to ensure they are compliant, before being evaluated ahead of negotiations.”
Bernie Ecclestone, President and CEO of Formula One Management (the firm that holds the commercial rights to the premiere series in world motorsport), highlighted last week that Intelligent Transport Services had consulted FOM about the plan, which would involve a rental agreement for Formula One to use the stadium for the race rather than own it.
Speaking to the UK’sTelegraph newspaper, Ecclestone confirmed that, “This is a firm that happened to be bidding for use of the stadium, not to own it. They came up with a scheme whereby Formula One would race around the stadium, inside it, outside it. They wanted to make sure I would be interested.”
The confirmation of the bid follows speculation surrounding London hosting a Grand Prix, but it is thought an event in the capital would not replace the British GP at Silverstone.
The proposed event in London would rival the Monaco Grand Prix for glitz and glamour, with FOM prepared to table £35 million worth of investment to bring F1 to London.
It is hoped the event could bring in as much as £100 million in revenue if it were to get the go-ahead, attracting more than 120,000 spectators.
Obscure Spanish manufacturer Asipid has unveiled the production version of its upcoming supercar effort: the GT-21 Invictus.
Sharing its name with the 2009 rugby union film, the Invictus looks just as tough as the characters featured — to the point of being almost threatening — and has the performance figures to back up its menacing demeanour.
336kW from a 4.4-litre BMW V8 hauls the Invictus from 0-100km/h in less than 3 seconds, while top speed is claimed to be in excess of 300km/h. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox in the automatic variant, or a six-speed in the manual.
A lightweight, semi-open-wheeler (or hammerhead) body design also helps the Invictus achieve these astonishing figures, with dry weight listed as less than 990kg thanks to composite body panels and a spaceframe chassis. This doesn’t mean that safety equipment is left out though; adaptive airbags, stability control and anti-lock brakes are all available.
On the inside the Invictus features a 2+2 seating configuration and a steering wheel adorned with multimedia integration that Asipid says will “facilitate previously unseen features.”
Asipid founder and chief designer of the Invictus Fernández Rodriquez said the car “represents a new generation of Gran Turismo fit for the 21st century.”
“Each car will be custom made and hand built in its own production bay. There is no production line as such. Each client can choose more than 100 different options, and most customers will want to visit the factory during the build of their personalised car,” he said.
Production of the GT-21 Invictus is slated to begin in 2014, though Asipid has not yet revealed any numbers relating to price.
The bellowing howl of Aston Martin’s mighty V12 Vantage can now be enjoyed in surround-sound stereo as the firm launches an open-top Roadster version of the charismatic two-seat sports car.
Aston has bowed to the obvious and combined the V12 Vantage with the Vantage Roadster soft-top convertible, creating a roofless roadster sister car to the ruthless V12 Vantage Coupé.
If you believe Aston Martin, it doesn’t yet know how fast the new V12 Roadster is. It’s only quoting predicted figures, which give it a 305km/h top speed and a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 4.5 seconds. As with the V12 Vantage Coupé, it’s manual-only: a paddleshift automatic is not available.
The mighty 6.0-litre V12 engine of the V12 Vantage Roadster produces 380kW at a wailing 6,500rpm, backed up by a punchy 570Nm of torque at a rather peaky 5,750rpm.
You won’t miss one of these, even from a distance. At the front, there are four enormous vents cut into the bonnet, to aid cooling of the huge engine. At the rear, there are enormous twin exhaust pipes, which are another visual identifier. The 19-inch alloys are new and there is, of course, the noise it makes too.
The engineering work that went into pairing Aston Martin’s largest engine with its smallest car was considerable — and even more engineering effort has been put into turning the V12 Vantage Coupé into the V12 Vantage Roadster. It’s much more than just a V12 Vantage Coupé without a roof.
Carbonfibre details mark out the V12 Vantage Roadster from lesser Vantage. There are carbonfibre side strakes, door mirror caps and infills for the rear lights. These can be finished with a special coloured weave from the options list if you wish (to pay extra).
The beautiful carbonfibre front splitter and rear diffuser (which includes a centrally-mounted oil cooler) are both hand made. Aston says this is to ensure consistency and direction of weave plus the best possible finish. Only by doing it this way can the exact symmetry be achieved.
The rear boot lid has a sharper ‘kick’ than the coupé, to help better manage the aerodynamics and reduce lift with the roof down. The front air intake is also lower, again presumably to manage aerodynamics at high speeds without the assistance of a windflow-smoothing coupé roof.
The regular coupé V12 Vantage sounds incredible: without a roof getting in the way, the V12 Roadster is going to sound sensational. Aston Martin enhances this with a special ‘Sport’ button on the dash, which keeps the exhaust bypass valves open for longer.
Aston has ensured the V12 Vantage Roadster is as plush with the roof up — bringing those beautiful colour-coded buttresses within the cabin — as it is with the colour-keyed canvass roof down. The compact top is a work of art and is beautifully finished and trimmed outside and in.
The iconic Tumbler vehicle from The Dark Knight Rises — the upcoming conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s epic Batman trilogy — took to the track at Silverstone before the British Grand Prix. It showed off some of its tricks beside the Lotus F1 car, with Lotus drivers Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean both in attendance to check out the Tumbler’s moves.Click on to see more pictures of the Tumbler in action on the F1 track…
IT’S A BIT unfair to Subaru’s BRZ that its Toyota counterpart hit Oz more than a month before it did. After all, the joint-project coupe is both Subaru-powered and Subie-built, meanwhile it was the Toyota that snatched all the glory (and headlines).
And though the $37,150 BRZ ($39,730 auto) appears more expensive than the Toyota, that pricing is drive-away, and includes more equipment than in a $29,990 base 86. In fact, it’s not far short of a $35,490 top-spec 86 GTS, and also includes servicing for three years/60,000km.
The big question remaining is: do the minor mechanical differences have a noticeable effect on the way the front-mid-engined rear-driver handles?
Not at all surprisingly, all the praise heaped on Toyota’s 86 is transferrable to its Subie sister. Officially, the only mechanical difference between BRZ and 86 is a pair of 10-percent-stiffer front coil springs in the Subaru. The impression from driving it is that the differences are subtle, not significant. The Subaru turns in a bit more incisively, with a fraction less body roll, before settling into a flatter mid-corner stance. Ride quality is a bit less compliant than in the 86, though the BRZ remains comfortable. There’s not much in it.
The precise, feel-rich electro-mechanical steering remains the highlight, the lightweight, rear-drive chassis beautifully balanced, and capable of almost infinite angles of attack. Meanwhile, the 147kW 2.0-litre boxer is a willing partner that spins with gusto and delivers its best when the big hand says 12 (or 6000rpm).
In the end, the decision between BRZ and 86 won’t be based on price or whether one brilliant coupe sparkles more brightly than the other. Rather, it’ll come down to brand preference, or which one buyers can get their hands on first.
Read the full report on Subaru’s BRZ in Wheels September, on sale August 15
Check out our BRZ galleries here.
Here’s our own tribute to Italy’s foremost design house: the 20 best shapes ever created by Pininfarina.
Queen Elizabeth II’s car collection at Goodwood
