A few months back there was a lot of talk about Getrag having developed an all-wheel drive for MINI. Anyone know status?

 

They made it, but you won't be seeing it on the market anytime soon. It was prohibitively expensive. I know Jan might be working on something along these lines, check with him .

 

i hear awd trains are heavy...would it really be that beneficial for a mini?

 

Unless it's snowing, probably not.

I had AWD in my WRX for 6 years, and in Texas, it wasn't terribly useful. Still loved that car

 

The AWD MINI "crossover SUV", variously tagged under the code names Colorado, Monte and Crossman is under road test in Europe now and is due for launch in 2010.

It will be built by Magna-Steyr in Austria alongside the BMW X1 and use the same floorpan and Getrag FWD system.

More on Motoring File here.

 

Depends on how it's done. They could implement an AWD system in a MINI without dramatically changing it's weight (Maybe another 120-150 lbs max).

As for whether or not it would be beneficial... For putting down power? When you have 300 HP, FWD isn't exactly the BEST system for getting that to the ground .

 

of course... all you need is about 260+whp