As I was driving on the freeway today I was behind a Clubman and it dawned on me, relative to the context of this thread and ScottRiqui's last post that definitely, one of the problems is that Mini/BMW have gotten away from what the Cooper is. Clubmans, Countrymans, Convertibles, the Coupe, all demonstrate that BMW is focused on positioning the Mini as an econo option with a variety of platforms and anticipating brand loyalty because of the association with the higher end German brand.

Look at Lotus for example. The Elise and Exige are sports cars. They meet the necessary requirements to drive on US roads, but easily function at the track with little if any modification. And, one has the option to upgrade the car from the factory to make it more daily-driver-friendly. Lotus isn't making four door versions of the car or "One" versions or other mundane, appeal to the masses platforms. The car is the car - a dedicated sports car, which will appeal to a dedicated, but select consumer. BMW/Mini have a different focus and as that consumer driven generic-eration philosphy evolves, the Mini will become more and more bland. Seriously, at this point, what is the excitement or appeal of a newer JCW car?

Comparison:
2011 Exige S 1.8l SC Toyota engine
220 hp/ 159 ft-lb torque
0-60 4.5s (yup!!!!!)
Wt 2077 lbs

2011 Exige Cup 1.8l SC Toyota engine
257 hp/174 ft-lb torque
0-60 4.0s (change my underwear!!!!)
0-100 9.9s (I'm not even wearing underwear anymore!!!!!!!!!)
Wt 2004 lbs

2011 Cooper JCW
208 hp/192 ft-lb torque
0-60 6.2s (hey did that Toyota Corolla S just blow past you!?)
Wt 2668 lbs (can a car have diabetes!?)

2005 MCS
168 hp/163 ft-lb torque
0-60 7.0s (your grandma's scooter might be faster!)
Wt 2678 lbs (i think this is what they mean by skinny fat!)

Seriously, BMW - send some people over to Lotus to figure out how to re-claim the essence of the car - or just sell the brand to Aston-Martin and let's see what they'd do with it!

 

I did not mean to sound argumentative in my comment. I was stating a fact that in the last 20 years we have been able to take smaller motors and crank out more power in them. Hell I was reading the other day that the mid 70s Smokey and the bandit Trans Am that came with the 6.6l V8 cranked out 200hp from the factory. That is terrible efficiency. The comparison though of a Lotus to the MINI is not a fair one becasue the 2 cars serve to different functions. Your comparison is like comparing apples and oranges. You can eat both but, they don't taste the same. Lotus is a purpose built sports car while the MINI contrary to popular belief is nothing but an econobox. There is a term called sport compact and guess what the Cooper S and JCW both fit in that category. Basically all I am saying is that if you wanted a sports car you should have bought one and not a MINI becasue no matter what you are never going to get what you want out a MINI(no room to store stuff, generally speaking worse gase mileage, more expensive but, you would be a hell of a lot faster).

 

What a great topic to post on, just drank my morning tea and enjoyed the articles. Sometimes I go on E-bay just to look @ some of the cars these posts have mentioned and a few others like older Alpha's, 914-6 early 80 Lotus esprit's if I only had a huge garage and some extra change ok maybe also be single....Anyway I have developed a bond with my cooper I bought it for me and will admit that being asked where do you wind it up or how cute it is sort of irks me I just start it rev it and think about the next mod.......or how will I justify $47k for an r-58.........

 

Porthos, I guess that's kinda where the idea for this thread originated. The GLH-S was the epitome of an econo-hatch but it also was wicked quick over 2 decades ago. It was made by an American car company not so much respected for manufacturing performance cars. Now here we are plowing through the 2000's and the Mini which has some type of racing heritage, was reintroduced by a european manufacturer known and respected for making performance oriented coupes and sedans. BMW has no heritage in econo-cars. So there's the conundrum. If Honda was the one to re-introduce the Mini, then I think it would make sense for everyone to understand it as an econo hatch, maybe with a few sport oriented platforms. However, BMW should have and most certainly could have, launched the Mini as something to really set a new standard in the 3 door sports car realm that truly made for competition to Porsche's Boxster or Lotus, without venturing any concern towards losing a single potential customer who would ultimately have purchased an M3 or M badged zed 4.

I know what my Mini is - no matter how much extra money or tweeking I put in to it. It is not the ZHP 3 series or the Porsche 987 I owned previously - unfortunately, changes in life (and huge student loans - one of which stupidly was used toward the purchase of the 987) meant that I had to downsize. Economically, I probably should have purchased a Honda Civic, but the "driving-enthusiast" in me had more say. The fact that a shiny red, pre-owned MCS with insane low miles and an ACS bodykit was for sale (and I was woooed by the supercharger) certainly didn't help to ensure a more reasonable decision.

It would be nice to see BMW do for the Mini what they've shown is possible for the M3 or even what Lotus can do with a small displacement supercharged 4 cylinder and give us a true enthusiast Cooper.

 

I'm a little late to the game on this thread since I don't stop by this forum too often anymore.
I had to sell my 2005 S last summer to fund my business, but I'm happy I was able to keep my 1986 GLH Turbo. Now we have three GLH's and an '87 GLHS.
Yes, the omni was a crappy car.
But with a few mods to the suspension and a good set of tires, it's a lot like the MINI, just more primitive.
Funny as it is, we're doing more work for people with '80's Dodge Turbo cars than we were for MINI's.
http://www.greatlakeshotrod.com/Grea...GLH-Turbo.html
http://www.greatlakeshotrod.com/Grea...1987_GLHS.html

 

Enjoyable post! I test drove the MCS as soon as they were available in the U.S, realized I could not afford one at the time. Having liked the Omni GLH, the Shelby Charger and the Duster, I ended up buying a "98 Neon R/T, figuring I could mod it to come close to the experience I had test driving the MCS. Other than fitment issues, by the time I was done working over the R/T's suspension and engine, I had a very nice handling car with pretty decent performance. Dodge missed the mark with the 2nd gen. Neon SRT, only offered as a sedan! Their line-up has become so bloated, then when gas went sky high last year, no small car in the line-up, so we will see how the FIAT 500 does for them! My R/T-

 

I'm a little late to this party, but thought I would throw my hat into the ring of this discussion.

I think you guys are expecting something from BMW that BMW just doesn't really do. Someone made the comment that it would be expected if Honda released the Mini that it would end up as a somewhat sporty econo hatch. Honestly, that's exactly what I expect from BMW. In my opinion, BMW is more or less the "Honda" of the european car world. BMW is a very "safe" manufacturer. I mean, sure, they have some sporty cars like the M class version of various cars, but they don't really go out on a limb with anything super sporty, or very impressive. Honestly, Honda, with cars like the NSX and S2000 has built "pure" sports cars that will run with cars from BMW. Think about, I see almost as many BMW 3 and 5 series cars being driven around by people that could care less about BMW's sporting heritage as I do Honda Civics and Accords. And if BMW is the Honda of the euro cars, Mercedes Benz would be the Toyota.

Unless someone buys the Mini brand from BMW and designs and builds their own car, you're never going to see anything near what Lotus does with their cars from Mini. BMW is only going to do things that are safe and profitable with Mini. Pure sports cars don't really sell much, and are definitely not safe. I'm sure there is no way we would see something like the M3 from the BMW of 2011 if it didn't already have such a great reputation and guaranteed sales.

 

Lotus sets out to produce a racing car that can be driven on the street. They add only what they need to meet requirements from various governments. The Esprit Turbo in its day had the best horsepower to displacement ratio of any car produced at the time. I am not sure who holds that title today.

MINI or BMW sets out to produce a street car that can be used on the track. They have done a wonderful job marketing the car, building factories that just have enough capacity to meet demand. All of the Sidewalk, Mayfair, Goodwood etc. special editions are following what they have done in the past with the old Mini and is done to sell the same basic car at an inflated price. Earlier someone suggested that they could sell a bare bones MINI at a reduced price. Porsche has been doing this for years with their RS models. Except they charge MORE, not less for those models. If MINI decided to do the same, I suspect they would increase the price also.

 

The "de-contented" Porsches aren't selling all that well. I think people have figured out that they aren't that much different than the "regular" ones, especially if you decide you have to have air conditioning and a stereo.

Lotus doesn't sell many cars either. I'm betting that BMW isn't interested in spending a bunch of money trying to make a lightweight sports car that can compete with Lotus or Porsche. It will be more difficult to do with a FWD platform (and will cost more!) and will likely be seen as cannibalizing the sales of their more-prestigious and faster cars.

They truly are apples and oranges. Just enjoy your MINI for what it is.

 

Minis are not meant to be sports cars. They are meant to be everyday vehicles which just happen to be fun to drive.

The wide body, low bulldog stance, and wheels incredibly close to the edges of the chassis are what make a mini unique with go cart like handling.

The Doge Neon generation of cars were pieces of crap. The Lotus and Porche are not practical nor within the range of most people's budget.

 

The next issue of Grassroots Motorsports will feature the GLH-S.

 

I have a buddy with a late 80s 2 door Shadow that he has boosted. Funny *** car when its roosting tires passing people. Its pretty quite till he gets on it and your mouth drops as it hits 18lbs and passes you. You just have this "I just got passed by a what?"

 

i bought a 1984 vw gti , my first new car, because it was a cheap , well performing car for the day . I was in the navy, and all of us had saved up money to buy when we got back to the states from our 6 month criuse..the choices were the gti, mazda rx7, honda crx, mustang, etc.. later the glh was born

it was a different era then...car companies had finallly gotten past the horrible 70s and early 80s, and quality and performance were coming back...I remember the first glh i saw...it was black w red striping, looked like a clone of my vw....however, the power was much more than the vw, but my vw went 160k miles in 3 years ( yes, If i wasnt out to sea i was driving the heck outta it) the guy i knew that had the glh was constantly chasing some demon, and i could still drive under him in any corner

i guess my point is that cars evolve and tastes change. the 80s cars had some real pluses, but they didnt last as long, and were "less safe" , however you want to read that. The mini is a great niche car, and it, like most every car, has its weaknesses and strengths.

would i trade it for a 84 gti ...NO
would i like to have my old vw back, just for memerories..YES

but i do know that my memories of that car are likely clouded after all these years, and it may not be all i thought t was.

my mini fits the bill that mimics the "memory" of my gti
that puts a smile on my face

 

A WTCC BMW. And that engine is based on the same block/head as our S.
But really, the problem we are seeing is bloat. The new Fiat 500 weighs in at about 2300lbs - and it's one of the lightest cars on the market today. It's also one of the smallest (not counting the Smart).
Car makers are now required to build in so much safety equipment, that it has become very difficult to make a lightweight car. We have become our own undoing, with all the sub-par drivers, cellphone use while driving, self-absorbed litigators who sue when they know they are at fault, etc.
But that's just my opinion.

 

It's not just safety equipment. That auto air conditioning weighs something, so do power windows, power seats, power cupholders, 37-speaker surround sound satellite radio, acres of leather, seat heaters, seat coolers, and on and on and on and on. The automakers add all of that stuff because people won't buy cars that don't have any of it, except for a few exceptions that can pony up for a Lotus. Or who pick up old Civics or Little British Cars secondhand.

 

I've had MANY T/D's even a highly modded Daytona IROC R/T and they were ALL fast as h*ll!!! (For little money) The handling left alot to be desired........but CHEAP to make stupid fast.
My favorite was the '86 Chrysler Le Baron 5 door that I swapped in a 2.5 T1 with all T2 up grades and dual stage boost. 12 psi on low and 18psi on high with an 8 degree clipped Garret T3/T4. LOVED stomping 'Stangs at Rockey Mountain Raceway in SLC. with a 2.1 60 ft it still tripped low 13's and the IROC at 26 psi clocked 11's. BUT I got sick of always fixing them 'bout the most unreliable hotrod I ever had. Mostly trans and electrical ghosts..... Had LOTS of fun though....