Might step on few toes here

http://jalopnik.com/the-mini-john-co...less-450525106

 

I still like it but would never own one.

 

I wouldn't mind one to be honest

 

I hate Jalopnik. It's just a big Miata circlejerk over the half of the time anyway, and the rest is teenage benchracing.

I think the JCW Paceman looks awesome. It has 90% of the practicality of the CM in a much more attractive package. If I needed actual back seats I'd consider it.

 

Mini doesn't make cars for the masses. They make niche cars. This fills some niche they identified and I'm sure they will sell just as many as they are making.

I do somewhat agree there are a lot of models now and it is kind of unclear where the company as a whole is taking itself.

 

I would prefer an ALL4 hatch considering where I currently live (VW's doing it with the Golf platform), but the ALL4 Paceman will do well for those who like the hatch but want AWD...

 

Jalopnik is now pretty much an open blog; no different really than any NAM member posting up their personal opinion of the JCW Paceman.

So what'd I think of the article? Just another person's opinion, no big deal.

 

He doesn't seem to be complaining about the R61 in general, it seems like he's complaining about the JCW variant.

It seems like it would be stupid not to make a JCW variant. They have a Justa, an S, and a JCW of every model. Why would the R61 be any different?

I don't think the countryman platform is unnecessary. I see a ton of them on the roads here in LA so they're obviously filling a some sort of need. Out of all of the MINI models, I think the Clubman is probably the most pointless. That's not to say I don't like it, I do. I'm just saying that it's the one model that could be lost and the brand wouldn't really lose any "functionality"; they'll still be able to provide a small, medium, and large car just like anyone else.

Also on a side note, I do love those wheels!

 

Last year, I had to travel to work in Ft McMurray (oil patch in Alberta Canada) quite a bit. My office was literally 20 miles out into the middle of nowhere. Nobody drives a small car there, and you need AWD or 4WD to get anywhere outside of your driveway.

I got to sample driving full sized pickups and SUVs all the way down to a Nissan Roque. The Nissan would be marginally adequate in that area. The full size pickup truck Ford F250 was too big for me, but considered the normal car of choice there. Personally, for those conditions, I liked the Jeep Liberty the best.

I couldn't help but think the Paceman or Countryman would be a much better choice than the Nissan Roque, but probably not quite as good as the Jeep. Though I would like driving the MINI Paceman or Countryman on a regular basis better, especially if I needed to go south into town (Edmonton 5 hours away).

It's not pointless. There is a market for them.

 

Jalopnik has been a long hater of the MINI extension starting with the R58.

 

Yeah they have this wierd hatred for BMWs and Mini for some reason.

I bet these will sell like hot cakes, just like the Countryman, that was supposed to be a "flop" and the Cayenne.

 

Wasn't the Countryman the most popular Mini sold last year or did the R56 outsell it still?

Also, I live in Cleveland and see the Countryman everywhere.. So there is a market for it, and it's big in this area.

 

Guess the author did not see the point in a all wheel drive hatch with great handling. By no means an impartial evaluation of the car.No quantitative data whatsoever other than 0 to 60, if you are going to the effort to write an article, list highs and lows of design. Every car is a compromise. I can write a 3 page article about how the authors car is impractical an pointless for any given set of criteria.

 

I wear steel toe boots....besides I don't get the point of his story ? So HE doesn't like this model. His reasons are shallow and without merit. Who shivs a git.

 

I'm not sure why people get so upset about these articles. It's absolutely right.

Now please hear me out.

The paceman is pointless, but so are most cars by this logic. Jack of not so many trades and master of none. It doesn't hold much cargo, tough to get things in and out, and that back seat headroom is a joke. Now is the regular cooper any better? No. We buy these cars because we love them. Some dumb review means little and honestly it's just an article listing cons, not inherent problems about workmanship or the car falling apart. By the logic used in the article, we should all drive corollas or Prius' (priuses?...who cares). The paceman is a great looking vehicle and a statement. Minis no longer are the mpg leaders and so the only real reason we give people as to why we buy them these days is that we love how much fun they are. I'm kit knocking the paceman, but just stating that its never going to be a vehicle getting the automotive press lined up to heap praise on it...and that's ok.

 

If they only made practical, sensible cars, we'd all be driving Toyota Avalons.

 

To each their own. I'm sure someone will pimp the crap out of one and it'll look super slick. It's the first 3-door Mini with AWD! I wouldn't be focusing much on the rear headroom (Motoring file says 6' frames max in the rear), but something tells me that large families won't be buying this. Like everyone says: niche.

To me it looks like a regular Cooper with an anaphylactic allergic reaction (swollen and puffy). But then again, so does the Countryman. Their lines are just too soft.

 

+1

i think the paceman reminds me of the evoque. just because it doesn't carry a landrover name or badge MINI gets ridiculed for it. is it their fault? no and I like the styling and would consider one had the engine actually been reevaluated for something bigger than the 1.6 because all that extra heft in a small pkg is just not enough...

 

I would completely agree. I'm waiting for someone to swap 1.8T into a countryman

 

I wish MINI would do what Nissan UK did with the Juke; transplant a S63 bi-turbo V8 for *****-n-giggles...

The best part was Nissan UK didn't give a **** what Ghosn said and did it behind his back. MINI USA needs to step up their game

 

The Evoque was an evolution. It was one of the few concept cars that made it to production with little to no change. It was marketed the right way and singlehandedly saved a marque from going to the way side(a 1.2 billion dollar injection in R&D helped I'm sure ;p). And LR/Jag's success has all the sharks nipping at the niche. Porsche has the Macan slated to be released in 2014 and MINI has the Paceman. Crazy part is, the Porsche is going to be priced similarly to the Paceman(~ 40+k) My Evoque's space in the garage will be compromised once the Macan becomes available.