The mini is not a sports car because it serves practical use, you cant drive a sports car in the snow, rain or other foul weather. Real sports cars dont bother with the convience of air conditioning, power steering, heated seats and such.

My mini serves as a form of entertainment. I drive it just for fun, make silly reasons to take a trip to the store, anything to have to start my little monster. Its a very expensive form of a toy, as well as therapy.

But the car is too practical to be a true sports car, however sporty it may be.

 

To me it's pretty simple......when Road & Track ran it through the slalom and it beat every Ferrari they ever tested....every corvette......ALMOST every Porsche......every Aston Martin.....every Lamborghini.....every everything....it's a sports car!!!! It's not the fastest one 0 to 60 they ever tested, but hey, I am sure nobody is going to say a 911 cabriolet isn't a sports car just because it wasn't the fastest in the slalom!!

 

>>I disagree with D. There's nothing econo about 24 MPG and a whopping 20k+ price tag. Yes, the car is capital F-U-N and it is also, in my mind, a "sports car".
>>
>>How can a car that out slaloms all but 4 production cars not be considered a sports car?
>>
>>Happy Motoring!
>>Dominic


Point Counter Point :smile: rofl

My MCS gets 34 MPG on the highways & byways...as opposed to my pathfinder which got 15 on a good day on the highways. That's econo toooo me :smile: It's kicks a$$ in the twisties :smile:

An AC Cobra 427, an Austin Healey 3000...not a MINI

It's a just a GREAT CAR !!!!!!

Peace,
D

_________________
I own a 2002 MCS w/ alot of stuff on it.

 

People,

This is getting too semantic. Davbret, are you going to tell me that because my Lotus Elan +2 S/130 wasn't a drop-top and had a couple of vestigal back seats that even Mini Me would find too small, it wasn't a sports car? Don't insult Colin Chapman, that car would run rings around anything else I've owned (various drop-top, 2 seater MGs, a Miata) save one, my MCS.

Both the Lotus and MCS kick some serious handling butt, look like big $$$ exotics and are definately, unequivocally, most certainly, certifiably SPORTS CARS!

EOR

 

Interesting topic that will produce probably as many different opinions as the oil change issue (when to..).

I'll throw in my 2c and start with the non-important criteria, because others have mentioned them:

IMHO convertible is not a criterion for sports car.
Convertible has been used by some in the past because historic cars were mostly open-topped, and when sporting version came out all sporting ones were topless to be lighter. However, a topless car will always have less structural rigidity than a non-topless, and therefore will have a disadvantage on the road. Also keep in mind that most supercars are hard-topped cars and only few come in topless versions.

Number of seats? Size? IMHO those could be confused as criteria, but only incidentally. That is because number of seats and size (large) will frequently affect handling negatively, the number of seats because they affect size. The same goes for number of doors.

Style, luxury? Same as with seat number, these may be incidental criteria, because certain luxury elements may reduce performance mostly as a result of weight increase or power rob: AC, leather, fancy trim, etc...

Drive system (FWD, RWD, AWD)? Doesn't matter as long as the car can handle!
Mileage, having a boot or not? Who cares, all secondary or incidental correlates!

I would say that the bottom line is handling, handling, handling, road feedback, steering, as well as braking performance. That's it! All other criteria are incidental. You may find a large sports car with 4 seats, AC, leather interior, etc..., but you will be less likely to find such a sports car than a small one, 2 seater, simple trim, etc..

So, by these set of criteria I would define the MCS as a sports car. I would also define the classic Mini Cooper S as a sports car, even by todays standards. Other sports car examples are Porsche 911 (e.g. AWD Turbo) and Boxster, Mazda Miata, Lotus Elise, the Lancia Stratos (2 seat homologation special) as much as the Delta Integrale (4 seat production car). Keep in mind that a few years ago BMW won the 24 hrs Nurburgring race with a 330 D, a diesel 4-seater 'sedan'!

There are also other examples of cars that are specialty cars that could fit in a specialized category but IMHO are still sports cars (even though I know many will not consider them such), a prime example is the Subaru WRX-STi: this car could be considered a derivative of a rallye homologation car. It has handling and performance that will blow most cars off the road, is simplified for weight savings (no radio, no leather, cheap interior), but still has 4 seats and even 4 doors.

 

>>Point Counter Point :smile: rofl

Dodge, perry, thrust, poing-tanggggg, thud! LOL :smile:

>>My MCS gets 34 MPG on the highways & byways...

The best MPG my MCS ever got was drafting behind an 18-wheeler for nearly 200 miles on the freeway. I got a whooping 31.9 MPG. Seriously, I was tucked in tight (read within a car length) behind him coming down across a straight flat section of the I-5 and I-505 just north of the bay area. I didn't even use the AC, I used 6th gear, and we cruised at 65 MPH. I have no idea why your MCS gets so much more fuel economy. Maybe mine runs much too rich, which would account for the misrepresentation of my ECU's MPG and my hand calculated MPG. My ECU thinks I get great fuel economy...

 

>>Price tag: IMHO $24K is econo.... if one is dealing w/ a " sports car".

Yes compared to other sports cars, yes, the MCS's price tag is very econo.

But, I have to admit, this car is twice (2x) as expensive as any car I've previously owned (310GX, S-10, Sentra, Metro, Neon). To me a car has to be around 10k to be considered econo price. It's really a perspective thang'. The 23k I financed my my MCS is much beyond my limit. But I'm doing everything I can to be able to afford and enjoy it. ...the fridge is looking empty...my clothes are starting to wear out...my newest pair of shoes are 6 months old and I only paid 15.00 for them...I cut my own hair...I live in the cheapest house in my neighborhood...I work more than one job... Basically, I do everything I can to be able to afford this car I love so much and to afford the hop-ups I thow at it. So when it comes to that, I guess I'm a little crazy. :smile:

 

they say "you are what you eat" ... given the number of sports car my baby has eaten, what else could she be?!

 

>>My Mini Cooper S looks like a stylish economy car but it drives and feels like a sports car.
>>
>>So the answer to the question depends on whether your reference point is inside or outside of the Mini!

I agree completely!! I usually tell people that "It's really more of a "SPORTS car that happens to LOOK cute rather than a CUTE car that happens to be sporty."

While some people (especially guys) hate having their MINIs referred to as 'cute', I don't mind at all. She IS cute (EB/W, plain and simple. No stripes or other mods to make her look more aggressive.) And I'm a chick, so it works out well.


>>I think the MINI might have more interior space than the IS 300.

Minihune, my parents have an LS 300, in which I have spent quite a bit of travel time in the back seat. I can assure you that the Lexus has quite a bit more interior room than does the MINI! Also, after having my MINI for several months and then driving their Lexus, I found that the Lexus handled rather like a land yacht in comparison. It's not a huge car, but it sure felt like one!

 

It's a Hot Hatch!!!!!!
A Miata is a Roadster


And thats the end of the story

 

I'm often asked if I like it. I always answer "Its a lot of fun." I tried a few other versions, but nothing seemed to fit like "Its a lot of fun."

 

>>It's a Hot Hatch!!!!!!
>>A Miata is a Roadster
>>

And BOTH are sports cars.

 

Mmmm....maybe... SportCoop'

 

>>Moorlox hit the nail on the head. It's got to be a 2 seater, convertible, with great handling and typically alot of power under the hood. It's this combonation that seperates it from mere small convertibles that handle well, like a Miata, and truly "sporty" cars like a 911 or Corvette.

I agree with this comment up until the end where I think it falls apart. It has to have two seats, has to be a convertible, great handling is a bit subjective, but I would say that the power prerequisite is a bit of a mistake. Many great sports cars had anemic engines. I would add one -- the primary focus of the car is on performance over comfort.

A Miata is the definition of a sports car. Cars like the Corvette straddle the space between a sports car and a pony car. The 911 does the same between GT and sports car.

 

Its not a sports car. Don't even suggest that within earshot of my insurance agent.

Its just a cute little compact car that leaves most sports cars in its dust along the twisties. What other people call it, as they fade into the distance in my rear view mirror, isn't an issue for me. Actually, they're probably asking almost the same question we are, "What's that?"

 

>>Its not a sports car. Don't even suggest that within earshot of my insurance agent.
>>
>>Its just a cute little compact car that leaves most sports cars in its dust along the twisties. What other people call it, as they fade into the distance in my rear view mirror, isn't an issue for me. Actually, they're probably asking almost the same question we are, "What's that?"

Who knows who said it first, but the name they stuck on the GTI says it all, "Pocket Rocket."

_________________

 

I think cars that handle as well or better than any car in the world HAVE to be a sports car. Add to the handling the power my pullied S makes, I certainly call it a sports car.

 

Here's what Webster says on the term "sports car" :smile:
So, I must say that the MINI falls into all required parts of the Webster definition.

 

Mmmm... thinkin' maybe: SportCoop'

 

BMW MINI calls it a "Coupe" so for me it's a Sport Coupe!

 

The thing is... there is no such thing as a "Sports Car" anymore.
Back in the early days of motoring, a "Sports Car" was a cycle fender'd 2 seater with a cloth drop top that had a little more power than the sedan it was derived from.
Later the cars had more streamlined bodies,but were they any less "Sports Cars"?

I am sure everybody here will agree that the old MGA was a sports car, but what about the coupe version? it had roll up windows and a top? Was it still a Sports Car? When it came out the Sunbeam Alpine was critized for being too soft to be a sports car. It had roll up windows.

Is a XKE coupe a Sports Car? What about a Ferrari 250 SWB? Damn straight they were! But some of the deffinitions on this post would rule them out.

Today, manufacturers try to fill every market niche they can root out. There is a rainbow of cars in every category hue. Some blend a little this way and some blend a little that way. It is very hard to find a car now that is categorically pure. Look at Pickup trucks. They have become more and more like passenger cars. Sports cars have become more like GTs, SUVs become more like Sports Cars. It is a wierd, wierd world.

Which is all good. You no longer have to wear your hair shirt to drive a sports car. You can get some utility or some comfort or both and still have a "Sports" experience.

So... the argument is futile. We all have an idea of what a REAL sports car is, and if that image happens to be your car,then so be it. Just keep in mind that the rest of us may not agree!

 

>>So... the argument is futile. We all have an idea of what a REAL sports car is, and if that image happens to be your car,then so be it.

'Futile' is a strong word. What defines a sports car has nothing to do with an image. It's about how it feels, and to a lesser extent how it performs in terms of numbers. An Alfa Super, BMW 2002 and Lotus (Ford) Cortina are all small, fairly mundane-looking sedans, but get behind the wheel of any of them and there will be no doubt in your mind that they are sports cars. A Mercedes 190SL, on the other hand, looks like a sleek high-performance machine, but drive that a few miles and it becomes clear it is definitely not a sports car. No sport to be had there.

The Mini is definitely a sports car. I wouldn't have bought one if it weren't.

 

you mean "CRX"......


>>
>>Here's your assignment. Check around and see what you might call another good example of a sportscar for under $25,000. Miata? Sentra SpecV ? Acura RSX (maybe over the limit). I wouldn't call any of the Civics sportscar.
>>Maybe the old CRV. How about a used MR2?
>>
>>

 

I agree 100% with the websters definition, so it must be a sports car. I consider it one anyway.

 

MINIs are not sport cars, not even the S. The S is more like a GTI (not the Golf any GTI type car)

It´s just a MINI. PT Cruiser owners also have the same problem, is it a minivan, a truck, a car?

For me, a MINI is a luxury compact hatch (when you compare it with most european subcompact hatches, you´ll see the "luxury" definition)