Watch the whole thing, but the fun bit is at 1:50.

 

what do they know? they pronounce their words funny, drive on the wrong side of the road and pronounce the letter "Z" as "Zed".
However video very entertaining.

 

Clarkson RULES!

 

doe anyone agree with them?

 

you do know the MINI is british right? and is built in england by british people.

 

Ya I have to agree. I think the roof fins an the rear pillars in roof color suck i like the concept but........leaves a bad taste

 

I'm not so hot about the rear pillars, and the lack of a 4th door. I can live with the split rear doors, but ugh... I dont like how it's not symmetrical on both sides. How hard would it have been to put on another door?

 

Typical Top Gear sillinessness...nothing more.

 

i agree but also let's realize that not everyone likes everything that everbody else likes.

 

Very hard- they would have had to re-engineer the entire fuel delivery system.
And apparently a lot of people think they're wrong...

 

Though it's an incredibly funny bit. Especially the tax thing James goes on about.

 

Yes, but they are wrong!!

 

Well, without knowing the specifics, I can't come up with my own opinion on this.

It's just a shame, I was really looking forward to adding a Clubman to my list of MINIs. I could live with everything else, including the rear pillars. I just can't get over the asymmetry.

Again, without knowing specifics, you would think they could have just relocated the fuel filler neck a little further back or something. The fuel filler neck was the only thing I could think of as being the 'real' source of trouble when I was checking out the Clubman in Frankfurt last year. I know their engineers are capable of figuring it out!

 

Yes I realize that, I lived there for 6 months, that's where my ancestors came from, it was written tongue-in-cheek.

 

Symmetry won't matter to me until I can see both sides of the car at the same time. So...I guess...I'm thankful that the world is not neocubist.

 

Believe me, I wish I could just get over it - but I can't. Had they done something with the glass on the other side (or something) to make it appear more symmetrical, I think I could have easily gotten over it.

I'm still going to take one for a test drive when I get the chance, though!

 

You could cure the glass asymmetry in 5 minutes with some carefully cut vinyl.

 

it's not just the engineering. if you move the fuel pipe to the tank it has to pass NHSTA (or DOT or whoever decides these things) crash testing again. apparently that doesn't get done in a lunch break

 

I had a feeling it might involve something like this. If this is the case, why didn't they engineer it like this the first time around?

 

because we would have ended up with a much better looking R56

 

The test drive... Now there's a concept!

 

Sorry I just don't like the clubman...its ugly

 

to each is own... im not a big fan of the clubman, it really comes down to color choices, it doesnt matter how often i see them.. the silver pillar is just ghastly... on the other hand... certain colors do work

 

Well, for a car that is at least 75% MINI coupe (which apparently the guys have no problem with), it's hard to swallow that the other 25% that make it a Clubman (a traditional and proper Mini variant) would also make the car "the ugliest." Nope...highly illogical...not buying it!!! I think they just got irked over the club door opening on "the wrong side."

 

Besides the fact that the extra 25% completely changes the lines and flow of the car's design as well as the proportions. Not to mention the complete change in side profile as well as a complete redesign of the roof. It may "only" be 25%, but it's a 25% that completely changed the look of the car from the exterior.

Not saying they're right, as I love my clubman.....but it's not illogical to call a car uglier than it's similar predecessor when SO MUCH was changed about the exterior styling.