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Mini delivers Paddy Hopkirk Edition car to the rally legend himself

Mini has given rally racing legend Patrick "Paddy" Hopkirk one of the first special edition Cooper S models inspired by his thrilling victory at the 1964 Rally Monte Carlo. The Paddy Hopkirk Limited Edition has a production run of just 100 units in the U.K., with "a few hundred" more coming to the U.S. Fifty-six years ago, the original Morris Mini Cooper S achieved the unthinkable with Hopkirk and navigator Henry Liddon behind the wheel of a Mk I. It won the Rally Monte Carlo overall. The race snaked through the French Alps and ended with laps around the Monaco Grand Prix circuit, but the Mini's nimbleness and tiny size and proved to be advantages in the snowy and narrow mountain roads. It was a tremendous feat against more powerful competitors from Mercedes-Benz, Saab, Volvo, Citroen and Ford's V8 Falcon. Hopkirk calls it a "David and Goliath" victory, especially with the money other automakers were spending on the event. "We were beaten by the big American cars down the straights, but we would beat them on the twisty bits!" he reminisced upon taking delivery. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The Paddy Hopkirk Limited Edition sees no performance upgrades, keeping the turbocharged, 2.0-liter four-cylinder capable of 189 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. Both six-speed manuals and a 7-speed automatic are offered, but the thing that sets it apart are the Chili Red and white roof colorway with the number 37 on the doors, a tribute to the winning rally car's livery. An offset white hood stripe with the code "33 EJB" in it hearkens back to Hopkirk's car's registration number. "I’m so flattered to have a Mini named in my honor." Hopkirk said upon receiving the car. "Motorsport is long behind me now and for my win at the Monte Carlo Rally to be remembered in this way is a great thrill and honor." 2021 Mini Hardtop Cooper S View 15 Photos Related Video:

2023 Mini Countryman caught in the wild in new spy photos

The redesigned Mini Countryman has been spotted testing in the wild. Expected to debut for the 2023 model year, this redesign is expected to produce a more future-proof SUV that may not be quite so "mini" anymore.  Yep, it looks big, and our spies said that impression carries over to real life. The next Countryman will again ride on a derivative of BMW's FAAR architecture dubbed UKL1, also shared with Land Rover. This is the same platform that underpins BMW's front-wheel-drive based X1 and X2 crossovers, and it will give the Countryman room for more people, more cargo and, most important, more tech -- powertrain tech, to be specific. This electrification-friendly platform should mean more-advanced hybridization and likely an all-electric model for the next-gen Countryman, building on the existing car's plug-in hybrid offering, which already gets a reasonably decent 18 miles on all-electric power, care of a 9.6-kWh battery. That's already 50% more than what the PHEV model launched with, so temper your expectations, but further improvement certainly isn't out of the question.  This is a far cry from the manual-transmission, all-wheel-drive Cooper super-hatch that debuted a decade ago. Yep, the Countryman nameplate is more than 10 years old now. Can you believe that? We should learn more about the new Mini Countryman sometime in the next year, ahead of what is expected to be a late 2022 or early 2023 launch. That could change, of course, given the current state of the world.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. MINI Electric Pacesetter inside and out

Watch Chris Harris take a 360° tour of the new Top Gear track

For the new series of the BBC's Top Gear, the familiar test track has been reimagined. Gone is the Astra that the celebrities used to bash around the track, replaced by a rallycross Mini. And what better way to get acquainted to the new track than a 360° video of a lap around the track? It's even presented to us by the Top Gear Chris we like, Chris Harris! Harris gets the Mini fantastically sideways on the asphalt sections, and gives it some stick through the gravel sections and splashes of water. It's a bumpy ride tailored for the kitted-out Mini – even if one can't help but wonder if it would be better television to see a fish-out-of-water car like a humdrum, front-wheel-drive Astra thrashed through the course instead. The Mini almost has it too easy, even if celebrity drivers will surely find the track hard to master. As a note of functionality, the video will only play as intended if you are using Google Chrome, says Top Gear. News Source: YouTube/BBC Top GearImage Credit: BBC Top Gear Celebrities Motorsports TV/Movies MINI Videos chris harris chris evans top gear test track