2011 Mini Cooper Clubman Wagon 3-door 1.6l on 2040-cars

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Mini JCW GP to be hatchback only, no 'Ring record attempt in sight

The 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP is dropping weight and lowering its lap times, but one thing it won't be losing is its flat roof. Like the original JCW GP package, Evo says that despite the fact that sportier Mini Coupes have been caught testing, the new GP will only be offered in the three-door Cooper hatchback body style. And that's perfectly fine with us.
Evo spoke with GP development chief Jorg Weidinger who said that as a part of the car's history, "It was a hatch, it is a hatch and it should stay a hatch." Weidinger also said that Mini is not planning to set any Nürburgring records with the new JCW GP even though earlier reports indicate that the car is a full 20 seconds faster around the 'Ring than its 2006 predecessor.
The new Mini John Cooper Works GP weighs 121 pounds less than the John Cooper Works Hardtop, offers a fully adjustable coil-over suspension and it will have a starting price of $39,950, (including $700 for destination) when it goes on sale later this year.

Jaguar ousts Lexus from atop J.D. Power 2013 Sales Satisfaction Index

Jaguar has taken the top spot among luxury brands in the 2013 Sales Satisfaction Index, an annual survey conducted by J.D. Power that measures customer satisfaction with the experience of purchasing a new vehicle. The English brand, not even among the top three luxury automakers on the list last year, vaulted ahead of Lexus, which placed third this year after leading the list in 2011 and 2012. Porsche, meanwhile, moved into second place.
The rankings are based on a point score out of 1,000, with Jaguar earning 740 points, Porsche right behind with 739 and Lexus with 737. Volvo, meanwhile, made the biggest improvement among luxury brands with a 30-point jump to 708, bring it up from 11th place to 9th this year.
J.D. Power has a separate ranking for mass-market brands, and this year Mini again tops the list with a score of 718, far outpacing second-place Buick with a score of 694 and making it the fourth time Mini has lead this list. After Buick, the next two ranked brands are both American and both from General Motors, with Chevrolet and GMC sharing third place with a score of 686.

Mini exiting WRC after just one year

There was a fair bit of hullabaloo two years ago when Mini announced a return to the World Rally Championship for this season, but the road to making that happen has been as rocky as a gravel stage. It spent 2011 developing its JCW Countryman WRC challenger, changing its mind about how it wanted to work with Prodrive, dumped a driver due to budget issues, then registering its entry after the deadline had passed in a ploy that might or might not have been a protest aimed at the WRC promoter.
Mini had stated that it wanted to win the whole championship in 2013, and spent 2011 doing six WRC rounds as development. As it stands for this year, the WRC Team Mini Portugal - paid for by Mini, run by ProDrive - scored 26 points in the first rally at Monte Carlo and has so far blanked the rest of the season. The relationship between Mini and ProDrive appeared to be an ever-contentious affair, at the end of this season, even the money will dry up along with what support there was.
Because it contested every race in the calendar, though, Mini says it has completed the FIA requirements for homologation of the JCW Countryman WRC; meaning that privateers can continue purchasing the car and run it in the WRC. BMW Motorsport is continuing development and parts supply of the 1.6-liter turbo engine, and a report in Autosport indicates that ProDrive will continue to run Minis in the series next year.