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2015 Mini Cooper stuns crowd, itself [w/videos]

Remember the Mini Rocketman concept from 2011? While we were really, really hoping for a production version - a properly mini Mini - that never happened. And it won't. But what we are getting is a whole lot of that showcar's styling cues applied to the third-generation Mini Cooper hardtop, a model making its debut here at the LA Auto Show. And while from most angles, the new Mini is as cute as ever, we just can't quite warm up to that face - or that huge front overhang. The car simply looks like a frightened goldfish (that yellow paint isn't helping, either).
The car simply looks like a frightened goldfish (that yellow paint isn't helping, either).
It should probably be pretty nice to drive, though, with the base Cooper using a new turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine good for 134 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque. Friskier Cooper S models get a healthy power increase, their 2.0-liter turbo engines putting out a full 189 hp and 207 lb-ft, with both engines are mated to either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission.

2020 Mini Cooper models see a price jump across the board

No matter what Mini model you may have had your eyes on, they all get more expensive for the 2020 model year. Most new Minis increase by $1,500, including every version of the 2020 Mini Hardtop (two-door and four-door versions) and the convertible. As such, the cheapest Mini, the 2020 Mini Cooper Hardtop two-door, now starts at $24,250 including destination fees. Pricing for the Clubman and Countryman models varies more. The Clubman actually drops the base non-S version, leaving just the S and and John Cooper Works versions. The S trims jump $2,000, while the John Cooper Works Clubman climbs $3,500. That bigger price increase does also come with a substantial increase in power and torque, going from 228 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque to 301 horsepower and 331 pound-feet of torque. The Countryman retains all its models, and most have the $1,500 price increase like the smaller Hardtop and Convertible versions. The exceptions are the Cooper S E Countryman plug-in hybrid, which only increases by $1,000, and the John Cooper Works which jumps $3,600. The hybrid gets a bigger battery, going from 7.6 kWh to 9.6, bringing electric-only range up 4 miles to 16, and the John Cooper Works Countryman gets the same 301-horsepower engine as the Clubman. Aside from the John Cooper Works and hybrid drivetrain upgrades, there aren't many other major changes to the Mini lineup. All Minis now get a group of driver assist features called "Active Driving Assistant," which includes adaptive cruise control, automatic high-beams and automatic emergency braking. Also, the six-speed automatic available on Cooper and Cooper S models is now being replaced with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. For the full breakdown of prices, check out the chart below.    

Some younger drivers relish the idea of stick shifting

Part way into the 21st Century, obsolescence isn’t what it used to be, especially in the minds of younger consumers; consider the renaissance of vinyl records and film cameras. To that list, add the automobileÂ’s stick shift. Manual transmissions are no longer just about lower car purchase prices, better fuel economy or more control on the road. TheyÂ’re about being hip. At least, thatÂ’s part of the thesis offered in a recent article in The Wall Street Journal. “The 20-Somethings Fueling a Stick-Shift Renaissance”  examines a modest but real resurgence in the sales upticks of manual-equipped cars, and focuses on the enthusiasm of younger people to acquire them, and the challenges—no longer so challenging—of learning bow to drive them. But, as readers of Autoblog have learned in recent years,, the future of manuals, as author Rachel Wolfe succinctly points out in the Journal piece, is essentially doomed in the longer term. Blame the electric vehicle. She writes that car makers sold 43 different manual models in 2022, according to J.D. Power, compared with 69 in 2019. “While a few EVs do have more than one gear,” she says, “auto makers are still figuring out how to translate the experience of maneuvering a manual to their electric car lineups. ‘’ Did we mention “doomed”? But Ms. Wolfe does offer some positivity. “MINI just opened a manual driving school of its own at the BMW Performance Center in Thermal, Calif.,” she writes. “A January company survey of just over 1,000 drivers found that two-thirds of 18-to-34-year-olds are eager to learn how to drive a manual, versus 40% of older respondents who donÂ’t already drive stick.” The author quotes a couple of drivers who became enamored of manuals, including a teenager from Ohio who took his driving test with a manual. “I thought it was cool to learn how to drive on a stick, just because I could tell my friends that I was a better driver than them,” he says. She also visits the other side of the issue, talking to a 24-year-old, who said that she found the stick “cool,” but only until “her leg grew sore from the clutch as she navigated traffic commuting back and forth from law school every day in Tampa, Fla.  ‘I think they are very fun to drive for about two hours, and then youÂ’re like, OK, I would like to put it away and just drive like a normal person again.’’” The full article is available online here.