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Mini John Cooper Works GP coming in 2020, special editions in the meantime

Every once in a while, Mini releases a monster of a Cooper with the designation of GP. It created one in 2006, and another in 2013, and they both featured less weight, more power, a big rear wing and no rear seat. They were the hardest-core of hardcore Minis. And now a third GP is coming in 2020. The big little car brand announced the GP will return, but not much else. The only other detail shared was that it will have styling inspired by the Mini John Cooper Works GP concept shown at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show. As seen above, it was a thoroughly over-the-top interpretation of the GP with huge fender flares featuring big trailing fins. The rear wing was also enlarged to near comic proportions. We'll see if Mini commits to the gonzo styling, or if it dials things way back. 2019 Mini John Cooper Works Knights Edition View 18 Photos To supplement the announcement of this new Mini, the company also announced a few special-edition Mini models on sale now or very soon. The most interesting of the three newly announced Minis is the Mini John Cooper Works Knights Edition. It's a Mini JCW Hardtop in black with a silver roof, mirrors and hood stripes. On the sides are silver and red stripes, and all around the car is black trim. The door handles, badging and grille surround are all painted black. It's a menacing-looking car, or at least as menacing as a Mini can look. It also gets the remote-controlled exhaust flap to go from mild to wild exhaust note at a push of the button. This model goes on sale in the first quarter of 2019. Next month, you'll be able to get your hands on the Mini Countryman Yin Yang Edition. This is a basic Mini Cooper S Countryman in either black or white, with the other color for the roof and hood stripes. It also gets a black grille and black light trim. Then there's the Mini Clubman Starlight Edition. This is a Cooper S Clubman in dark blue with a silver roof, mirrors and hood stripes. It's on sale now. Both special editions also throw in some luggage accessories as standard equipment. Related Video:

2022 Mini Hardtop spied with bigger grille

The current generation of Mini Hardtop and Convertible has been around since 2014, so it doesn't come as a big surprise that one of our spy photographers spotted a group of test cars sporting refreshed styling. These cars were all Mini Cooper S or Mini John Cooper Works models, and the mild styling tweaks make us believe these updates will be applied to the 2022 Mini Hardtop and Convertible lines, with small changes for different trims. One shot of a few Minis shows one of them wearing no camouflage at all. While the angle isn't ideal, there's still plenty we can make out. It appears to be a John Cooper Works based on the particularly large lower and outboard grilles. It seems to have a John Cooper Works badge in the side of the grille with black tape over it, too. The main grille is noticeably larger than that of the current model. It also adopts a mesh pattern over the whole surface. There's still a bar dividing the grille, but the division is less distinct than on the current car. We can also see this version gets a pronounced front splitter. The other cars in these shots have more thoroughly disguised front and rear ends. The larger main grille does seem to show through, as well as more lower grille area. At the back, the updated Mini has a wider diffuser area, and immediately above it is a set of vents that span the same width. This seems to be a John Cooper Works since it looks fairly aggressive with large center exhaust tips. The regular Hardtop and Convertible models will probably have more toned down versions of this bumper without the center exhaust. Since these are relatively minor styling updates, we expect them to show up on the 2022 Hardtop and Convertible variants. They could be accompanied by powertrain and feature changes, too. In fact, reports have said that there could be a smaller Hardtop model that's electric-only coming around 2022, with this refreshed version sticking around for a few years during the transition. Related Video:    

David Brown Automotive remasters classic Mini at maxi price

Just days ago, we reported that the British small-scale maker of luxurious, Aston Martin inspired coupes, David Brown Automotive, was about to introduce a new, cheaper vehicle positioned under its exquisitely priced Speedback GT model. Since the Jaguar-based Speedback GT costs a significant $753,000, there's quite a bit of room underneath it to introduce a more modest means of transport, without cheapening out. Now, details of the car, dubbed "Project 2," have surfaced, and it's quite a surprise. What David Brown Automotive has come up with is a "remastered," rethought classic Mini. While the car looks just like a Mini at a passing glance, the body panels along with the chassis are new, and the car has been given a smoothening. All the body seams that were commonplace on the classic original have been rounded off, and the interior is a custom job complete with plentiful leather and Pioneer touchscreen. The new dashboard is a little closer to Japanese retro cars than either the classic Mini or the current, BMW-made equivalent. The drivetrain remains the trusted 1,275cc original along with a four-speed gearbox; both are reconditioned units instead of box-fresh ones, but they feature brand-new parts. There's 79 horsepower on offer, which is plenty of poke for a Mini. Each of the cars will take about 1,000 hours to make, by hand. The plan is to build 100-200 of these Mini re-creations per year, at David Brown's new facility in Silverstone, England. In two years, only 11 Speedbacks have been built, so the Mini should create a bit more buzz at the workshop. But the price? Starting from $62,000 at current rates, going all the way to $86,000 if you want one with all the trimmings. A lot for a Mini, but it's going to be special. Related Video: