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2014 Mini Cooper

If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone from Mini refer to 'go-kart-like handling,' I'd be retired, living on a beautiful piece of coastline somewhere in the Caribbean. Perhaps even on the shores of Puerto Rico, where Mini chose to launch its latest Cooper and Cooper S hatchbacks. As with so many frequently used phrases, though, there is indeed some truth to the cliché - while the Mini Cooper has never actually handled quite like a go kart, it has always had a certain directness in its movements, reacting to steering inputs with an immediacy and fervor unlike most any other automobile meant primarily for the street.
Combine those unique driving dynamics with a sense of fun that permeates the entire brand from pre-sales marketing to the actual sales process itself and you end up with a marketplace success. As an ex-Mini owner myself (a 2009 Cooper S Convertible), I can attest to the kinship felt between fellow Mini drivers who share in the knowledge that they are having more fun than the poor appliance-driving masses sharing the highways and byways of these United States. It's no surprise that the style-conscious US continues to be the marque's single largest market year after year.
This enviable brand perception hasn't been attained without its own fair share of flaws, however. Though the quirky design and massively customizable bits and pieces that have made up the Mini brand's interior philosophy since it was reborn in 2001 have proven somewhat endearing, the Cooper Hardtop's ergonomics have always been an unmitigated disaster. Plus, this is a very small car, with a rear seat that's practically uninhabitable by adult-size occupants. While that adjective seemingly goes hand-in-hand with the brand's name, the modern Cooper has never been as ingeniously packaged as its 1959 forbearer, which offered up as much interior space as possible through innovative engineering and minimalist design. Further, parent company BMW has positioned Mini as a premium brand, so the Cooper's diminutive size has never equated to low prices. And for being such a small car, the Cooper historically hasn't been well-known for its fuel efficiency.

2021 Mini Cooper 1499 GT adds sporty, retro attitude to the three-cylinder Mini

When you think of sporty Minis, you probably think of the Mini Cooper S and John Cooper Works models with their (relatively) large turbo four-cylinder engines. But with the 2021 Mini Cooper 1499 GT special edition, Mini is trying to bring a dash of sportiness to the base three-cylinder model. The car's styling and name is inspired by the Mini 1275 GT that was introduced way back in 1969 as a more affordable, but still sporty, alternative to the Cooper S. The number represented the engine displacement in cubic centimeters, as it does on the new 1499 GT. The black paint scheme with gold side stripes is the inverse of the launch color for the 1275 GT. Further adding to its athletic looks are black badges and trim, 17-inch wheels, and John Cooper Works-style front and rear bumpers, side skirts and hatch spoiler. The interior also picks up an array of John Cooper Works parts including the steering wheel, seats, shifter and pedals. In front of the steering wheel is the digital instrument cluster from the John Cooper Works GP. Mini also adds a few equipment upgrades found in upper-trim Cooper Hardtops such as dual-zone automatic climate control, automatic lights, automatic wipers, a 6.5-inch infotainment screen and navigation. What the 1499 GT doesn't get are any performance upgrades. The turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder makes the same 134 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque as its Cooper siblings. It comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission, and a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic is available as an option. The suspension is unchanged as well. Still, we've found that the base three-cylinder Mini is a thoroughly entertaining car to drive. To pick up one of these special edition Minis, you'll need to fork over $27,890. That's about on par with the Mini Cooper Signature trim, so it isn't completely unreasonable to pay that much for a three-cylinder Mini. But buyers looking for a sporty Mini might be tempted to skip over the 1499 GT for the more powerful Mini Cooper S, which starts slightly less at $27,250. Related Video:

Mini announces thoroughly modern engines and chassis for 2014 Cooper

The 2014 Cooper will come with a three-cylinder engine and the Cooper S will get a 2.0-liter four-cylinder, both with Mini's TwinPower turbochargers.
We have seen spy photos of the all-new Mini Cooper. We have been teased about its drivetrain. Now we have the engine details confirmed by BMW.