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2013 Mini John Cooper Works

Location, Location, Location
Back in February, Mini invited me to come try out its brand-new Paceman coupe-crossover-hatchback thing in Puerto Rico, and not long after, I spit out a Quick Spin detailing my impressions of the little-big two-door. But here's what I didn't tell you: Mini also let me loose on those fine, curvaceous, tropical roads in its hottest hatch, the John Cooper Works GP. And while that behind-the-wheel gigglefest would have no doubt made for a story laden with positive notes and warm regards, the truth is, I only drove it for 15 minutes, so I couldn't in good conscience offer much of a story to you. (European Editor Matt Davis also got a short stint behind the wheel of the GP late last year.)
So for the sake of due diligence, I buckled down and spent a full eight days with the JCW GP back home in Detroit, just as springtime was starting to stick here in southeast Michigan. But after my time with the Mini, I was wishing that I could have just been left with my GP memories from Puerto Rico, where I was pushing the little hotbox hard around smooth corners and flexing every one of its muscles to eke out the full JCW GP experience in only a short timeframe.

World record practice jump doesn't go as planned for Chicherit

French rally driver Guerlain Chicherit is a very lucky man. He had hoped to beat Tanner Foust's 332-feet car jump record (which nearly went awry itself) with a 360-foot leap in a specially built Mini to score a new Guinness World Record at the French ski resort of Tignes. However, things didn't go to plan, and Chicherit suffered a massive crash during the attempt. According to The Local, emergency services were on the scene immediately, and he was transported to the hospital by helicopter, but Chicherit is in better condition than anyone could have expected. He has been on Facebook since the crash and appears to be in great spirits. He wrote: "I have to stay to the hospital for the night just for safety, I'm all ok !!!" The jump was originally scheduled for Sunday, March 16, but heavy fog delayed it until today. Warning: The crash is quite graphic, but remember Chicherit wasn't seriously injured. Scroll down to see it all from multiple angles and in slow motion. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Mini might build a sedan because it's running out of shapes

Rumors suggest we could soon see a Mini with a trunk to haul your junk. Autocar cites unnamed insiders who claim the sedan is part of the brand's plan for upmarket growth. There's even a possibility the new model could use the Riley moniker in reference to the Elf (pictured above) from the 1960s, which was a Mini with a tiny trunk. The Mini sedan would use BMW's front-wheel-drive platform that underpins the X1 and Clubman and might share the wheelbase and frontend styling with the Clubman as well, according to Autocar. Mini's execs think the four-door would perform especially well in North America and China, where there's less demand for hatchbacks. Ralph Mahler, vice president of Mini's product management, hinted at the possibility of the four-door to Autocar. "For example, in Asia and the US, the sedan segment is very big. This is very interesting to us, of course," he said. Mahler admits that many people don't know about the Mini-based vehicles with trunks from the '60s, like the Riley Elf, so it would be hard to market the new model on that heritage. This could be the perfect time to add a Mini sedan to the lineup, and it might not be a completely new idea for the brand under its BMW stewardship; a rumor from 2012 shows that Mini's bosses considered a four-door at least once before. The company launched new versions of its Hardtop, Convertible, and Clubman, and even added four-door and all-wheel-drive versions of the Hardtop to further blur the lines between that car, the Clubman, and the Countryman. The next-generation Countryman crossover should debut later this year, and the brand reportedly cancelled the Superleggera Vision roadster and Rocketman compact, as Mini has chosen to go big with its new models and its lineup breadth. There are only so many versions of a hatchback a company can make, and the short-lived Mini Coupe wasn't exactly a huge success. If Mini is going to try a new body style, a sedan actually makes some sense, even if we'll probably prefer the look and practicality of the hatches. Related Video: