MINI One: Fun One

By Lee Nian Tjoe - June 2, 2007
The Business Times

ORANGE, peach, pink, purple or blue? No, we are not choosing the colour for the baby's room but the ambient colour for the Mini's cabin, which can be conveniently manipulated with a toggle switch. It's a feature that only Mini could have pulled off without appearing too contrived.

The One is the latest and smallest Mini to join the range. Unlike the previous generation model, which was powered by a de-tuned version of the 1.6-litre engine in the Cooper of its time, the new One gets a new 1.4-litre engine.

Rarely does a newer model get a smaller displacement engine than the car it replaces, but the 1.4 option in the new One is definitely right for Mini. Other than the slight savings in annual road tax over the current 1.6-litre Cooper and Cooper S ($138.69 to be exact, I checked), the 1.4-litre engine is also more frugal and has a very different temperament from the engine it replaces.

It's charming in the way it goes out of its way to please. Twelve seconds might seem like a long time to get to 100kmh from rest, but the One never feels slow. The 1.4-litre guns enthusiastically for the redline with nary a hint of vibration.

In fact, the car as a whole feels very energetic. Grab the little runt by the scruff of its neck and it responds gamely with equal enthusiasm.

It's almost like a puppy who can't get enough of play with his squeeze toy or chasing his own tail. Unlike the pup though, the One displays a very high level of body control with amazing levels of grip.

If only the six-speed automatic gearbox could be better cued in to the engine's rev-happy character. It shifts smoothly and is infinitely better than the slippery CVT on the previous One, but it also tends to shift up too early, leaving too little revs for the engine to play around with.

So, very often, the car is stumped for a split-second before the box calls for a downshift.

The solution is to knock it into Sports mode, which holds onto ratios a little longer. Or, better yet, use the handy paddles on the steering wheel to shift manually.

It is not just the gearbox that is a bit relaxed. While it can dart about like that classic red Mini did in The Bourne Identity, the One has a more sedate side. It has a calmer ride and the cabin seems to be better screwed together. But the ergonomics do need getting used to.

The One's two-spoke steering does without the fingertip controls for the audio, so you have to do the adjustments the old-fashioned way, via the controls on the centre fascia. No complaints about that, but the knobs are located one above the other, which isn't the most intuitive format.

Also, the door release is a bit hard to reach at times, showing how form has taken a slight priority over function.

At least the ceiling-mounted toggle switch for the cool ambient light is well within reach. Methinks peach will be a good hue for the Mini cabin for today, or should it be tangerine?

MINI ONE

Price: $89,800 with COE
Transmission: Six-speed auto with manual select
Power: 95bhp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 140Nm at 4,000rpm
0-100kmh: 12.6 seconds
Top speed: 180kmh
Fuel consumption: 6.6 litres/100km (city-highway)
Agent: Trans Eurokars

Source: The Business Times