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MINI Cooper S Mayfair 50 Review

OUR TEST CAR: MINI Cooper S Mayfair 50

 
MINI Cooper S Mayfair 50  - Page - 1
The fact that from 2001 onwards, the old Mini became the new MINI, or should we say the new BMW MINI, is common knowledge by now. Even though the new, capitalized, MINI brand has pretty much zero, zilch, or nada in common with the original Mini car, over the last few years it has managed to a attract a cult following which is probably even larger than that of the original one. We suspect the main reason for this to happen is the fact that it shares a similar bulldog stance and it looks cute as hell.

Of course, some may argue that apart from the aforementioned stance, the go-kart handling and the retro interior design are also very much reminiscent of the old one. Truth is, Sir Alec Issigonis would probably roll in his grave if he had a way of knowing what his most famous creation has turned into. The new car is much larger, heavier and especially much less space-saving savvy than the classic Mini.

Either way, until last year, it was the only one of its kind on the market. Starting with 2009, a number of competitors have began to show up. The first, and probably the most important one is the Alfa MiTo, a model which we also tested last year. Since then, the Citroen DS3 and the upcoming Audi A1 are expected to jump on the premium compact hatch bandwagon as well.

Coincidentally, 2009 was also the year when the original Mini turned 50 years old. Among other celebrations, a limited edition of the Cooper S, called Mayfair 50, was launched. Including a package of special options, the limited edition costs a good 5000 Euros or so more than a standard, regular Cooper S. But hey, hooray for exclusivity!

So, with all these competitors coming out from nowhere, is the Mini-legacy finally coming to an end? Well, not if you look at the current and especially near-future model line-up, with a small coupe and a roadster being launched in the next couple of years. Until then, we took the VERY expensive Mayfair 50 edition of the MINI Cooper S and drove it around on a go-kart track and... (where else?) a ghetto-looking neighborhood.

Compared to a normal Cooper S, the Mayfair 50 edition has a few visual extras which could be considered eye-candy by quite a large number of people. The first thing to strike the eye is the special "Chocolate Magic" brownish metallic paint job. Together with the black roof and the chrome accents everywhere around the car, it leaves quite an artsy and retro impression on any beholder (or beer holder, if you're parking it in front of a pub).

Other differences consist of the twin rally-style headlights mounted in front of the grill, "Mayfair" badges instead of the "S" ones on the side of the hood and a "Mayfair 50" logo on the grill. All that, along with the aforementioned paint color and a special striped trimming for the exterior rear view mirrors really spice the look of the already spicy Mini Cooper S.

Considering we tested this car in two different occasions and in two different seasons (autumn and winter), you will see two different sets of rims in the pictures. The 17-inch multi-spoke ones also come with the Mayfair 50 edition package, while the uglier-looking 16-inch ones were fitted with winter tires, so we were kind of stuck with them in this time of year.

Moreover, our car was also fitted with tinted rear windows, so, along with the black roof and black pillars created an illusion of a floating roof. Either way, even in a non-Mayfair 50-equipped fashion, the Cooper S stands out as one of the most beautiful small hatches on the market. Some say that this title is slowly fading away since the introduction of the 8C Competizione-inspired Alfa Romeo MiTo.

Even so, the Mini and the Alfa are very differently-styled cars. At least in terms of retro-styling bits, the Mini wins the comparo hands downs, while the overall design is a matter of taste after all. Still, we must admit it's one of our favorites small hatches out there, whether we're talking about the general proportions or just the little details.

Exactly as it happened with the Mini Cooper S Cabrio we tested last year, we were once again a bit reluctant to befriend the ginormous speedometer mounted right on the top of the center console. We know, we know, the original Mini also had a center-mounted speedometer, but as far as we can remember it was much, much less optimistic in size. It's like the new Mini's interior designers were expecting half-blind passengers to driver their cars.

Despite being exaggerated in sheer size, the driving speed is rather hard to follow from the driver's seat. Thankfully, the LED display for the onboard computer can be programmed to show the current speed digitally. Oh, and the display is neatly tucked right behind the steering wheel, inside the rev-counter. In other words, the instrument arrangement in the Mini we drove is actually one of the most ergonomic ones we've encountered, at least from a sporty driver's point of view.

Just like in a regular, non-special edition Mini, the interior design for pretty much everything - from the seats to the dashboard instruments or the center console knobs - is retro-influenced and could probably make a time traveller from the sixties right at home.

As far as the "Mayfair 50" package present on our test car, it's probably one of the best examples of "beauty is in the details", especially when it comes to the interior. For example, there's brown leather trim with green stitches on the seats, while the striped brown-on-black motif from the exterior rear view mirrors also finds a home on some portions of the dashboard. All this, along with the old-school switches on the center console and the chrome accents around the dials and the ventilation outlets contribute to a highly special retro atmosphere in the interior.

The overall space is as crowded as you might expect though, and the 2+2 configuration of the seats could only bring benefits to smaller people. Otherwise, two normal-statured males cannot co-exist for too long on the rear seats. The trunk, albeit with a better opening than the Cabrio model, is even smaller in volume, with 160 liters (5.7 cubic feet) instead of 170 liters (6 cu ft) for the Convertible.

In typical Mini Cooper S fashion, the low ride height in the front can be quite troublesome if you live in a city with lots of fierce man-eating potholes, over-optimistic tram lines, high roadside curbs and/or quiet neighborhood with lots of speed bumps. Also, the rather stiff and short-travelled suspension, along with the run-flat tires, can really make you hunt for smoother roads on every route you take.

Still, there is a chapter where the Mini Cooper S we drove now is much better than its convertible brother, and that is rear visibility. If you remember, we criticized the Cooper S Cabrio for the almost complete absence of rear visibility through the rear windshield, especially when raining. The Mayfair 50 Coupe on the other hand had no such problems.

While the exterior rear view mirrors have the same size, the rear windshield has a much bigger area and is of course equipped with a wiper. As far the parking sensors, they were only present in the rear, unlike on the Cabrio last tested, which was "fully loaded" from this point of view. We know, it might sound a bit snotty to ask for parking sensors on a Mini, but they are very helpful in the winter time, when from various meteorological reasons you have very poor visibility all around the car.

Considering that when we did most of the city-driving the traffic was either packed with slow-moving cars or we were trashing it in the ghetto-looking neighborhood we talked about earlier, we didn't actually achieved the best possible fuel consumption. At the end of the city part of the test the average fuel consumption was around 11 liters per 100 kilometers (US 21.4 mpg), which doesn't make this midget of a car quite a fuel sipper. Especially when taking into account that the official fuel consumption figures in the city are 7.9 liters per 100 km (US 29.8 mpg).

All in all, even though the Mini Cooper S is still technically a "mini", the only way you can enjoy it to its full potential is either by driving it in a deserted city with no cops and/or radars, on a race track or on a serpentine road through the mountains. The stiff suspension, the surgical steering and the torquey engine don't make much sense in everyday, city-driving.
After driving a car named after one of London's most expensive districts through a spooky neighborhood filled with graffiti, junkies and other odd characters, it was finally the time to let it stretch its muscles on the open road. Unlikely just by taking a short look at the little bugger, this is actually the Mini Cooper S's playground. We know that a twisty road with absolutely no traffic is somewhat of a cliché topic when talking about driving a sporty car, but it really is heaven if you're a Mini driver.

The highly responsive and accurate steering, the feedback form the suspension, the perfectly-geared transmission and the explosive little turbocharged 1.6-liter under the hood – so pretty much everything about the car – encourage you to became a little racing driver warming up the tires before a race. On more than one occasion we were downshifting for no reason other than to hear the thumping and throbbing of the centrally-mounted dual exhaust.

In case it's not obvious by now, we found the Cooper S - even in its cozy-themed Mayfair 50 trim level - to be a real driver's car, and the best place to unleash what it's capable of is somewhere outside the crowded cities, or on a small track.

The tiny four-banger under the hood may sound like it's too small to provoke any awe and thunder, but the twin-scroll turbocharger provides more than enough oomph from as low as 1,600-1,700 rpm. Just to give some statistics, the maximum torque figure is available from 1,600 rpm all the way to 5,000 rpm, which is huge for any engine for that matter.

Also, the 240 Newton Meter (177 lb ft) figure can rise to 260 Nm with the help of an overboost feature. Coupled with over 100 horsepower per liter (175 hp from a displacement of 1.6 liters), a total weight of a little over a tonne and a manual transmission can only translate in pure driving joy.

Earlier on, we were talking about the go-kart experience we had with this same car. Honestly, since the Mini Cooper S is so small and feisty, it actually felt at home on the very short and technical kart track. In a larger car with similar performance this would have probably felt like trying to sew with boxing gloves on.

We gotta say, the 225 km/h (139.8 mph) top speed is a bit eclipsed by the 7.1 seconds required to go from zero to 100 kilometers per hour (62 mph), but the best fun is had by the sheer bursts of acceleration coming out of a corner after downshifting. As far as the fuel consumption goes, it really depends on the weight of your right foot, since it can go from as low as 6 liters per 100 km (Us 39.2 mpg) - when using the cruise control on the highway - to as high as 13-14 liters per 100 km (US 16.8-18.1 mpg) – when trashing it through the twisties.
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autoevolution Jan 2010
66
History
8
Exterior
7
Interior
7
In the city
6
Open road
7
Comfort
3
Tech facts
6
Gadgets
6
Safety
8
Conclusion
8
75user rating 69 votes
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