Auto For Speed

We heard about, talked about it, and even took a few spy pictures of it, and now the time has cone for the official reveal: the all-new Mini John Cooper Works GP special.

Dubbed as the fastest production Mini in history, the new John Cooper Works GP lapped the Nürburgring-Nordschleife in a very impressive 8 minutes and 23 seconds, which makes it about 19 seconds faster than the previous generation JCW GP model that sported a 1.6-liter force-fed unit with 210hp and 180 lb-ft (244Nm) of peak torque.

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Following the release of the MINI Clubman Soho edition last year, the British automaker decided to name all of its special edition models after London boroughs, districts, streets and landmarks.

As a result, the Soho nameplate has now been applied to the three-door hatchback and soft-top convertible model, both of which will be available in the United Kingdom in Cooper and Cooper D models from now until March 2012.

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The newly developed 2.0-liter turbo diesel we told you about in our previous post isn’t the only fresh addition to MINI‘s lineup for 2011. The new year also brings a John Cooper Works [JCW] Pack option for the hatch and convertible models, a performance kit for the Cooper S and the Clubman Hampton special edition.

The JCW pack option for the Cooper and Cooper S Hardtop and Convertible vehicles is due to be available from the second quarter of 2011 as a factory option. It includes an aero kit with front and rear aprons, plus side skirts, as well as 17-inch weight-optimized aluminum alloy wheels.

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The MINI Countryman has managed to draw a lot of attention from both the public and the media, with the vehicle also being targeted by aftermarket developers. The German tuner AC Schnitzer has introduced a new modification pack for the vehicle, gently touching the car.

“A recent addition to the compact SUV segment, the MINI Countryman enriches this class with the joie de vivre typical of MINI. And in comparison with its MINI siblings, it also brings a totally new dimension of a size previously unknown. This makes the MINI Countryman ideal for every terrain. Visually too, the AC Schnitzer rims give the “great little one” the finishing touch,” a company statement reads.

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MINI brand may develop a new small car for its parent company, Bmw, according to brand boss Wolfgang Armbrecht. The so-called ‘mini’ MINI will be firm’s smallest vehicle, and will be Bmw’s dream to build a small and spacious car. Armbrecht also said that the car will be previewed in a concept form in January at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show, and will represent ”the next spectacular idea from the Mini brand”. ”Keep a close eye on the coming months,” he added.

Moreover, Bmw’s development chief Klaus Draeger said that MINI brand should be careful in order to protect its images and not build too many large cars. This means that you should not expect a any big car from MINI.

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