MINI Countryman

True confessions time: it’s been about 15 years since I last sat in a modern MINI and I imagined I was going to see some changes.

I did see some changes, but they were not as striking as the response I got from friends, colleagues and even total strangers: “Ooh, is that the new MINI?” followed immediately by “Can I sit in it?”

I have had cars like this before, but not quite to this sort of extreme. What was even more interesting was that nobody seemed to know very much about this new MINI or indeed, how new it really is.

Neither was that information of the slightest interest to those asking the questions. They were all – to a Countryman – caught up in the MINI mystique.

This strange phenomenon is where the idea of a MINI, and being in one, overrides everything else. And don’t say it’s not a real thing, because I saw it happen time after time in the course of a week with a Cooper S Countryman.

Now, because you aren’t standing next to or sitting in the Countryman, what can I tell you about it? First, the Countryman is as mini as I am George Clooney’s twin brother – as opposed to just being his good friend… cos I am… y’know… besties.

It’s bigger on the inside, to quote all the Doctor Who companions ever, and that was the third comment from all those who found themselves marvelling at the MINI’S interior.

Of course, most were hypnotised by the cyclopean command screen which measures a cool 8.8 inches, allowing access to the navigation system with real time traffic, Bluetooth streaming and wireless Apple Carplay functionality.

Once you get used to that captivating eye, it actually adds to the multi-texture appeal of the dashboard, which starts with a practical black plastic which drops into a pewter finishing strip before blending into the tan leather inserts, colour co- ordinated to match the seats.

It’s a pretty radical interior actually, with the dashboard being a striking trio of tactile surfaces, including my favourite element: chrome switches and a starter toggle on the lower dash and overhead switchgear for the sunroof.

Under the bonnet is a two-litre Twinpower petrol engine, which is a not inconsiderable powerplant. I found the Countryman to be a little less than enthusiastic to get moving, but as a longdistance ‘loping’ engine, that two- litre really came into its own.

I did find the lack of urgency to be a trait I wasn’t expecting. MINI’S are, after all, portrayed as zippy little numbers, and the Countryman certainly is not.

Yet despite being a not mini MINI, the Countryman has a certain charm all its own and is best regarded as an SUV than a hatchback. The plastic wheel guards and raised height of the vehicle go a long way to support this.

And given the Countryman is more an SUV than not immediately presupposes it is something of an urban getaway crossover vehicle.

This would be a fair assessment, cutting the Countryman from a slightly different cloth than its more – for lack of a better description – conventional MINI brethren.

Whereas the smaller MINIS could once have been considered excellent promotional vehicles for a fleet, the Countryman is a far more practical solution for today’s times.

It’s an unconventional SUV in a sea of standardisation and thus it retains the quintessential essence of MINI with more than a hint of practicality.

Perhaps that’s why the Countryman in all its diverse guises, has proven to be so popular, especially in the local market.