Countryman’s a club on wheels

DELIGHT: THIS NEW MODEL IS EVEN BETTER THAN THE ONE FROM MY CHILDHOOD DREAMS

This spacious, fast Mini undoubtedly features at the top of the cool stakes.

Growing up, I always admired the new generation of Mini Coopers which made their debut in the early 2000s. Back then they were sleek, looked comfortable and were really quite adorable yet sexy cars that solicited stares each time they drove past.

Among my group of friends, there were two of us who swore that when we were old enough, Mini Coopers were the first cars we’d buy. Of course with our first jobs we quickly realised that Mini Coopers were out of our salary bracket but the dream never died. We lived in hope that one day, we’d own one. So when the opportunity to test drive a Mini Cooper Countryman 2018 model came, I jumped at the chance to relive my childhood dream.

I felt a rush of delight, excitement and nervousness but mostly thoughts of how cool I’d look in the car.

While my daily ride is an elegant yet slow sedan, it certainly doesn’t feature at the top of the cool stakes. Modern day Minis are still the embodiment of cool, and nearly 20 years later they

BMW claims the Mini Countryman can do 0-100 in this time.

still command attention and turn heads.

The Countryman is a stunning car. It is built to have you take a second glance at it. I call it a club on wheels because of the dual colours and “disco lights” which turn on when you open the driver and passenger doors. The car’s name flashes onto the ground in silver neon lightning. Another tick under the cool category.

Then there is the radio panel ... it looks like a jukebox, very bright with red, green and yellow neon colouring catching the eye. What would have completed the whole experience was an incredible sound system. The Countryman does have a good sound system, it is crisp and clear, but won’t score any extra points on the options available to enhance the sound.

I also happened to be test driving the car on the same week that Cassper Nyovest was looking to make history with a sold out concert at FNB Stadium. His concert was a highlight on my social calender and I couldn’t wait to test it out on the way to the stadium. I’ll also admit that I couldn’t wait to see the look on my friends’ faces when they saw me in the car. They were envious at first but quickly got over themselves when the sound came on and the Mini club came to life with us singing along to Cassper’s hits on the way to the concert.

Luckily, the car is quite spacious, it has room for five adults all seated comfortably. The boot is measured at 450 litres and can expand to 1 390 litres (perfect for a girl on the move who practically rolls around town with her whole closet, I’m talking shoes, spare outfits and emergency rain coats and jackets). On the day of Cassper’s concert, the weather looked unpredictable, with a forecast of rain so everyone’s extra jackets could fit in the car.

On our way to the concert, a perfect opportunity to see how the car fared in bumper to bumper traffic arose. Turning around circles was a bit tricky owing to the car’s bulky build. The sensor and parking rear assist camera came in very handy, as I was quickly alerted when a car got too close when I found parking.

Moving in between the different modes of speed was fun. The car boasts different driving modes which you can change as you wish. The sporty and go-kart modes I found were perfect for on the way to the concert and I could hit the highway fast to make it on time. Interesting to note that BMW claims the car can go to 100km/h in 6.5 seconds. Then there is the Green mode which was what I used in traffic. Though slow, it made sense to use it in lanes full of party revellers who might have been feeling a tad carefree.

The décor of the car is fun, futuristic and gains another tick under the “look at me” tab. It oozes street cred and helps the car not to be classified under the “SUV for mommies” category. It’s hefty price tag of over R500 000 lets it down though, but this is a car which can appeal to both men and women for its speed, impressive features including a sunroof, multi-function buttons, large boot space which is great for travelling with a family or friends and LED lights which complement its club on wheels label.