Will MINI build a John Cooper Works diesel? "Good Idea"
Click the MINI Cooper D for a high res gallery
Last summer we had a ball driving the MINI Cooper D in the ABG Garage. The torquey little 1.6-liter diesel proved to be a willing yet thrifty performer in the engine bay. While we still can't get the MINI D in the U.S. market, BMW is reportedly considering building a high performance version of the diesel. On the gasoline-fueled side of the family, the 208 hp John Cooper Works model heads the lineup. A MINI senior engineer told AutoExpress in Geneva last week that a diesel-powered version of the JCW MINI would be a "good idea" but didn't actually confirming anything.
Of course, we've heard similar claims from automaker officials many times over the years and then waited fruitlessly as nothing happened. If MINI does indeed produce a JCW diesel it would likely bump power from the current 110 hp to something in the region of 150-160 hp. Even at that level, real world mileage would likely remain somewhere in the mid-40 to 50 mpg (U.S.) range.
Gallery: ABG Garage: 2008 MINI Cooper D
[Source: AutoExpress]
All Photos Copyright ©2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
darius 1:45PM (3/12/2009)
and why exactly does the US need the "high performance version of the diesel." ? Can't we get the economical version or is that too much to handle for the US?
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Gary 2:00PM (3/12/2009)
We just ordered one (non diesel) and it comes out of the same factory and same assembly line. I can't understand why we can't get Start/Stop and/or a diesel option. It really isn't any different than any of the dozens and dozens of other options you can specifiy. Heck, I can order it with pre-installed ground effects! (we didn't) So why not some of these more fuel efficient other options?
I went so far as to contact Mini about this. The answer was no plans for diesel to the US however the Start/Stop answer was more wishy washy. Perhaps I read more into it but it sounded like they have not decided if it will be an option next year or not.
It would be nice if they did offer something as we will be considering replacing our other car in a year or two and if this one works out as well as we hope it will I would not be advserse to a second one.
PeterG 2:45PM (3/12/2009)
It might make sense in Europe.
The regular economy version makes a lot more sense for the USA, since it would be easier to pass emissions, something keeping even the economy model out of the USA.
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Nixon 2:55PM (3/12/2009)
Forget about building a whole new performance version of the Mini for the US market. Just send us the 123d that already has a performance diesel, and a more performance minded rear-wheel drive configuration. They already have it, they should start shipping it.
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Rain 3:50PM (3/12/2009)
One very important fact of the world economy is kept almost secret.
OPEC oil is traded for with US Dollars per the OPEC accords of 1973,1979.
Here is a much more detailed summary in PDF form:
http://www.networkideas.org/news/mar2008/Oil_Prices.pdf
These are the reasons why the world governments,the auto industry and the Oil producing countries have been in no hurry to promote economical automobiles,especially in the US.
A weaker dollar promotes instability in the world economy and destabilizes the middle east.
The OPEC agreements need to change back to where the currency of the realm is backed by gold,not fiat money.
One uptick of the weakened market is that it makes negotiations with OPEC easier.
It is not in the general best interest to offer high mileage cars in the US,no matter the demand.
Please do not think that I am a fan of Ron Paul,but in a very few ways,he does make a point.
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Dan 1:29AM (3/18/2009)
I would put my deposit down today if Mini decided to bring the 'D' to the US. My Diesel Beetle gets around 45 combined but it isn't half as cool as a Mini D. It ticks me off to no end that we can't get any good diesel cars.
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