Latest news with #MiniCooper
The Advertiser
3 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Advertiser
CarExpert Choice winner: Best Luxury Small Car
The BMW 1 Series has been named Australia's best small luxury car in the inaugural 2025 CarExpert Choice Awards. It beat out the related Mini Cooper as well as the rival Audi A3, both of which were named finalists. The 1 Series hatch was redesigned for 2025, bringing not only a fresher look but also a significant tech overhaul. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. With front-wheel drive and a three-cylinder engine as standard, this mightn't sound like a traditional BMW. However, it offers traditional BMW strengths like excellent dynamics and an upscale look and feel. All 1 Series hatchbacks are enjoyable to drive, but the flagship all-wheel drive M135 xDrive is a genuine hot hatch. Not only does it have capable handling, but its powerful turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine sees it do the 0-100km/h dash in under five seconds. To see all the CarExpert Choice winners, click here. MORE: Explore the BMW 1 Series showroom Content originally sourced from: The BMW 1 Series has been named Australia's best small luxury car in the inaugural 2025 CarExpert Choice Awards. It beat out the related Mini Cooper as well as the rival Audi A3, both of which were named finalists. The 1 Series hatch was redesigned for 2025, bringing not only a fresher look but also a significant tech overhaul. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. With front-wheel drive and a three-cylinder engine as standard, this mightn't sound like a traditional BMW. However, it offers traditional BMW strengths like excellent dynamics and an upscale look and feel. All 1 Series hatchbacks are enjoyable to drive, but the flagship all-wheel drive M135 xDrive is a genuine hot hatch. Not only does it have capable handling, but its powerful turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine sees it do the 0-100km/h dash in under five seconds. To see all the CarExpert Choice winners, click here. MORE: Explore the BMW 1 Series showroom Content originally sourced from: The BMW 1 Series has been named Australia's best small luxury car in the inaugural 2025 CarExpert Choice Awards. It beat out the related Mini Cooper as well as the rival Audi A3, both of which were named finalists. The 1 Series hatch was redesigned for 2025, bringing not only a fresher look but also a significant tech overhaul. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. With front-wheel drive and a three-cylinder engine as standard, this mightn't sound like a traditional BMW. However, it offers traditional BMW strengths like excellent dynamics and an upscale look and feel. All 1 Series hatchbacks are enjoyable to drive, but the flagship all-wheel drive M135 xDrive is a genuine hot hatch. Not only does it have capable handling, but its powerful turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine sees it do the 0-100km/h dash in under five seconds. To see all the CarExpert Choice winners, click here. MORE: Explore the BMW 1 Series showroom Content originally sourced from: The BMW 1 Series has been named Australia's best small luxury car in the inaugural 2025 CarExpert Choice Awards. It beat out the related Mini Cooper as well as the rival Audi A3, both of which were named finalists. The 1 Series hatch was redesigned for 2025, bringing not only a fresher look but also a significant tech overhaul. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. With front-wheel drive and a three-cylinder engine as standard, this mightn't sound like a traditional BMW. However, it offers traditional BMW strengths like excellent dynamics and an upscale look and feel. All 1 Series hatchbacks are enjoyable to drive, but the flagship all-wheel drive M135 xDrive is a genuine hot hatch. Not only does it have capable handling, but its powerful turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine sees it do the 0-100km/h dash in under five seconds. To see all the CarExpert Choice winners, click here. MORE: Explore the BMW 1 Series showroom Content originally sourced from:
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Sutton DNA scientist wins £34,000 car and cash prize in online competition
A DNA scientist from Sutton has won a £34,000 car and a cash prize bundle in an online competition. Sara Temelso, 37, struck lucky in BOTB's Lifestyle Competition, bagging a Mini Cooper E Exclusive Level 1 worth £34,000 and a £2,000 cash prize. The 37-year-old was working from home post-ankle surgery when she was informed of her win by BOTB presenter Christian Williams via video call. Sara said: "I can't believe it. It's amazing – I'm struggling to process that I've actually won. "It's definitely made my year and will make a big difference to my plans. "You enter hoping to win, but you don't really expect it. This is the best news ever." The Mini Cooper E Exclusive Level 1 is an all-electric, three-door hatchback with a 41kWh battery, a significant upgrade from Sara's current 12-year-old Mini. She said: "I've always had Minis and love them. My current one is 12 years old." The cash prize will also be put to good use. Sara added: "I've been wanting to replace my bathtub for a while as it's cracked, but I wasn't sure how I'd pay for it. "I will definitely go on a nice long holiday." BOTB is a leading car competitions company that hands over a dream car each week, along with lifestyle prizes. It also offers people the chance to win a holiday, cash, tech, cars, and more in its Instant Wins Competition. After being founded in 1999, BOTB has given away £98.6m-worth of cars so far. BOTB presenter Christian added: "It was such a pleasure to surprise Sara, especially while she's recovering from surgery. "She's clearly a big Mini fan, so to give her an electric upgrade like this – complete with some extra cash – was a great moment. "The Mini Cooper E is an awesome little car. It's fun, stylish and packed with tech."
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
Moment masked thieves steal pregnant Tamworth woman's car with her baby scans
A pregnant woman of 28 weeks says she fears for her family's safety after her Mini Cooper was stolen from her driveway in Tamworth. Shocking Ring doorbell footage, from the early hours of this morning, shows the moment a gang of masked thieves stole Laura Haynes' Mini from her home in Browns Lane. The devastated mum-to-be, who lives with her partner Paul, said all of her pregnancy notes, including baby scan photos, were in the car when it was driven away by the thugs in the dead of the night. READ MORE: Hit-and-run probe after man struck by car in Birmingham city centre One of the masked men was seen walking up to the front door holding what was believed to be a relay device which unlocked the vehicle. The gadget, used by car thieves, mimics a key fob signal to unlock and start vehicles without needing the physical key. Laura said the incident had left her "scared" that the gang might return to the family's home again after what she said was now two failed attempts to take her partner's Mercedes. "We're scared they will come back for it because they tried to take Paul's Mercedes last night and it happened six months ago too," said the 27-year-old. The couple only realised the Mini had been taken when they woke up several hours later. Laura added: "I got up and when I looked out the window I noticed Paul's wing mirrors were out and then I thought, 'oh god, where is my car'. "We work hard for these things. That's £15,000 worth of car. "But it's the sentimental stuff. I'm 28 weeks pregnant and all my pregnancy notes were in my car. "Scan photos, things like that. I had a complicated pregnancy to start with so there's a scan before they were even a baby, when they were a dot; all that stuff is in there. "It's stuff I take around with me. I don't know if I can get any of that back from the hospital. I can't rewind my body to that time." Laura said forensic police were at the couple's home earlier today but that no arrests had been made that they were aware of. "We watched the doorbell footage and we could see them trying to get signal for the keys after walking up the drive, three or four of them," said Laura. "They opened the door of the Merc too but they couldn't get it started so they gave up on that. "They tried our front door and were looking through the kitchen window. The thought of someone trying to break in is so scary." We have contacted Staffordshire Police for comment. Anyone with information about this incident should contact the force by calling 101, quoting crime reference number 2125-0093-495 of June 22. You can also share information by emailing
New York Post
19-06-2025
- New York Post
Reckless driver launches Mini Cooper off ferry dock into Puget Sound during high-speed police chase, killing 2 passengers
A wild high-speed police chase ended in tragedy when a reckless driver launched his Mini Cooper off a ferry dock into a Washington waterway this week — killing two passengers as the car sank, according to reports. Harrowing police bodycam footage obtained by KOMO News captured officers frantically trying to save the 29-year-old driver and his four passengers as the car submerged in Puget Sound after flying off a dock at Edmonds Ferry Terminal at more than 100 mph late Tuesday night. Screams of panic echoed from the vehicle as cops tossed life vests and flotation devices into the frigid water, instructing the victims on how to use them, the chilling footage showed. 4 First responders frantically try to rescue passengers from the car submerged in the Puget Sound. Edmonds Police Department Four people, including the erratic driver suspected of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, were rescued and taken to a nearby hospital, while two others died in the car, the outlet reported. It remains unclear if the victims — a 45-year-old Lakewood woman and a 48-year-old Auburn woman — drowned. 4 Bodycam footage of first responders rushing to save people from a car that drove into Puget Sound. Edmonds Police Department The horrific ordeal began around 11 p.m. when a Washington State Patrol trooper tried to stop the speeding Mini on Interstate 5 in Edmonds, sparking a brief pursuit, the outlet reported. A Snohomish County Sheriff's deputy launched another chase after spotting the same car dangerously weaving through traffic at speeds of up to 120 mph before exiting the highway and plowing through a gate at the ferry terminal. 'They went around the cones and went through the gate up there at the head of the dock and off,' Randal Viernes, a Washington State Ferries employee, told the outlet. 'Sounded like he launched it. He did not slow down at all.' 4 Screams of panic echoed from the car as cops tossed life vests and flotation devices into the frigid water. Edmonds Police Department 4 Aerial view of a car that drove off a ferry dock into the water. KOMO News Ferry service was temporarily suspended following the crash, with recovery crews hauling the Mini Cooper from 40 feet of water around 3:30 a.m., according to KING 5. The careless Tulalip motorist — whose identity hasn't been revealed — was taken into custody, though no charges have been filed. 'It is super tragic,' Edmonds resident Pam Blanchard told the outlet. 'Thank heavens another ferry wasn't docked there because if people were coming to get off of the ferry more people would have been involved. Honestly, it is really lucky that nobody else was involved.'
NZ Autocar
19-06-2025
- Automotive
- NZ Autocar
2025 Mini Cooper SE Review
Mini's first electric Cooper went well enough but couldn't roam that far out of town. The new SE remedies that. The second-generation of the Mini Cooper Electric is here, in a couple of guises; the E with a 41kWh (37kWh usable) battery and the SE that you see here with a 54kWh battery pack (49 usable). Contrast that with the original 2020 version that had a 32.6kWh pack (29kWh usable). It offered a range that Mini claimed was around 230km but only in town. Used beyond city limits, and you'd be lucky to see 180km. That's similar to Mazda's MX-30 for range, and that expensive experiment lasted just two years. Equally, no surprise that the new electric Mini Cooper comes with either a modest battery (still bigger than before) or an acceptable size one in the SE and decent enough range (up to 402km WLTP). While this is primarily an urban car, it's one that Mini says has the kind of dynamics that make you want to take it beyond the city. So then you need a bit of range to get you there and back again. The bigger version has more power too. Yes, it is more expensive by $6k than the E ($61k vs $67k) but that's probably the best $6k you will ever commit to. Moreover, with a modestly sized battery pack of around 50kWh you can replenish from 65 to 90 per cent odd overnight using a 2kW portable charger. Zero to 80 per cent takes roughly five hours using an 11kW wallbox. A 10-80 rezip on a 50kW DC unit takes about half an hour. The point here is that charging is a chore and a bore so the less often and the less time taken the better. As mentioned dynamics are key here, so big battery packs are out of the question. But as lithium-ion tech slowly advances, the batteries tend to be more energy dense without growing in size. Not quite the same for the car overall, however; the original we tested in 2020 was 1404kg, this latest, admittedly in SE guise with more gear and a bigger battery, is now 1680kg. It has more range of course but the performance increment isn't huge. Back then with a 135kW/270Nm motor, it could get to 100km/h in 6.85sec. Now, with 160kW and 330Nm it did the same thing only half a second quicker, and that's much the same with the overtake, at 4.0 vs 4.6sec. However, with at least 50 per cent more range, no-one will feel hard done by, particularly when it's only $7k more than before. If you're just not up for an electric Mini Cooper, you can still buy a range of petrol variants, with the three-pot 115kW/230Nm 1.5 kicking off at $49,990. This also comes in a better specified Favoured flavour for a few thousand more. The $56,990 Cooper S gets a motor more befitting of a go-kart car, its 2.0 150kW and 300Nm motor giving it a sprint time of 6.6 seconds. There's still the JCW hot-shot as well, costing a few thou less than the Cooper SE. Mini looks with better tech This car is still a front driver, now with a 160kW and 330Nm motor. It has a bewildering range of drive modes, borrowed from the BMW mode book. But it's really only Eco, Normal and Sport that matter. The latter is accompanied by a 'wahoo' exclamation from the speakers when selected and that wears thin. Normal will do for the most part, as usual. There are three regen settings too, low, medium and high. Well, four if we're counting, the Adaptive mode. We preferred the high setting which is similar to single-pedal driving, only without being so abrupt. There's a new look too, better in that you can scarcely pick it apart from the ICE power variants. The original electric Mini featured a horizontal yellow line across the grille, signifying the electric innards. That's gone, and in its place a couple of yellow S badges instead. The larger mainly solid grille and low ride height impart a real impression of width, like it's set to pounce. There's still the iconic Mini Cooper shape, the big round LED headlights, and abbreviated overhangs. It remains recognisably Mini, something that hasn't really changed from the model's inception in 1959. It's much the same as the 911 in that regard then. Inside, there's the still iconic circular IFT and control screen, now a 240mm OLED offering for even greater clarity. Like all central controllers, this takes time to master. But there are several buttons on the dash that make the process simpler. One of these is the start-stop button, which some EVs don't have. We prefer this, especially as the Mini detects the key approaching and unlocks automatically. Same for locking; just leave and it does that for you. Alongside is a wee lever for D and R, and a button to the right is for P. Towards the left is the Experience button (drive modes then) while a little below those is another that is a shortcut to the menu that changes driver assistance stuff. And there's a shortcut to nixing lane keeping as well. Serious drivers may want to as they go about straightening curvy roads. This bongs a few times at you gently, quietly if it detects you're exceeding the local speed limit. You can cancel it if you want in the control screen. And it stays off. Mini makes use of recycled plastics and the like – there's no leather or chrome – so much of the dash and door cards are covered in a fabric-like textile. What look like leather-clad seats aren't real then, vegan something or other. Harder charging The latest Cooper E rides on a new dedicated EV platform co-developed by BMW so benefits from a touch more room in the rear. But the 210L boot remains marginally useful. Think grocery shop up for two. Splitfold the rear seats to enlarge it to 800L (69L more than before) and it swallows oodles of gear. The dynamics are even better than before, as the battery is between the axles for a better weight split. There's generous steering heft but it's still the darty thing it used to be. Ride will seem firm initially but at open road speeds it makes lots of sense. And even at town pace it's not sharp; good seats help. It's premium priced for a weenie but comes with premium items, like powered and heated leatherette seats with lumbar pump, seat memories and a massage function. The sports wheel is heated but the rim is a bit fat, like BMW items. Overhead is a full length fixed panoramic roof with ambient lights around the edge and a powered slide beneath. There's also one of the polycarbonate head-up displays, this one pretty good for clarity. And there's stop and go for the adaptive cruise while smartphones integrate wirelessly and there's a surround camera system for safer parking. Harman/Kardon supplies a premium sound system too. And there are enough crash smarts for a five-star ANCAP result. So it's a properly sensible update here, especially the SE. Somewhere out on the far horizon, the next-generation Minis will be rear or AWD, as they adopt BMW's Neue Klasse platform. The Gen6 800V architecture will also mean even more range and quicker charging. Mini Cooper SE $66,990 / 14.8kWh/100km / 0g/km 0-100 km/h 6.33s 80-120 km/h 4.02s (114m) 100-0 km/h 38.96m Speedo error 98 at an indicated 100km/h Ambient cabin noise 74.4dB@100km/h Motor output 160kW/330Nm Battery 49.2kWh Range 382km Drivetrain Single-speed auto / FWD Front suspension Mac strut / swaybar Rear suspension Multilink / swaybar Turning circle 10.8m (2.2 turns) Front brakes Ventilated discs (335mm) Rear brakes Discs (280mm) Stability systems ABS, ESP Safety AEB, ACC, BSM, LDW, RCTA, ALK, AHB Tyre size f/r-225/40R18 Wheelbase 2526m L/W/H 3858 / 1756 / 1460mm Track f-1521mm r-1524mm Luggage capacity 210-800L Tow rating 500kg (750kg braked) Service intervals Condition based Scheduled servicing 3yrs Warranty 5yrs / 100,000 km ANCAP rating ★★★★★ (2025) Weight (claimed) 1680kg
