12-06-2025
The MINI Cooper S is a small car with big charisma
The first example of the latest generation MINI I drove was the Countryman, and as much as the family car impressed with its relatively nimble driving characteristics, considering its bloated dimensions, it's too big to be considered a real MINI.
Its 4,444mm length is comparable to midsized SUVs like the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro and Toyota Corolla Cross.
In the 14-model MINI range that comprises convertibles, five-door hatches and crossovers, it's the three-door hatchback that best exemplifies the spirit of the original 1960s Mini.
Like the groundbreaking original designed by Alec Issigonis, the latest three-door MINI is compact, cute as a button, and runs circles around the many top-heavy SUVs that are increasingly dominating the roadways.
Priced at R649,395, the Cooper S three-door hatch embodies the charismatic simplicity of the latest fifth-generation MINI, which brings a minimalist design and digital innovations.
It isn't just a MINI hatchback with two fewer doors. With a length of 3,876mm the tiny three-door doesn't offer family practicality and loses a lot of cabin and boot space to the 4,036mm five-door MINI hatch.
Even small children will struggle to squeeze into the three-door's rear seat unless you adjust the front seats as far as they'll go forward. It's best to look at this as a two-person car, with a back seat that serves as extra luggage space. The tiny 210 l boot expands to a useful 725 l when you flip down the backrests.
The car is instantly recognisable as a MINI with its doe-eyed headlamps and 'floating' roof, but the design has been touched up with a new octagonal grille and horizontal LED daytime running lights. There are three selectable light signatures for the daytime running lights and the matrix rear lights.
Inside, the car is all about modern minimalism with its giant round OLED display and two-tone textile dashboard. As part of the MINI Experience Modes, two projector units beam various illuminated graphics onto the dashboard. A personal photo can be set as the display background via the MINI app.
A dinner plate-sized OLED touchscreen houses all the infotainment controls in large and legible fonts. The digital interface is generally user friendly, though I would have preferred quick-access physical buttons for the climate control system.
