countryman

Auto Show: MINI Paceman Cuts Two Doors Off Countrymen

It's not usual to think of a car priced between $23,000 and $32,000 with options as a luxe car, but MINI changes the rules a little for defining what premium means.

The British brand owned by BMW last year launched the Countryman, a four door design related to the iconic MINI Cooper. At this year's North American Auto Show, the company is showing a "concept" car for a two-door version of the car called the Paceman.

"MINI is certainly premium, if not luxury," says independent marketing consultant Dennis Keene. "What I find so fascinating about MINI as a brand is the way it remains aspirational and legitimate for the person for whom $20,000 or $25,000 is what they can afford, as well as for the Mercedes or BMW owner who just loves the design."

The Paceman, besides having just two doors to the Countryman's four has a gradually sloping roofline. It gives the bigger MINI a sportier look. Power for the Paceman concept comes from Mini's John Cooper Works: a 1.6-litre twin-scroll turbocharged engine that puts out 211 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque (207 with the "overboost.") It has MINI's ALL4 all-wheel drive system mated to either a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox.

MINI's next vehicles, the Coupe and Roadster, ill debt in 2012. The Paceman, assuming it gets brought to market would likely come after that.

Tags: Countryman, detroit auto show 2011, MINI, MINI Cooper, North American International Auto Show, Paceman

2010 Geneva Motor Show: The Anglo File

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

You'll have to search long and hard to find a British automaker that's still owned by Brits these days. Bentley? Volkswagen. Mini? BMW. Lotus? Malaysian state carmaker Proton. Land Rover, Jaguar? Indian automaker Tata. But don't think, not even for one minute, that the industry isn't still alive and striving in the UK. In fact some of our favorite automobiles come from there, even if the cashflow is traversing overseas.

With the major motor shows in the UK paling in comparison to the scope of Geneva, the annual Swiss auto salon is – much like it is for the other European carmaking nations – Britain's chance to show the world what they've got. And show us they did. Follow the jump to see how.

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