Mini revolution

Motoring editor ALASTAIR SLOANE reminisces about the Beatles and fun in the back seat while taking a spin in the second flush of his youth.

The only thing the new Mini has in common with the old Mini is its name - and a touch here and there of old styling cues. There is a spiritual link of sorts, too, an emotional bond for trainspotters. But just as the new Volkswagen Beetle is light-years away from the original, so too is the new Mini.

The car goes on sale in New Zealand on Monday - after almost two years of hype and three months of Mini fever stories about buyer reaction in Britain, where it was launched in August.

More than 10,000 Minis have been sold there in three months. A 73-year-old woman traded in her 16-year-old Mini with just 10,000km on the clock. Another customer wanted a part exchange on his 1977 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow. One buyer bought a new Mini for his 3-year-old granddaughter and put it in storage until 2015.

After-market goodies include a cuckoo-type Mini clock, shaped like the car's speedo. Every hour two small doors on the side of the clock open and a mini-Mini pops out, beeps its horn twice, and reverses back into the clock.

There's also a Mini mouse for your computer - with the buttons on the bonnet - and a ride-on Mini racer for toddlers.

New Zealanders seduced by the car and everything it stands for can order the $37,900 Mini Cooper now through Team Mini outlets for delivery in January. The $44,900 Mini Cooper S will be available towards March. There is also a Cooper with a continuously variable transmission at $40,900.

Team Mini is a dedicated outlet established by Mini-maker BMW to ensure the car doesn't become a fashion flash-in-the-pan, a trendy one-off toy. The Cooper and Cooper S won't be the only models - a convertible is rumoured.

BMW continues to say no company would invest so much money in a model without having future plans for it.

So what's the new Mini - bigger all round to meet modern safety standards - like? Remember the old one, launched as a thrifty runabout when Britain was going through hard times in the late 1950s and breaking through social barriers in the 60s?

The driving position was a pain in the neck and the fixed-rake seats a pain in the lower back. Changing gear could be difficult, especially if muscle spasms had set in. The car was a physiotherapist's best friend, like Minties and dentists.

Air-conditioning? The windows in the front doors slid open on rails to let the air in and the rear ones hinged out to let the air out. Radio? Mini inventor Sir Alec Issigonis reckoned they were a nuisance.

The motor and gearbox? Both howled liked banshees and the gearlever had more moves than Michael Jackson.

The suspension? Rubber cones that bounced occupants around.

The front seats were convenient for the times, if only because they hinged forward to allow entry to the reasonably roomy back seat. It is said that lots of babies were conceived there. The single 60s folk chuckled about that last Thursday, when pictures of the new and old Mini on the front page of the Herald appeared near a story about the contraceptive pill.

The front seats in the new Mini are height- and rake-adjustable and offer excellent support. The driving position - in front of a steering wheel and dials with retro touches and a fair amount of brushed metal - is excellent.

But the back seats, which can be folded forward individually to create luggage room, are cramped and not easy to enter. The back is a place for little people, hence the mountings for two children's seats.

The boot in the new car doesn't appear as big as that in the original. But the new Mini is basically a hatch, with the boot lid hinged to the roof of the car.

The best thing about the new Mini is driving it. The 1.6-litre engine - built by DaimlerChrysler in Brazil - is willing and produces 85kW at 6000 rpm and 149Nm of torque at 4500 rpm.

It provides fun above 3000 rpm but lower down it's sluggish. Don't go easing through a give way sign in second gear at low revs and expect the car to pick up speed quickly. It won't happen.

Those wanting more get-up-and-go will have to wait for the supercharged 120kW Cooper S with its 210Nm of torque.

The five-speed manual gearbox is good in the Cooper; it will be even better putting the power of the Cooper S on the road.

The steering is sensitive and direct and doesn't load up through the twisty bits. It doesn't provide the go-kart response of the original - just as the car isn't like the original.

The new car has springs and shock absorbers that provide a modern ride, cushioning the car over broken roads and supporting a stiff chassis that keeps the driver involved. The all-wheel disc brakes are progressive and strong.

The bonnet, like the suspension, is unlike the old car, too. Open it up and the headlights come with it, revealing a crowded engine bay and large radiator.

The Cooper comes with all the bells and whistles that the original lacked, including six airbags, anti-lock brakes, electronic brake force distribution, electric windows, remote central locking and air-conditioning.

The CD/radio has an excellent sound. Slip in a Beatles hit and go for a spin. Think of it as memory lane, even if the old Mini is a distant one.