Amber light for green MINI

The changing face of the Australian new car market may pick up another 'character line' -- provided MINI can release a diesel model for the local market.

At the present, MINI in Australia wants to bring the sporty diesel hatch to Australia, but is stymied by a couple of issues.

According to MINI's national manager, Justin Hocevar, the company would love to launch the little oiler here, but the car is not locked into a launch date at the present.

"We're applying for and we're trying to work with our colleagues in Germany to bring in a version of it, but it isn't going ahead just yet," he said.

"There are a number of [issues]. We need to have approval for a hot-climate version of the car and diesel demand in Europe is still so very high, they're struggling to meet the demand there, let alone to supply here in Australia.

"Additionally, we're going so strong with petrol cars that are very efficient, that it makes is difficult to fulfill our requirements at the moment -- with petrol.

"[Local] Fuel quality [for diesel variants] was an issue in the past, but not on this occasion.

"It's something we want, it's something we're working towards, but it's just not happening quite yet."

Hocevar expects prospective MINI diesel buyers to come from the company's existing target audience, but in describing the prospective buyers as "those customers who are seeking a more fuel-efficient vehicle", he counterbalanced that with the observation that "the Cooper Diesel is quite a sporty diesel".

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