MINI Clubman upgraded

MINI has revealed a facelifted version of its four-door Clubman wagon – with the same potentially (deliberately?) polarising and wisely-optional design elements, including distinctive Union Jack LED tail-lights, as seen on the latest MINI hatch and cabrio.

The updated MINI Clubman micro-wagon also comes with the new, wider grille and the optional matrix high-beam LED headlights that are seen on both the facelifted MINI hatch and cabrio models.

Also new are fresh-design alloy wheels which, depending on the variant, are available in 16 and 17-inch sizes (with the option of upgrading to 18s or 19s).

Although Australian specifications are yet to be announced, in Europe the new MINI Clubman is available with a choice of three petrol and three diesel engines, and the option of front-drive or, in ALL4 models, all-wheel drive.

There’s also a new, optional sports suspension set-up that lowers the Clubman by 10mm and a two-mode adaptive damping system with selectable comfort and sport settings.

Also replicating the just-launched MINI two-door variants, the latest Clubman is rejuvenated by an almost-bewildering swag of new interior trims and treatments, as well as an extended range of MINI accessories that include such things as a MINI Yours steering wheel and Leather Lounge Carbon Black upholstery – complete with the requisite Union Jack motif in the head restraints.

Europe’s six-engine line-up covers eight model variants and includes three- and four-cylinder TwinPower turbo-petrol variants beginning with the 75kW petrol triple in the MINI One, through the also three-cylinder 100kW Cooper and the 141kW four-cylinder front-drive and ALL4 Cooper S variants.

Turbo-diesels include the base three-cylinder 85kW version seen in the MINI One Clubman, the also three-cylinder 110kW Cooper D version and the 140kW four-cylinder used in SD Clubman and ALL4 models.

Gearbox options are diverse: MINI One petrol and diesel, and Cooper and Cooper S are available with a six-speed manual gearbox, with a dual-clutch auto and seven-speed Steptronic auto available optionally.

On Cooper S only, there’s a Steptronic sports dual-clutch with “especially fast shift times.” Then, there’s a conventional eight-speed Steptronic auto as standard on Cooper S ALL4, Cooper SD and Cooper SD ALL4, and it can be optionally upgraded to a ‘sports’ version.

Infotainment and navigation systems include standard Bluetooth and a 6.5-inch colour touch-screen, with options including a choice of two sat-nav systems using either the standard screen or, with the up-spec Connected Navigation Plus system, a larger 8.8-inch screen which also comes with a wireless phone charging system.

Australia’s three-model MINI Clubman line-up is likely to remain, opening with the front-drive Cooper (currently priced from $37,900) and Cooper S ($45,900), and topped by the $57K JCW AWD, a replacement for which is yet to be revealed.