Mini Cooper S Park Lane 2006 Review

With a model line-up that consists at present of just two body styles -- two-door sedan and soft-top Cabrio -- new product is still a relative rarity for the BMW-owned Mini brand.

There is the option of three engines -- well, one basic 1.6-litre four, a supercharged version of same and a "works" supercharged version of same -- but at the end of the day, there is not a hell of a lot to keep potential punters interested in a market that offers a veritable flood of new models on a monthly basis.

So as is the trend with many makers, a quick tart up with some extra kit, a fresh paint job and an individual moniker can do wonders for keeping the model uppermost in the minds of the car buying public.

For Mini, its interest keepers are called Checkmate and Park Lane "character" packs. One with its distinctive chequered flag visuals is aimed at the sports enthusiast while the other, with its suitably upmarket reference to the boulevard that runs along Hyde Park in London's Mayfair district, is about luxury.

Having spent a fair bit of a lost youth around the aforementioned strip of tarmac, multi-million pound apartments and luxury hotels -- working rather than enjoying some long lost inheritance -- this CarPoint tester decided to opt for the Park Lane to test its opulence quotient and the supercharged Cooper S that lies beneath.

The Park Lane bit is largely cosmetic with an exclusive grey exterior with splashes of chrome and a silver roof, Panther Black English leather trim with "heritage" piping on the seats, a duo-tone leather steering wheel and unique 16-inch alloys.

Apart from the visuals and trim, the only distinction between the Park Lane and the standard Cooper S is the addition of Xenon headlights and an eight-speaker Harman-Kardon audio system.

The former do a great job of lighting up the road and the latter delivers a superb sound although it only has a single disc slot.

So back to the basics.

When BMW bought the Mini brand back in the 1990s, there was plenty of speculation as to whether it could deliver a car that carried the character of the original but still made it relevant for the present with its own character.

And we would have to say, in most regards, it did.

Step inside and there are plenty of design touches that hark back to the original. The speedo and tacho may have moved to round dials mounted on the top of the steering column but smack in the centre of the dash is still a big circular instrument feature that houses fuel, temperature and oil pressure and temperature gauges.

The leather-trimmed seats are comfortable and supportive and there is reasonable adjustment for driving position although one bugbear is that the steering column adjusts for height only.

Up front there is reasonable space although you do feel cosy but the rear seat is essentially little more than an upholstered parcel shelf. There are two three-point seat belts but even for small children, space is very tight and this tester was unable to squeeze in a child booster seat and leave enough room for the legs of a four-year old.

But the reincarnated Mini wasn't designed as a family car and that ethos hits home the minute you set off.

For this is a car that is meant to be driven and driven reasonably hard. The 1.6-litre engine is fairly strong off the line with a decent boot of the right foot but once it is revving above 3000rpm and the supercharger is fully operational it steps up into another realm. It will quite comfortably keep pulling right through to 6500rpm and despite its front-drive configuration, there is little in the way of torque steer under heavy throttle.

The six-speed automatic transmission is smooth and responsive under moderate throttle but a bit of hard driving and series of tight turns through the winding hills of the Otway Ranges on the south coast of Victoria did start to confuse the electronics a little as the transmission hunted around for the appropriate ratio. For this type of road, it was best to use the manual override with its steering wheel-mounted paddles and simply choose to hold it in second or third.

The steering and handling however were definitely not in any state of confusion, with the tight, direct and responsive steering being go-kart sharp with plenty of feedback as to what was happening at the road surface.

At the same time the little car feels very solid on the road with enormous grip from the lowish profile 16-inch tyres. As you push into a corner and power through the apex, the car simply squats down and follows the desired line with confidence and surefootedness. If things do get a little slippery, there is a well-calibrated traction control system - fully blown ESP remains an option -- to keep things in check.

To achieve such competent handling, the ride is firm, very firm in fact and while there is enough compliance to soak up small sharp ruts, over the rest of the week spent criss-crossing Melbourne's urban tarmac, it did become a little irritating. Not exactly harsh or uncomfortable but the endless notification of every little bump in the road through the seat can become tiring.

In terms of its driving characteristics and styling, the Mini Cooper S is a faithful 21st century rendering of the original but it is hardly a space-efficient package. But for those looking for a sportscar with a difference it has plenty of appeal.

As for the Park Lane character, it's not exactly a chesterfield in Claridges but it does help make what is already a cute and distinctive design stand out just a little bit more.