MINI goes Prius-hunting
Cooper Diesel takes the style-conscious brand into an economical futureFor the first time in its history MINI isn't being clever with its marketing campaign. Billboards for the new turbodiesel hatch will simply read ‘Australia's most fuel efficient car'.
Speaking at the Australian launch of the car yesterday MINI marketing manager Chris Brown admits the simple message is a result of trying to make sure the message gets through loud and clear.
With a combined fuel economy figure of 3.9L/100km and CO2 emissions of 104g/km the new Cooper D beats the smart mhd and current Toyota Prius in both departments.
But MINI Australia national manager Justin Hocevar is adamant that the economy and efficiency hasn't come at the expense of the brand's traditional values.
"For the first time in Australia, buyers will be able to buy an extremely fuel efficient car, with very low emissions, without having to sacrifice excitement and performance," Mr Hocevar said.
"Thanks to MINIMALISM, buyers do not have to forgo typical MINI levels of driving fun, premium quality and safety and a host of personalisation opportunities when they decide to purchase an efficient car," he said.
The MINI is the fastest accelerating diesel in its capacity class with a 0-100km/h time of 9.9sec.
The key to the car's efficiency and performance comes from the 1.6-litre turbodiesel that produces 80kW of power and 240Nm of torque together with MINI's version of BMW's Efficient Dynamics; MINIMALISM.
MINIMALISM features include automatic stop/start technology, brake energy regeneration, electric water pump, volume regulated oil pump, electronic power steering, lightweight chassis and underbody aerodynamic panel.
The Cooper D is priced from $33,750 for the six-speed manual a $2650 premium over the petrol Cooper. The optional six-speed automatic transmission costs $2350.
There are, of course, the usual seemingly endless list of colour, trim and detail options to customise the Cooper D.
Visit the Carsales Network again for our launch review of the new MINI Cooper D.
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