Mini loses its top

Since the second generation new Mini hatch was launched in Australia in 2007, the company has added the Clubman and John Cooper Works models. Now comes the new Cabrio which will go on sale Saturday March 28 around the world.

Powered by the same 1.6-litre engines from the rest of the range, Mini Australia is selling the new convertible as leaner and cleaner than ever before.

The Cooper uses a naturally-aspirated version of the 1.6-litre four cylinder unit that produces 88kW while the Cooper S is motivated by a twin-scroll turbocharged version of the same four-pot that pumps out 128kW.

Fuel consumption has been reduced 16 per cent for the Cooper; down to 6.1L/100km with emissions of 145g/km. The Cooper S consumption is improved 18 per cent and is 7.2L/100km with emissions of 171g/km.

"Compared with their predecessors both the new MINI Cooper Cabrio and the new MINI Cooper S Cabrio offer better performance on substantially less fuel and with much lower emissions," says Justin Hocevar, National Manager for Mini Australia.

Prices for the Cooper start at $39,800 while the Cooper S is priced from $48,000 -- but with Mini's seemingly endless list of options those numbers are simply a starting point. The popular Chilli package is available for $3600 while the automatic gearbox costs $2350.

While it might seem odd for a convertible to go on sale at the end of summer, the time was chosen to coincide with the Northern Hemisphere's calendar. This is the first time Mini has launched a car globally on the same day.

Mini will push the 'Always Open' slogan as its marketing campaign with the Cabrio, featuring the new 'Always-Open-Timer' to measure how long the roof has been down (more here).