From every vantage, the 2012 Mini Cooper Coupe says, “Come at me, bro.” Designed like (or by) a backward-hat-wearing teenage thug, the smallish two-seat Mini Coupe burbles under idle, backfires under deceleration, tugs relentlessly at its steering wheel, and lift-throttle oversteers its way into your heart. It does the latter so much that we’d half expect it to wear out its rear tires before the fronts.
Fun? The John Cooper Works edition we tested may be the most entertaining Mini ever. Narrowly focused on being the most visceral of the lineup, the JCW adds to the standard Coupe more power, aggressive bumpers, 17-inch wheels, and a hefty starting price. How hefty? Try $9900 more than a base Coupe and $6600 more than the S model, which is the one we recommend starting with. Then there’s the option list: Our JCW totaled $38,350.
Value then remains a tough sell. But so is the Coupe’s single-mindedness. While we admire its tenacity at entering corners so neutrally that you have to look out the side windows to see where the road goes, this focus creates a polarizing car. Few of us were pleased by its reversed silver helmet, and our opinions split on the interior, with its dinner plate-size speedometer and heavily styled toggle switches. It’s an interior you either enjoy or despise for its caricaturized extremes. Beyond the styling, the JCW’s wanton aggression carries significant driveability penalties. Beyond the rough, stiffly dampened ride, the turbo 1.6-liter mill drones under cruising speeds, though it sounds fantastic under heavy throttle. The Coupe is a busy car at the limit; you finish a hard drive tired and sweating.
Do you think the 2012 Mini Coupe has enough charm to take home the Car of the Year calipers? Stay tuned as we preview every car that Motor Trend tested for its 2012 Motor Trend Car of the Year competition in alphabetical order in advance of the official announcement on Nov. 16.
