The Mini Cooper’s Confusing Taillights Are Likely Here to Stay
When BMW brought Mini back in the early 2000s, the taillights on Frank Stephenson’s original design were triangular. They later filled out and got a bit more squarish, and have remained so for about a decade — but that looks to change starting next year. The upper and lower inner chunks of the clusters have been chipped away, making sideways trapezoids.
The entire unit has been subdivided into what I could only describe as pixels, but like pixels from an old-school LCD display. If I squint, it seems like the bars that would comprise the Union Jack are a bit lighter than the rest, and I bet those light up in similar fashion as the current Mini’s taillights.
This would be a very smart move for Mini, because it’s getting so much attention over the flag lights from nerds like us. I’m willing to bet every person that directly follows a new Mini has noticed the design, and so long as they’ve ever seen 15 seconds of Austin Powers, they probably get the joke.
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I have less to say about the rest of the upcoming Mini’s look. I mean, I’m still reminded of goatees or that one episode of The Powerpuff Girlswhen I study the front, and the headlights have these crossbars on their upper and lower portions that almost look like eyelids on a Family Guy character. I’m overflowing with cartoon character references.
There’s more to say about the interior, where Mini designers have seemingly ditched the small pill-shaped digital instrument cluster behind the steering wheel in favor of a heads-up display. The dash is entirely clad in what looks to be canvas, with a big old circular panel affixed to the center dash. It’s like the essence of a Mini interior stripped down to its most iconographic parts, and it’s kind of soulless. I don’t love it coming from the current Mini’s fun and lighthearted cabin.
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Supposedly this new Mini Cooper will be available in internal combustion and battery electric forms. If the manufacturer can squeeze roughly 50 more miles out of the SE while keeping the price around where it sits today — and the driving dynamics on point — it’ll be a pretty compelling bargain EV.
Featured on the online auction platform driven by ClassicCars.com, AutoHunter, and offered at no reserve is a one-owner 2004 BMW M3 sports coupe that riding on custom 19-inch aluminum wheels, a lowered suspension and with an upgraded Eisenmann quad-outlet exhaust system.
“The M3 first debuted in 1986 as a high-performance version of the BMW 3-Series compact car, offering upgraded cosmetic and mechanical content when compared to traditional models,” AutoHunter notes in the car’s listing. “For the model year 2000, the M3 adopted the E46 chassis and became available as a coupe or convertible.”
This 2004 M3 coupe is finished in Titan Silver Metallic and features an aerodynamic body treatment that includes widened fenders to accommodate larger tires. It also has a front chin spoiler, side skirts, and a rear diffuser.
The grille, side accents and badging are finished in a matte black, nicely contrasting the silver paint.
Additional exterior features include Xenon headlights with angel-eye daytime running lamps, and a trunk-mounted carbon fiber lip spoiler.
The interior houses black-leather heated and power bucket seats and matching door panels, dash and console. Amenities include automatic climate control, tinted windows, cruise control, power windows and an upgraded Alpine navigation sound system with Bavsound speakers, a subwoofer and Intravee audio interface for iPod connectivity.
Power comes from a 333-horsepower 3.2-liter S54 inline-6 engine paired with a 6-speed sequential manual transmission and a limited-slip differential.
The odometer reads 105,794 miles, which the seller notes are original to the car.
This 2004 M3’s auction ends August 26 at 11:40 a.m. PDT.
Visit this coupe’s AutoHunter listing for more information and gallery of photos.
One thing that I’ve been curious about is how homebrew electric car builds compare to OEM efforts at EVs, especially as we’re still in the early days of widespread manufacturer adoption. Jalopnik reader Allan has both: a 1983 E21 he converted himself and 2014 BMW i3 that doesn’t even want to see a wrench.
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Welcome to EV Ownership Stories! Every week, we’ll be posting an interview with an owner of an electric vehicle. We’re here to show that people have been living with EVs for longer than you’d think, in stranger places than you’d imagine. If you’d like to be featured, instructions are at the bottom of the article.
As you can probably tell by this point in the series, I adore featuring stories about classic cars converted to electric vehicles. It’s so satisfying to look through my inbox and find the cars I grew up adoring given a new lease on life as modern hot rods.
And that brings us to this week’s pair of EVs owned by Allan, both bearing the roundel of the Bavarian Motor Works, but with vastly different execution. The first is his ’14 BMW i3 with a range extender, which of course comes chock full of creature comforts like adaptive cruise, one-pedal driving and smartphone connectivity, as well as the usual BMW fit and finish (albeit packaged in a much more quirky package than, say, an X3). The 650cc engine works as a gas generator that kicks on when the batteries are getting low, to eliminate range anxiety without needing to add a full ICE drivetrain like in a traditional parallel hybrid. Allan says quite simply, “the i3 does everything well, but I probably can’t fix it. I can’t even buy a manual to read about fixing it.” Basically, it makes a good daily driver, but it doesn’t satisfy his urge to wrench.
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Photo: Allan
Now we get to the second BMW in his EV collection, and this one can be wrenched on. Allan’s other electric BMW is a 1983 320is coupe with a DC motor, a five-speed manual transmission, and a 21 kWh battery system that provides over 60 miles of range “while driving any way [Allan] feels like.” He enjoys the E21 BMWs a lot (as he put it, to the point of mild addiction) and he’d had this specific one sitting around for a while. It was too nice to part out, but too rough to restore, and he immediately gravitated towards a budget EV build. It was a good way to do it justice and enjoy it. He’s been converting EVs on and off as part of his repair business for nearly 30 years, so he had the skills to build it. All he needed was a refresher on some of the more modern solutions available.
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Photo: Allan
The 320is is, as a result, an entirely homebrew conversion, built with fresh LFP batteries for juice and an Orion BMS2 from Shift EVs for power management. The rest of the system is cobbled entirely together out of other old, broken conversions Allan would find on EVFinder.com and purchase for parts. A BMW 2002 that had been converted to a DC motor helped him get his power plant, engine mount, and transmission adapter situation set up, and a converted ’90s Toyota Pickup donated its DC/DC converter, battery charger, and many other parts to the build.
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Because he used other used builds for parts and sold off the non-EV components like the BMW 2002 shell, the conversion without the batteries was actually in the black. With the batteries and management system he bought new, the overall cost of the project came out to roughly $7,500. That’s the most cost-efficient homemade EV I’ve seen thus far, and it’s giving me really bad ideas about what I’d like my next project to be. I could maybe swing that cost.
Photo: Allan
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The E21, as Allan puts it, drives great:
“its entertainment value as an EV is just limitless. I can shift and hot rod if I want or just leave it in third gear and be lazy. And it’s a beast for pulling a trailer!”
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The conversion actually allowed the car to lose 200 pounds, move the center of gravity backwards and downwards, and improve the weight balance of the car. Because it’s a DC motor powering it, the manual transmission is actually needed and the car has the fun of shifting with the linear response and quiet ride of a modern EV. Allan actually uses the E21 to test out differentials and transmissions he sells or puts into other cars. As he explains, “It is perfect for this job. No exhaust, heat shields, or fuel pump in the way, and it’s utterly silent. You can really hear any drivetrain noise!”
His verdict on the two cars is that they are a perfect pair: the i3 for a reasonable daily, capable of puttering around town in comfort, with a warranty, and no worries about range, and the E21 for pure fun and towing. He does admit he finds himself in his E21 more often than the i3 (or any of the other ICE cars he owns and works on, for that matter) and I really can’t say I’d blame him at all!
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Thank you so much for sharing, Allan! We’d love to hear from more readers about their EVs, modern or classic, factory or otherwise.
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How has it lived up to your expectations?
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If you want to be interviewed, please let us know an email with an re: EV Ownership Stories to tscott at jalopnik dot com!
We’ve known that an electric Mini JCW hot hatchback is in the works from the Brit brand by BMW. It’s an exciting proposition, one many of us are looking forward to, and it gets more exciting as the day draws nearer. In a tweet on Wednesday, Mini released the above teaser image with the caption “Feels like it’s time for a boost. Watch this space… #ElectricThrillMaximised” Does that mean Mini will be pacing the field at future Formula E events?
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The current Formula E safety car is this unique roofless BMW i8 with a giant wing. The hybrid i8 sports car has been serving in this role since season 1 way back in 2014 when the i8 was a brand new car. It makes sense that the company would want to replace the aging i8 as the face of safety in one of the most advanced and forward-looking series in the world of motorsport. Not least because the i8 will be ending production soon, but also because BMW will be leaving Formula E at the end of this season.
Image: BMW
With BMW out, and Mini’s commitment to electrification, this swap would make perfect sense. You can see from the light bar on the roof of the Mini that it matches the one currently in use on the BMW. Therefore, one could infer that this is the specification which will continue onward into Mini’s tenure as safety car.
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I have high hopes for the electric JCW. The Mini Cooper SE electric is already considered one of the best handling electric cars on the market, so by extension the better handling JCW version should deliver more power and more on-track speed. Because Formula E tracks are typically quite tight, the Mini should be able to deliver on the job of safety car. Electric torque and nimble handling should be enough tools in the box for the effort.
Dammit, I’m going to have to buy one of these things, aren’t I?
With Mini almost sure to be running the Formula E safety car in the near future, how long will it be before Mini enters the sport as a manufacturer? While it’s certain that BMW is leaving FE, there’s nothing saying its compact car brand can’t pick up where it left off. It wouldn’t be the first time in this series, either, as Nissan’s FE program came out of Renault’s abandoning the sport.
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I, for one, would love to see Mini racing in Formula E.
BMW on Tuesday announced that it is officially bowing out of the ABB Formula E Championship after competing in the series for seven seasons (as a factory team since season five). The automaker’s withdrawal is not effective immediately, but will finalize at the end of the upcoming season, which kicks off next month with a double header in Chile.
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It’s less of a swift pull of the plug and more of a sunset of its Formula E operations. Still, the news is a setback: BMW is the second team to announce its departure this week, following an earlier announcement from Audi that it’s withdrawing from Formula E at the end of the upcoming season.
BMW Group struck a dramatic tone in its press release, stating that all opportunities to apply knowledge gained on the track to production EVs has been exhausted. In other words, the well has run dry and there is no point in sticking around. Here’s a clip from BMW’s announcement:
The same engineers who develop the drivetrains for electric production vehicles are also responsible for the drivetrains in the race cars. Examples of the successful transfer of technology between the Formula E project and production development include new findings regarding energy management and energy efficiency, the transfer of software for power electronics from racing to production, and an improvement in the power density of the e-motors.
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The statement broadly outlines what it was that BMW transferred from track to showroom as a result of its racing in Formula E, and it briefly mentions the team’s modest record in the series. But the press release mostly seems sponsored by the letter “P” as in “production.”
BMW emphasized that its decision comes on the heels of a realignment and renewed commitment to increase EV production. There just seems to be little return on investment in the series; the company said that investment is better directed elsewhere.
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Cost has been a recent concern for the teams, and that prompted the FIA to draft regulations addressing this. But even with upcoming regulations mandating significantly lower operating costs, it seems BMW would rather its resources go to meeting the EV goals.
That’s not going to be easy. BMW wants one million of its EVs on the road by the end of next year, and seven million by the end of the decade. That’s a lot of blue-and-white roundels, let alone a lot of EVs.
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Now we have two German marques leaving FE, but at least Mercedes is still sticking around. The upcoming season will be the first to have FIA World Championship status, so maybe the BMW i Andretti team will rally near the end.
Three of the best mid-tier track cars available today, all with similar weight and power. Yet, their characters are distinct. Different layouts, footprints, and levels of focus separate these three beauties, which all have strengths and weaknesses of their own. As you might imagine, the Cayman GT4 might be the best all-rounded vehicle in this lineup, brought to us by Sport Auto and their wonderful test driver, .
From the start, it’s obvious how the Cayman is confidence-inspiring. Sharp steering and a neutral balance are two ways which the Porsche works with the driver. Note the benign understeer leaving the Hockenheim GP Circuit’s Turn 2. Not fighting the car out of slower corners preceded by big braking zones can be a challenge, since keeping the platform balanced while trying to stop and follow the intended line is tricky. In fact, we can see how it steps out when the rear can’t quite handle the power in Turns 6 and 8 (1:46 and 2:33), though even while oversteering, the Cayman looks confidence-inspiring.
When slides can be caught with this level of precision, it’s hard to fault the steering in any way.
It has to be said that, wearing the N1 version of the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, the Porsche has a little more grip than the others. Nevertheless, its balance and damping add to the total picture. Traction is stellar for the power levels, and the way it rides curbs and remains stable through faster corners only add to this Cayman’s clear dominance here. It also has the widest footprint of all three cars.
The BMW is the most mellow of three. The engine placement has something to do with a milder breakaway, and that might make it best suited to the novice driver. However, the obvious traction limitation hinders it in the technical sections when a lot is asked from the rear ( 4:43). Having to tiptoe around sections where the Cayman and the Exige confidently put their power down might be the M2’s greatest limitation. As capable, quick, and reassuring as it is, it just lacks that little bit of urgency and surefootedness that the mid-engined rivals have. In fact, the Lotus might even beat the Cayman in that department.
What the M2 might lack in pure nimbleness, it makes up for in great torque.
The Exige couldn’t be fairly described as the Dark Horse in this company, but it is the outsider in many ways. Obviously, it lacks the refinement of the other two, but look at the size of that company and tell me that Lotus could ever hope to compete with the big marques, at least on that level.
But these are track-oriented cars and we should judge them accordingly. The limitations there are, most notably, the transmission—the Exige is also the only car here with an h-pattern gearbox. That lengthened shift time, combined with the least power in the group, undoubtedly handicaps the Exige along Hockenheim’s straights and power sections.
A serious tire stagger keeps the car from oversteering much, though it does let go abruptly when the rears are finally overwhelmed. Perhaps this edgier character won’t appeal to the novices, but there’s no denying it’s more alive, crisp, and challenging than the others. Fast snaps keep its driver on their toes, and only those comfortable with a car moving around underneath them at higher speeds could consistently push in a car like this.
A worrying snap in the middle of Turn 7 (7:18), especially with the sun blinding the driver, is not a pleasant thing to contend with.
Whichever the pick, the lap times are similar enough to make most drivers’ talent the limiting factor. Off the circuit, it might be the BMW that’s best for a weekend getaway; the Lotus might leave one’s date feeling like she’s spent her Saturday looking out of a paint mixer. For that reason, the reasonably spacious and very accurate Cayman gets my vote.
