Wordless Wednesday – Interior Delight

For this week’s edition of Wordless Wednesday, we here at Mini of Ontario decided to look within – within the Mini Coupé, that is. With its pops of red and its sleek lines, being behind the wheel of the Coupé is always a good place to be.

 

Top Gear puts Mini to the test

Whether you’re a car enthusiast from the EU or an auto aficionado from the U.S., Top Gear is top notch. For more than 30 years, the show’s hosts have made it a program worth tuning in to. It is, in fact, the world’s most widely watched factual television program.

In the following episode that we here at Mini of Ontario posted below, Top Gear hosts an epic car battle between Germany and the U.K. This video, which is the second installment of a two-part series, includes a Mini Cooper hatchback battle between host Jeremy Clarkson and Sabine Schmitz, a former German professional racecar driver for BMW.

Most of the Mini action takes place from the beginning until a little after the third minute. But even after the matchup switches over to non-Mini vehicles, the Top Gear antics are hard to put down. We hope you enjoy it!

Mini’s Paceman and its 5 standout qualities

The Mini Paceman serves as the world’s first sports activity coupé in the premium small and compact vehicle segment, and Mini takes that status quite seriously. As the benchmark for sporty style, it exhibits unmatched design from the inside out. Safety and engineering also make this seventh model in the brand family a hallmark for peace of mind when getting from point A to point B.

According to a recent press release from the BMW Group, the following five elements are what make the Paceman a must-have vehicle when maneuvering through the urban jungle.

1. Design: powerful stature, sporty and elegant coupé lines.
2. Interior: exclusive ambience, impressive variability.
3. The drivetrain: powerful engines, optional ALL4 all-wheel-drive system.
4. The chassis: a new take on the go-kart feeling.
5. Safety: Comprehensive equipment and high-quality comfort-enhancing features.

To get the details on each of these aspects of the Paceman, stop by the Mini of Ontario dealership. We’d be happy to give you the rundown.

Mini takes to the water

Mini cars never cease to amaze the folks here at Mini of Ontario. But it may be hard to top the most recent feat performed by a Mini Cooper convertible. According to the editors at BankRate.com, this amazing little mini essentially walked on water – well, drove.

“Boston-area spectators at the Head of the Charles Regatta saw a red Mini Cooper convertible boat fashioned like the car, motoring along the Charles River last weekend during the races,” the editors relayed. “The Mini boat was the only vessel on the race course other than the rowing competitors and was used by race officials to monitor competitor safety during the races.”

They went on to say that the unique boat was built by ACI Composites Inc. ACI Composites is a premiere custom fiberglass fabricator, which produces fiberglass components and products for the architectural, commercial and industrial markets in North America.

“The Mini convertible boat was created using a fiberglass mold of a 2004 Mini, which was then mounted to a boat hull and embellished with original Mini parts including headlights, taillights, grille, steering wheel, wheels and tires,” BankRate.com explained. “It will be used at other events in the eastern U.S. throughout the month.”

Mini heads to the North Pole for a Guinness World Record

This Nov. 24, Mini’s heading to the North Pole with a Christmas mission. According to a recent BMW Group press release, a convoy of Minis will travel from the BMW Group headquarters in Munich, Germany, to Rovaniemi, the official home of Santa Claus in Lapland, Finland. The fleet of Minis, including the Clubman, Countryman, Hatchback, Coupe, Roadster and Cabrio, will all be carrying letters written by children from around the world.

“At the same time, Mini will be competing for the Official Guinness World Records attempt by trying to assemble the longest wishlist to Santa Claus,” the BMW Group editors explained. “In order to set this world record, Mini has involved a total of 16 markets, spanning enough countries to amaze even Santa Claus himself, who certainly knows a lot about world tours.”

In past blog postings here at Mini of Ontario, we’ve highlighted a handful of Guinness World Records set by the already world-famous line of Mini vehicles. And today’s is no different – except for the nearly 2,000 miles Mini will cover on its Christmas journey, of course.

Multiple countries, including Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Poland, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Russia, the United States and Singapore, will participate in the holiday event.

Wordless Wednesday – Austin Mini S

From time to time, we here at Mini of Ontario will stumble on a photo of an old Mini that just melts our hearts. So was the case with the photo shown below of the Austin Mini S, which is in absolutely pristine condition.

Mini versus the Nürburgring

At 17.5 miles, the old Nürburgring in Nürburg, Germany, is the longest racetrack in the world. Nicknamed “the Green Hell,” it has also been referred to as the most difficult racetrack to maneuver.

Put those two designations together and you could certainly consider it the most famous circuit on the entire planet. And you wouldn’t be alone; the editors responsible for the official Mini YouTube channel have recognized it as such. And along with it, they decided to put the Mini John Cooper Works GP to the test on it.

“The engineering behind the most sport-focused Mini of all time was years in the making, and the crowning touch of that development for engineers comes during chassis setting,” say the editors at Mini. “Here precision and raw motorsport instinct combine – on the most famous racetrack in the world – to perfect the final product.”

So check out the video, which we here at Mini of Ontario posted below. And watch the Mini John Cooper Works GP take on the Nürburgring.

5 ways to get more MPGs from the already fuel-efficient Mini

Anyone who’s interested in MPGs knows that Minis are top-notch in regard to eco-conscious and cost-conscious driving. When it comes to great fuel efficiency, Minis are anything but small in stature. As a matter of fact, Cars.com rated the Mini Cooper – with its 37 MPG on the highway – as the best in the two-seater class when it comes to gas mileage.

Across the board, Minis get, on average, about 35 MPG on the highway. Even the Countryman (a virtual behemoth in the Mini line of vehicles) still gets 31 MPG on the highway. All in all, the family of Mini vehicles is a real powerhouse in terms of gas mileage.

For those out there in the Mini community who want to get even more out of a gallon of gas, there are a few ways to make it happen, believe it or not. BankRate.com published a large collection of tips, and for today’s purposes, we here at Mini of Ontario thought that we would offer up five of them:

1. Fill up with a lower-octane gasoline. Buy the lowest grade or octane of gasoline that is appropriate for your car. Unless your car requires premium gasoline, filling up your car with high-octane fuel is a waste of money. That pricey premium fuel won’t boost your car’s fuel economy or performance in the least, so skip it.

If you’re not sure what grade of fuel works best for your car, open up your owner’s manual and take a look. As long as your engine doesn’t knock or ping when you fuel up with regular unleaded, you’re good to drive on this much cheaper gas. Passing on pricey premium gasoline could save you hundreds of dollars a year.

2. Don’t top off. Don’t bother topping off when filling your car’s gas tank. Any additional gas is just going to slop around or seep out. Why waste your money paying for gas your car won’t use? Stop pumping at the first indication that your tank is full when the automatic nozzle clicks off.

3. Tighten up that gas cap. Gas will evaporate from your car’s gas tank if it has an escape. Loose, missing or damaged gas caps cause 147 million gallons of gas to evaporate each year, according to the Car Care Council. So be sure to tighten up that gas cap each time you fuel up your car.

4. Go for the shade. The hot summer sun that makes the inside of your car feel like a sauna also zaps fuel from your gas tank.

“If you let your car bake in the sun there’s going to be a greater amount of evaporative emissions that take place than if you park in the shade,” says Jim Kliesch, research associate at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy and vehicle analyst for GreenerCars.com.

So park your car in the shade of a building or tree whenever possible. And buy a good windshield shade. A windshield shade blocks sunlight and helps to keep heat out of the inside of your car.

5. Use your garage for your car. Got a garage? Clear it out and make room for your car. Parking in your garage will help your car stay warm in winter and cool in summer, and you won’t have to depend as much on your gas-guzzling air-conditioning or defroster when you drive.

So that wraps up today’s tips on MPGs. But don’t fret; we’ll post a few more sometime next week. So stay tuned to the Mini of Ontario blog. We have good things in store.

See what’s in store for the new Mini Countryman

More times than not, change is good. And so was the case when we here at Mini of Ontario learned about the new modifications coming to the Mini Countryman.

“Detailed refinements to the car’s design and the selection of materials available for the interior shine the spotlight even more brightly on a premium character none of the Mini Countryman’s rivals can match,” said the editors behind a recent BMW Group press release. “The spacious five-door’s optimized ease of use underlines its very modern appreciation of practicality.”

Some of Mini’s new modifications will be found in the following features:

• Newly designed rings encircling the Centre Speedo and four air vents now in carbon black
• Newly designed door inserts and door armrests
• Repositioned controls for the electric windows
• Controls for all the windows, the deactivation facility for the rear window controls and adjustment for the exterior mirrors will now be integrated into the door armrest on the driver’s side
• Three-seat rear bench is now standard
• New additions to paint choices include brilliant copper metallic and blazing red metallic

BMW Group reported that the modifications slated for the Mini Countryman will be rolled out across all model variants starting this month, November 2012. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to stop by the Mini of Ontario dealership. We’d be happy to have you.

Wordless Wednesday – Mini looks good in orange

We here at Mini of Ontario wanted to post an orange Mini for this Halloween’s edition of Wordless Wednesday. And when we found this little guy all decked out in orange julep, we knew we could stop our search.

We hope you enjoy it! Happy Halloween!