Four Wheel Drive Cooper S Proves 10% Faster in Testing.

Reports first seen at AutoWek.nl show that Getrag, who currently produce the gearboxes for the MINI range, have developed and tested their own 4×4 MINI Cooper S, and have seen great results, including showing the 4×4 MINI is 10% faster than the traditional two wheel drive Cooper S.

The system is not a permanent four wheel drive system, but is primarily rear wheel drive, then power is shifted to the front wheels if the electronic control system senses a loss of traction at the rear.

It is unclear if BMW will actually take on and produce this car (or a version of it) for public consumption, but it seems when Getrag showed them their work they were “interested” to see the development.