MINI2

According to reports in Auto Motor und Sport magazine, BMW is working on a new small car.

The new model will be designed with competition for the new Audi A1 in mind, and be built on the MINI platform.

This new BMW “City Car” can be expected to be on sale before the year 2010 is out, says the article.

This new small BMW will apparently measure 3.75 metres in length, be front-wheel drive and emit less than 100 grammes of carbon dioxide per kilometre.

We are proud to announce the details for the MINI2 Charity Ball 2008!

Following the 2007 Charity Ball, when MINI enthusiasts came together to raise over £10,000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care,  the MINI2 Charity Ball 2008 will have an Italian Job theme, and be held in aid of the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

All MINI owners and enthusiasts are welcome from all over the UK, Europe, and the World!

The ball will take place on Saturday 17th May 2008, at the Northampton Marriott Hotel.

Northampton is ideally positioned in the centre of the country, with excellent road and rail links and within close proximity of several International airports.

This years event promises to be our best ever, the 2007 Charity Ball exceeded all expectation, the generousity of the MINI community astounds us every year, and we really hope to make 2008 another winner, with your help!

Tickets are priced at an incredible £45 per person which includes all your evening’s entertainment, dinner, and a drink on arrival.

The hotel are offering great prices of £69 double and £59 single bed and breakfast rate, this is exclusive for the MINI2 Charity Ball event.

Please visit the MINI2 Charity Ball website for further details and to make your booking, and even if you can’t come, there’s way to show your support on the site.

Thank you, and see you in Northampton!

Once more the Clubman proves too easy to spot and someone has zapped it and put it on YouTube.

Two MINI Clubman, both in MINI Cooper S trim and both with the regular black tape are shown in the footage below.  This is longer than previous amateur Clubman video we’ve seen, and shows the vehicles well while they’re in motion on the motorway.

Enjoy.

Jing Quek has won top prize in the ITS#SIX ITS#PHOTO category this weekend, entitling him to feature in a future edition of MINIInternational magazine, and have a preview drive of the new MINI Clubman, prior to it’s launch later this year (or early next year, depending on your location).

Jing Quek, a student of the School of Visual Arts in New York won the prize for his photography project based around the concept “UNIQUENESS IS…INDIVIDUALITY WITHIN SIMILARITY”.

We’re starting to get the impression you can’t go out in the UK now without bumping into a semi-clad MINI Clubman driving about. This time, Richard22b caught and photographed this Lightning Blue example, managing to photograph both sides, one with two doors, the other with one.

Keep up the good work folks, and if you find and photograph a Clubman (or any other future MINI for that matter!) be sure to send them in or post them on the forums!

We’re hearing rumours here at MINI2 that the planned “hot” factory MINI Cooper S with John Cooper Works tuning kit may be in full production and on sale as early as September next year.

According to sources, the hot MINI Cooper S will output around 212 bhp, come fitted with uprated suspension, gearbox with LSD and and an aggressive body kit to aid cooling and style.

Estimates on price suggest a premium of around €3,500 (around £2,500). If that proves to be accurate, it sounds a bit of a bargain for the bundled extras and factory warranty that will support the hottest second generation MINI Cooper S to come from the factory.

At least, that’s according to the lovely ladies of Chicago interviewed by Cars.com on this video hosted on YouTube.   Apparently, the MINI Cooper is a bit small for a man, but Miata drivers are worth “putting out” for, while Hummer owners “must have money”.

So sorry guys, we’re nerdy and should sell up for a Miata.  Apparently.

MINI2 members have been out and about and on the prowl with their cameras lately!

Step_7 got these shots:

While this (extremely) short video was caught on a camera phone by BristolMini:

Gold Spotters Badges to them both we think.

The BMW Group has transferred its shares in Tritec Motors Limitada to DaimlerChrysler’s Chrysler Group effective as of July 11, 2007.

The companies - who each held half of the shares in the Brazilian engine plant - have agreed not to divulge the details of the transaction, which is subject to administrative registration and regulatory approval.

Chrysler Group has assumed the responsibility for exploring long-term options for the Tritec operations whereby all possible alternatives for continuing the business for the long run are under analysis. This may include a sale of the facility to a third-party.

Tritec Motors was founded in 1997 by the BMW Group and the Chrysler Group for the production of 1.4 and 1.6 litre four-cylinder petrol engines. The engine plant is located in the town of Campo Largo in the region of Curitiba, in the Federal State of Paraná, southern Brazil. Large-scale series production started in January 2000; the plant’s annual production capacity is around 250,000 units.

British Car Auctions has launched the first-ever dedicated sales programme for MINI. The new ‘MINI Select’ (a term already used by MINI UK for one of their finance packages?!) Sale at the Nottingham auction centre has quickly become established as “the place” to be for MINI buyers and sellers alike. Around 80 MINIs are regularly entered for the event, which is held on the fourth Wednesday of every month.

The most recent sale saw 63 MINIs sold for an 80% conversion that generated a turnover in excess of £450,000. With around 100 trade and non-trade buyers attending the event, bidding was brisk underlined by the fact that 35 different buyers made purchases on the day.

MINIs were entered from a number of sources including BMW Group, LeasePlan, Lex, Lombard and numerous main agents, with 39 different sellers represented on the day.

BCA Nottingham General Manager Robin Wilde commented

We have created an ideal platform for remarketing Mini product from all sources and can deliver the buying power that means sellers can maximize their sales values. Sometimes, putting all your eggs in one basket is the right course of action and the values we are achieving for Mini certainly bear this out.

Of course, we still think that if you want a really good deal, often from a genuine MINI enthusiast, the best place to buy and sell MINIs is the MINI2 Classifieds. But if you’re after a quick and convenient option the BCA MINI auction may be for you.

The success of MINI Cherished, the authorised used MINI scheme in the UK, does appear to have a knock-on effect making it quite difficult for owners to sell their MINIs privately, we’re not sure if this new “job lot” auction style for MINIs is a good or bad thing for the used MINI markets and residuals on the whole, which do appear to be showing some signs of faltering lately, if feedback from owners on the MINI2 forums are any gauge.