Nice automotive engineers are like magicians. Typically, the hand performing the flourish is there to distract you from the one making the trick work.

Till we drive it, we are able to’t inform you for sure that that’s what’s occurring with the 2025 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman.

However, on paper, it’s possible the aggressive styling, greater energy figures, and enhanced sounds are Penn speaking your ear off. And all of the whereas, just a little additional rubber is Teller enhancing the trademark Mini go-kart dealing with the place you’re not wanting.

Rugged Cute Look

Mini started rolling out variants of the 2025 Countryman in September, beginning with a brand new all-electric variant.

Each bolt and sew is new, however the theme isn’t. That is nonetheless the basic Mini blown as much as the dimensions of a standard automobile and wearing SUV garments.

It wears the long-lasting Mini proportions however is extra squared off and chunky to emphasise that that is the one you may deal with just a little roughly. Mini calls the Countryman an SUV and the Cooper a hatchback, however the distinction is generally measurement and angle.

Mini says the Countryman “is now categorized as an SUV within the U.S. market” because of measurement will increase — an attention-grabbing notice as a result of they’ve all the time offered it as one.

John Cooper Works is Mini’s efficiency unit, and the JCW mannequin will get a number of visible variations so everybody round it is aware of it’s particular. They embody a bigger grille, reshaped entrance and rear bumpers, and indentations that appear like nostril air intakes above the grille.

Elevated Energy

The brand new JCW powertrain sounds the identical because the previous one on paper — it’s nonetheless a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine mated to an 8-speed automated transmission. The ALL4 all-wheel-drive (AWD) system distributes energy to all 4 wheels.

However the brand new automobile has extra of it, because of a bump from 301 to 312 horsepower. Torque is down barely, falling to 295 lb-ft.

With barely extra energy and barely extra measurement, the precise velocity distinction largely washes out. Mini says it’s good for a zero-to-60 leap in 5.4 seconds, with a high velocity of 155 mph.

Although the engine could not carry out significantly better, it would sound higher. Mini has used each trick from exhaust flap programs to “racing-inspired engine sounds” performed by the audio system to spice up the auditory expertise.

Go-Kart Dealing with And The Magician’s Different Hand

However nobody buys a Mini for its straight-line velocity. All of the enjoyable of proudly owning one is within the dealing with. Tossing one into corners has all the time been one of many automotive world’s nice pleasures.

Mini doesn’t clarify any suspension adjustments, so we’re unsure they’ve accomplished something to boost how the Countryman JCW handles its weight.

However they’ve accomplished the best factor automotive engineers can do to enhance dealing with. They’ve given it extra tire. The brand new JCW rides on tires 245 mm large — up from 225 within the final mannequin.

That’s added contact patch, which suggests added grip and friction, which suggests added stability, which equates to added enjoyable. Anybody who’s ever upgraded vehicles has discovered the easy lesson that you may spend fortunes on engines and transmissions, however the perfect bang-for-buck enchancment obtainable is grippier tires.

There’s Penn along with his hood scoops and horsepower shouting about what this automobile can do now. And there’s Teller with 20 mm of rubber really making it extra enjoyable.

Driving modes embody a “Go Kart Mode” for added cornering enjoyable, although Mini doesn’t specify what choosing it does mechanically.

Retro-Impressed Inside

All of the 2025 Mini fashions get a cabin impressed by the basic post-war Mini. They mimic that automobile’s simplicity with only a few parts. However they replace it by making them digital.

A single, high-resolution spherical OLED show within the middle handles all data and leisure features. There’s not even a driver’s instrument display behind the steering wheel, however a head-up show initiatives velocity and turn-by-turn instructions within the driver’s view. A pill-shaped bar beneath it homes a number of buttons, together with the toggle for driving modes.

The dashboard itself is roofed in recycled polyester. A projector on the again of the round show “can be utilized to wash the dashboard in atmospheric shade schemes and patterns that correspond to the chosen Expertise Mode.” So sure, you may change the look of your dashboard on this one.

Restricted Arms-Free Driving

We are able to’t think about eager to take our arms off the chunky steering wheel of a Mini with large tires. However everybody will get uninterested in driving in site visitors jams, we suppose. So Mini debuts a brand new Degree 2 driving help system on the JCW Countryman.

Associated: What Is Degree 2 Autonomous?

The corporate explains, “For the primary time, drivers within the MINI Countryman can take their arms off the steering wheel on highway-like routes at speeds of as much as 60 km/h (37 mph), supplied they proceed to maintain a detailed eye on site visitors and stay able to intervene at any time.”