Mini Cooper D Car Review

HerCar Rating: Model Reviewed Mini Cooper D 1.6 litre diesel 6 speed manual petrol $33,750* Other models priced from: Mini Cooper D 1.6 litre diesel 6 speed auto $36,100* HerCar 3 word summary Green Driving Machine

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Mini has had a loyal following for many years. It’s cool, fun and attracts people of all ages. BMW, who own Mini, are incredibly focussed on maximising the driving fun while being more efficient. The Mini diesel has benefited enormously from this commitment, allowing it to be crowned the most fuel efficient car in Australia. It consumes only 3.9 litres per 100kms and has a carbon emission of 104 grams per kilometre. The increased fuel efficiency is really the big story with the diesel car. If you have never driven a Mini now’s a great time. The Mini D is fun, zips around town, zooms on the highway and gets plenty of admiring looks from those around you.

Styling
You’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between the petrol Mini and the diesel Mini. The bonnet is slightly more bulberous and there is a larger air intake grille under the front bumper. The styling on the inside is what you’d expect from Mini. Stylish, cool and retro. All of the instruments are encapsulated in silver trim. The seats and beautiful leather with super stylish seat trim that reeks of fun.

Driver Comfort & Visibility
When it comes to the drive, the Mini D has the right amount firmness for a sporty and comfortable ride. The seats are comfy, there’s great head room and everything is in easy reach.  Cruise control, Bluetooth phone controls and audio controls are all located on the steering wheel for ease of use. Visibility is brilliant out of all windows, particularly the rear.

Safety
Mini might be light on fuel but it’s not light on safety features. You’ve got 6 airbags, ABS brakes, Electronic Brake Force Distribution, Traction Control and Dynamic Stability Control.

Storage
The storage options are OK, but not great. The glove box is a reasonable size and there are door pockets for your bits and pieces. Thankfully the coffee lovers amongst us are accommodated for with 3 good sized cup holders located in the centre. There’s storage net in the front passenger footwell as well as the boot. As you can imagine the boot space is not huge. You can get in a gym bag and a couple of grocery bags, but that’s about it if you’ve got 2 rear passengers. If you need more room for your luggage, you can fold down one or both of the rears seats.

Green Factor
This is the big story for the little car. It is the most fuel efficient car in Australia running on the smell of an oily rag. 3.9 litres of fuel will get you about 100kms. We managed to beat the official figures, consuming only 3.5 litres on our city/Yarra Valley challenge. The good news doesn’t stop there. It only emits 104 grams per km of carbon, which is the lowest emission of any car in Australia. Even better than the hybrids!

How Does the Mini Consume So Little Fuel?
It’s a combination of some really basic stuff, like using light weight aluminium in some parts and steam lining the under body for lower drag; and some really complicated techy stuff (go to Mini to find out more ). The most noticeable fuel saving feature in the manual is the Auto Start Stop function. This took me a whole to get used to as I had to overcome my jitters with “stalling” the car. How this feature works is when you are stationary, at lights for example, you put the car in neutral, put your foot on the brake, engage the hand brake and take your foot off the clutch. And bingo you’ve stalled the car! Well not quite. All you need to do to get going again is put your foot on the clutch and the engine starts straight away.

Overall View
Whilst Mini has gone to extraordinary efforts to make the most fuel efficient car in Australia, they haven’t compromised on their fun factor. Now it’s possible to look cool, have fun, save on your fuel bill and be kind to the environment. Thumbs up to the Mini Cooper D!

Test Drive Tips
1. You push a button to start the car
2. See Auto Start Stop info above.

If you’re considering buying this car you might also like to test drive the Peugeot 207, Citroen C3, Fiat Punto, VW Golf.

Features of Model Reviewed

* Excludes on road costs

# All new vehicles sold in Australia (up to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass) are tested to determine the level of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions (Greenhouse rating), which are displayed on the fuel consumption label attached to the windscreen of the car. The Green Vehicle Guide rating combines the Greenhouse Rating and Air Pollution Rating and awards a star. 5 stars is the best rating.  For more information, click here.
Information is correct at the time of the review. Please check with your local Mini dealer for the most recent information.

Review Date: May 2009

Reviewed By: Melissa Pye