The fact that Mini was planning on producing a Countryman in collaboration with John Cooper Works has been known since December, when some spy photos of the Countryman JCW surprised during testing leaked on the internet. A few days before the Countryman JCW’s official launch, MINI revealed some pictures of this car.
One look at it immediately tells you that this is no ordinary Countryman: the new alloy wheels and the rear spoiler, together with a more aggressive front fascia contribute to a design that almost can’t be compared with the old model. Designers from JCW really did a good job on this Countryman.
Now about the tech part: the Countryman JCW will be powered by a 1.6 liter 4-cylinder engine that delivers 218 horsepower (over 130 horsepower per liter) and 280 Nm of torque, or 300 Nm with overboost on. The power is transmitted to the ALL4 all-wheel drive through either a manual six-speed transmission, or an automatic one with the same amount of gears.
The performance divides into two sections: the one of the Countryman with the manual and the one with the automatic. The manual Countryman sprints to 62 mph in exactly 7 seconds, and reaches a top speed of 141 mph. The combined fuel consumption is announced to be around 33 mpg. The other performance version is with the automatic gearbox: acceleration to 62 is still 7 seconds, but the top speed is lowered to 134 mph. The fuel consumption is also a bit less satisfying, at 29 mpg.
That’s all we know on the Countryman John Cooper Works so far. We’ll keep you posted after MINI presents this vehicle at the Geneva Motor Show from next week.
