<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"Vienna\u2014The new 2012 Mini Coupe goes on sale in the U.S. October, and I recently had a chance to drive a mildly disguised John Cooper Works version at the Fahrtechnik test track in Austria. My first impression? This new Mini with the unusual &amp;quot;helmet style&amp;quot; roof works really well around the track; it&amp;#039;s a thoroughly entertaining front-driver that&amp;#039;s blessed with a flingably forgiving chassis and more than enough power to smoke the tread off the front 205/45/ZR-17 Continental ContiSportContact 3s. Of course, that&amp;#039;s with the stability control and traction control fully defeated.   Yes, this new Mini Coupe I drove, very close to production-spec and fitted with Sport suspension (the middle of three levels available on all models, even the JCW), worked really well, even though the car weighs about 50 lb. more than a comparable Hardtop and has a center of balance that has shifted forward slightly. Three reasons for this weight gain and shift: First, the new Coupe is based on the heavier unit-body chassis of the Cabrio, with its strengthened rocker sills. Second, the car is fitted with some new sub-bumper pedestrian impact hardware that will make its way into all other Minis by the 2012 model year. Last, there&amp;#039;s also a new &amp;quot;torsion wall&amp;quot; stiffener located right where the back seats would be...if the 2-seat Mini Coupe had any.           This was needed because of the large hatch opening\u2014that&amp;#039;s right, the new Mini Coupe is actually a hatchback. Although Mini says the new 2012 Coupe has a conventional &amp;quot;3-box&amp;quot; design, that rear &amp;quot;box&amp;quot; is only a few inches long\u2014just long enough to house a pop-up rear spoiler, the first of its kind on a Mini. This wing automatically deploys at 50 mph, and is said to reduce rear lift by 88 lb. at the car&amp;#039;s top speed of 149 mph.   The suspension (struts in front and a multilink rear) has been tuned very much in accord with other Minis, with base models having a 1-mm-larger rear anti-roll bar to help reduce understeer. On all JCW Coupes, Dynamic Stability Control is augmented by Dynamic Traction Control, which in turn works with Integral Electronic Differential Lock Control. When the DTC button to the right of the gearshift lever is pushed, the Coupe is able to move away from a standstill much more effectively in sand or snow, via automatic brake intervention on the wheel (or wheels) that don&amp;#039;t have traction.   Far more important to enthusiasts, however, is that the DTC button, when pushed, allows the Mini Coupe to slide around quite a bit before the stability control kicks in. It&amp;#039;s really fun to drive the Mini Coupe in this mode, which is great when you&amp;#039;re learning a car and a track the same time (who, me?). Also notable, the EDLC does a superb job of limiting wheelspin when the car is exiting tight corners.   I know this, because when I switched all stability aids off (just hold the button down for a few seconds), the 2012 JCW Mini Coupe became quite a different beast. With the twin-scroll turbocharged 208-bhp 1.6-liter inline-4 and gobs of torque, the Mini Coupe wanted to smoke its front tires ferociously when exiting tight turns, which made lapping the car an exercise in patience and throttle control. Torque is so abundant that it actually might have been better to exit the hairpins in 2nd gear instead of 1st.           Nevertheless, I enjoyed being more in charge of the car, and the Mini Coupe tracked remarkably well through the fast right-hand sweeper. Too much power would overwhelm the front tires and cause the car to push wide. A quick lift of the throttle would help rotate the car and put it back on line, but another application of throttle would often start that same old dance again, thanks to on/off nature of the turbo engine.   Optional dealer-installed JCW suspension would likely make the car feel more composed in the fast sweeper; with that not available, I simply focused on being on the right line and making as few corrections as possible. All told, however, the new Mini Coupe, much like the standard Mini Hardtop, is a lively and forgiving car that&amp;#039;s remarkably fun to drive.   The Design Question   Although the Mini Coupes we drove were slightly disguised, the swirly tape camouflage did little to hide the design of the car. Below the beltline, the Mini Coupe remains very much a traditional Mini, with wheels at the extreme corners and minimal overhangs. Above the belt, though, the car is quite different, beginning with a windshield that&amp;#039;s 13 degrees more slanted than a traditional Mini&amp;#039;s but still allows the driver to see the car&amp;#039;s front fenders, a characteristic Mini was intent on preserving. And rather than give the car a traditional coupe-style roof, Mini has opted for one with notched sides that are designed to highlight the 2-seat nature of the car, as do fairings on the removable rear parcel shelf behind the seats that&amp;#039;s visible beneath the rear glass.           Whether this roof works, the jury is still out. To me, this helmet-style roof almost has a temporary look, as if it hasn&amp;#039;t yet been properly mounted on the car, which is exacerbated by the Mini Coupe&amp;#039;s blacked-out C-pillars. What&amp;#039;s clear is that Mini has succeeded in making the Coupe unique, visually unlike any other car on the road. The roof will be available in only three colors: silver, black and red (JCW only). Also, contrasting racing stripes will be optional on the car.   Inside, the Coupe is very much a standard Mini, and although the roofline of the car is about an inch lower than the Mini Hardtop&amp;#039;s, there&amp;#039;s plenty of head room for drivers as tall as 6 ft. 4 in., thanks in part to elliptical indentations in the car&amp;#039;s headliner. No sunroof will be available in the Coupe, which has more luggage capacity than even a Clubman, with a handy pass-through for long items.   Clearly, with the rapidly growing portfolio of offerings\u2014including the Coupe that goes on sale in October\u2014Mini is more than a model...it&amp;#039;s a brand, and one that&amp;#039;s blessed with a fun and lively attitude. Will the new Coupe, which is aimed at young male buyers who are self confident and creative, succeed? With its extroverted styling and entertaining style and manners, it just might. But I&amp;#039;m personally far more drawn to the production Mini Roadster that will go on sale next year. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/first-drives/reviews/a17367/2012-mini-coupe/>