5-Door MINI Hatch Debuts 4-Cylinder Turbo-Diesel Engine
It may have been a long time coming but this summer will see the arrival of the all-new 5-door MINI hatch which really isn’t so mini anymore especially with a thumping new 4-cylinder turbo-diesel engine option.
The MINI brand is renowned for its convention-breaking iterations and its eye for innovation. However, amid wacky ideas of 2-door SUVs and super compact versions, the blindingly obvious 5-door hatch never made it onto the drawing board of former CEO Kay Segler. However, the wait is nearly over and the new MINI hatch looks set to take on the likes of Volkswagen’s upscale Golf models as well as the Audi A3 and Mercedes A-Class.
As mentioned, the new hatch isn’t all that mini now; as in order to fit the extra doors it has been stretched to a smidgen over four metres long (4005mm) for its Cooper S and Cooper SD versions. That’s an extra 161mm longer than the new 3-door which was also elongated by 98mm more than its predecessor.
All that extra length has also equated to the new hatch carrying some extra weight too. The lightest model is the Cooper 5-door with the 3-cylinder, turbo-petrol engine (click here for a review of the 3-door with this engine) which punches in at 1145kg, whereas the heaviest of the bunch is the Cooper SD at 1250kg.
Still, even if the latest MINI isn’t so svelte anymore, the payoff is the added interior space as well as a refreshing boost in luggage capacity. MINI makes the claim that the 5-door is actually a proper 5-seater now. So, with a 72mm increase in rear legroom and footroom, 15mm more headroom and a 61mm stretch in interior width at the back, normal people (as opposed to supermodels) could reasonably be expected to sit without having to fold their elbows into their bodies in order to be comfortable.
There’s also a generous (at least, generous for MINI) 278 litres of luggage capacity so those extra people that you can now fit into the back will also be able to bring along more than a day sack and a washbag! This makes the new hatch a viable choice for longer outings that involve some distance driving.
However, don’t be fooled into thinking that this heavier, more practical MINI with its extra weight is going to be a slouch to drive. That’s where MINI’s new 4-cylinder turbo-diesel comes in, with its impressive 2.0 litre powerplant rated at 125kW at 4000 rpm which should be able to push even the heaviest 1250kg model to 100km/h in 7.4sec.
Fortunately, for all the extra power inherent in the engine, it still manages to achieve a viable economical rate with a NEDC combined figure of 4.1L/100km for a carbon emissions number of 109g/km.
Expect to see the all-new 5-door MINI hatch making its debut later this summer.
