British automaker Mini has announced that it has sold its 500,000th vehicle in America, and is celebrating by taking its cars on a trek across the west coast of America and snapping photographs at noticeable landmarks along the way.
Auto News
AutoGuide News Blog
The AutoGuide News Blog is your source for breaking stories from the auto industry. Delivering news immediately, the AutoGuide Blog is constantly updated with the latest information, photos and video from manufacturers, auto shows, the aftermarket and professional racing.
The MINI Paceman debuted at last year’s L.A. Auto Show and now the brand has given it the hot-hatch treatment introducing the 2013 MINI John Cooper Works Paceman here at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show.
Recently at the 2012 LA Auto Show, MINI showcased its new Paceman model, which it has now announced will get a hot John Cooper Works variant. Wit the official world premiere set for the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, pictures and info on the British brand’s newest model have been released.
Making its North American debut today at the 2012 LA Auto Show is the MINI Paceman, a vehicle that the British automaker calls a ‘Sports Activity Coupe.’
Two exciting MINI models will be making their U.S. debut at the 2012 L.A. Auto Show later this month.
The MINI Paceman has broken cover prior to its officially unveiling at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, adding the seventh vehicle to the British automaker’s lineup.
Official spy photos of the Mini Paceman were released by the company recently which showed off the car sporting a bit of camo, but now we have full photos of the new three-door Countryman.
In celebration of a decade in America, MINI is kicking off it’s cross-country “MINI Takes The States” rally today in New York City, taking the opportunity to confirm that its seventh model will be called the Paceman.
The MINI Paceman concept, now known as the Countryman Coupe, will likely bow as a 2013 model year car, and be available in the first quarter of the same year.
Earlier this year, we alluded to the fact that the MINI Paceman Concept would hit dealerships as the Countryman Coupe and it looks like that will be made official when the vehicle debuts at this year’s Paris Auto Show.
It all makes sense that MINI would put the Countryman name onto their two-door Paceman Concept considering the production vehicle will share the same front end. It also appears that the Paceman Concept will closely resemble the final production Countryman Coupe and it is still on schedule to hit dealerships in 2013, as a 2014 model.
Unfortunately there is still no confirmation on what will power the new Countryman Coupe, but the Paceman Concept did sport a John Cooper Works-built 1.6L twin-turbocharged engine sporting 211-hp and 192 lb-ft of torque. The Countryman Coupe should make a nice addition to MINI’s lineup.
GALLERY: MINI Paceman Concept
[Source: Car and Driver]
MINI‘s boss in the United States recently confirmed in an interview that the Countryman Coupe will be available on the US market in the first quarter of 2013.
Originally debuted in the form of the Paceman Concept at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show, the Countryman Coupe should take on the Land Rover Evoque and is expected to boost MINI sales significantly. It’s expected that the Countryman Coupe will make its debut sometime in September, perhaps at the 2012 Paris Motor Show.
The Paceman Concept was powered by a John Cooper Works-built 1.6L twin-turbocharged engine with 211-hp and 192 lb-ft of torque. An Overboost function allowed the torque to peak at 207 lb-ft for a short period of time.
GALLERY: MINI Paceman Concept
[Source: 4 Wheels News]
Having just been unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show, the MINI Paceman Concept is production ready, according to a MINI source, who told AutoGuide that 2013 is the target date for the Paceman’s launch. Before the new two-door crossover, MINI will launch the upcoming Coupe and Roadster, sportier, stripped down versions of the base car with distinctive styling.
The Paceman will ape the upcoming Range Rover Evoque with its two-door crossover bodystyle. A MINI rep said that minor changes will be carried out, but the production car will remain faithful to the concept, including the characteristic roofline. As far as tech details go, we don’t have much – there wasn’t even an interior to take pictures of – but we bet that MINIs wonderful 4-cylinders will make an appearance, alongside the All4 all-wheel-drive system.
GALLERY: MINI Paceman Concept
Get the Flash Player to see this player.
There has been much debate inside MINI as to what direction that automaker would go with its next crossover model. Executives, designers and engineers were reportedly stuck between a production version of the Beachcomber Concept, or a two-door version of the Countryman, initially referred to as the Canyon.
That decision has, however, been made for the MINI team, with the Beachcomber concept being axed due to its inability to meet crash tests. Reportedly, the vehicle would need added crash protection on the sides, which would have killed the styling of the dune-buggy.
This development indicates that the Paceman Concept is all but certain to head into production shortly after its debut at the Detroit Auto Show next week.
GALLERY: MINI Beachcomber Concept
[Source: AutoCar]
Arguably the best looking MINI yet, the new Paceman (not Pacman) concept is what the fun British brand refers to as a Sports Activity Coupe. Along the lines of the BMW X6, the Paceman takes MINI’s new Countryman crossover and lops-off two of the doors.
Normally we might criticize a vehicle like this for not being overly functional, but MINIs are really just made for fun. Heck, even the Cooper found a may to make the hatchback a cramped vehicle with little to no passenger or cargo room.
The concept car appears to be somewhat lower than the Countryman, but as is obvious from the flared rear fenders, it does feature all-wheel drive. As for what’s under the hood, well, this is a concept and so it’s MINI’s best offering: the 211-hp John Cooper Works turbocharged 4-cylinder.
Based on the reception the 3-door Range Rover Evoque has had, we’d be shocked if MINI didn’t roll out a production model of the Paceman soon.
We’ll await official word, which could come when MINI unwraps the soft-roader at the Detroit Auto Show on January 10th.
GALLERY: MINI Paceman Concept
Official release after the jump: