2009 Mini Cooper S Convertible - First Drive Review


Top-down in a Mini convertible in negative-degree temperatures? It was probably the dumbest decision we’ve made since we decided to buy a 30-year-old school bus from a drunk guy with no bathroom. OK, so we had the Mini’s windows up, the nuclear-grade seat warmers set to meltdown, the wind-blocker in place, and the blast furnace of a heater warming our toes. And, uh, the degrees were Celsius. Still, it was really freaking cold. Good thing we’re the burly and awesome (and stupid) type of guys who will brave anything—even frozen hair, by God—to drive a new car.

This second-generation Mini cabrio is, of course, based on the second-generation Mini hatchback, and it uses the same powertrains: a 118-hp, 1.6-liter naturally aspirated four in the base Cooper and a 172-horse turbo’d version in the Cooper S. (A 200-plus-horse John Cooper Works edition of the convertible is rumored to be in the pipeline, too.) Beyond its slightly larger overall size, the new model’s most noticeable alterations from the previous car include hidden hinges for the drop-down tailgate and electromechanically operated, pop-up roll hoops behind the rear seats. The new rollover bars replace the dorky fixed ones and improve visibility somewhat, but the folded top stack still dominates the rear view. The top is available in black, brown, or denim and wiggles its way up or down in just 15 seconds and at vehicle speeds up to 20 mph.

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