2011 Mini Cooper Clubman: Like a Regular Mini, Only Better

I love my car. It’s an old Land Rover that may not be the prettiest thing on the road, and it definitely isn’t fast, but it does absolutely everything I could ever ask a vehicle to do. It’ll get me to my destination, regardless of what lies between there and my current location, it’ll carry anything and everything I could possibly need to take with me, and it’s a great convertible replete with removable windshield for those (rare) sunny days. I wouldn’t trade it for any of the many hundreds of cars I’ve driven in my career… but if I was forced to, it just might be for a Mini Cooper Clubman. 

Surprised? Yeah, I was too. In fact, I was downright floored. See, I’m typically not someone that really loves Minis. I think they’re great cars for some folks… but just not me. I spend hours upon hours on the highway during the course of my daily routine, and often find myself carting around all sorts of odd and oversized items, and have long since abandoned hope that a small car would be able to meet all of my demands. However, just a few days into my Mini Cooper Clubman experience, that expectation was turned on its head. 

Of course, during normal operation, you’d never even know that what you were driving was anything other than a standard Mini. In fact, the only demonstrable difference in attitude between the unique Clubman and the standard Cooper is a noticeably smoother ride. Tacking an additional 3.1 inches between the front and rear wheels does take the edge off of many rutted and potholed roads, and really allows the chassis to remain a bit more composed after a mid-corner interruption. Furthermore, the longer wheelbase also improves high-speed stability, heavily diminishing the standard Mini’s ability to feel like a gerbil on crack with just the slightest of steering wheel movement correlating to big direction changes. This makes it the pick of the litter for folks like me, who have made a habit of viewing driving as a viable alternative to commercial flight. 

However, although vastly improved in my books, it wasn’t the Clubman’s driving manners that impressed me most. On the contrary, the real catalyst behind my newfound love is something that’s best enjoyed at a standstill: the back end. Gaining access to the Clubman’s almost expansive cargo area via a pair of oh-so-cute barn doors that are not unlike the original Mini Traveler’s, the Clubman reaches a level of practicality that the standard Mini can’t touch. First off, there are the very doors themselves. Although some have criticized them as less useful than the standard hatch, I beg to differ. Opening themselves via a pair of gas-assisted struts, all one need do is grasp the handles to open the doors; a much easier task when working with one hand than pressing the hatch release, reaching under it, and yanking it open. Furthermore, once open, the doors allow much easier access to the cargo hold as you don’t need to duck your head underneath the overhanging hatch, and each door has a small cargo pocket on its interior that’s a great place to store small bags and sundry items. 

As for the cargo area itself, well… it’s darn near the perfect size for most things. I hauled around everything from boxes of car parts, to a week’s worth of groceries, to full lacrosse bags, to enough trap shooting gear for two guys. With the added length, even oddly shaped items like 3-1/2 foot long shotguns can be laid flat on the load floor once one of the rear seats has been folded down, while the twin doors allow you to get right up against the car to place heavier items inside; something you can’t do with a hatch occupying the space where your head wants to go. Even better yet, should you load up something really awkwardly shaped from the rear, but need to access the front of your cargo area later, the odd little “club” door (read: third door on passenger side) allows you to clamber in and grab whatever you might need, while also offering rear seat passengers a bit easier ingress and egress. 

Am I seriously considering handing over the keys of my ex-British Army Land Rover in favour of a Mini Cooper Clubman? No, because the reality is that there are still a few areas in which any new car can’t quite stack up; things like ease of repair and maintenance, charisma, and overall ruggedness (after all, you can’t run a Clubman through a proper stream or camp on its roof). However, for the slightly more monotonous daily tasks that take up the other 90% of my time behind the wheel, the Clubman was every bit the Land Rover’s equal. So while it may not replace my own beloved vehicle, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t prowling eBay motors for one a few hours ago. After all, it’s not like it would take up that much room in the driveway…