Mini Countryman Roams Free

For years now, Mini has been teasing the car buying public with a Mini-based crossover. Although it was initially rejected as simply conjecture, it quickly became apparent that Mini had every intention of providing their dealers with a small, all-wheel drive crossover; a sort of long distant cousin of the old Mini Moke.

And the result is actually surprisingly decent. With four full-size doors with conventional hinges and a proper liftgate, it’s downright normal my Mini standards. It sits higher too, and appears to have little in the way of dangly bits underneath, so it could be halfway decent in rugged terrain. Of course, it wouldn’t get very far off road it wasn’t for an all-wheel drive system of some sort, and the Mini crossover doesn’t fail in that regard either. Using an entirely new all-wheel drive system, this new Mini is blessed with a 50% static split, but is capable of sending 100% of available torque to the rear axle when needed. An electronic limited slip differential and standard DSC works to prevent such a scenario, but it’s always nice to have a little insurance.

But, for all its chassis changes and different style, the new Mini has a lot in common with the existing model both inside and under the hood. Available with the same drivetrains we’ve already come to know and love, Mini even promises a gamut of John Cooper Works accessories.

But if there’s one thing that is worthy of a little criticism, it’s the name. While we’d love to see the lovable Mini Moke nameplate resurrected, BMW has seen fit to give their premium hatchback a suitably premium (and bland) name: Countryman.