Countryman to bring new customers

Four out of every five customers for the new Mini Countryman in Ireland are expected to be new to the brand, writes Brian Byrne.

The first 5-door Mini and the largest variant of the iconic model is also expected to be responsible for 40 percent of Mini sales over the next four years, or 1,000 vehicles.

The €23,080 entry price is for a 98hp version of the 1.6 petrol engine in the model's One grade, but the biggest seller is expected to be the €26,830 Cooper D, powered by the new 1.6 diesel designed and built by BMW. Other petrol options are the 112hp Cooper and 184hp Cooper S, while the One D has 90hp on tap.

Both diesels are Band A for Irish CO2 tax purposes, while the petrol One and Cooper power units sit in Band B. The Cooper S is a Band C car. An automatic transmission for the petrol cars will be available in March of next year; both it and the manual transmissions are 6-speed units.

The high ride, and option of AWD for the Cooper D and Cooper S versions, put the Mini Countryman into the 'crossover' segment, and in addition to providing accommodation and easy access for up to five people, there is substantially more boot space than in the standard car.

Only recently in the brand's showrooms, Mini Ireland says the order book for deliveries in January 2011 are already very healthy.

The Mini Countryman can be highly accessorised, in particular with a centrally placed optional Centre Rail onto which can be fixed a wide range of utilities including storage boxes, cup holders, power chargers, music players, mobile phones and other accessories such as a sunglasses case. If the 4-seat option is ordered, this rail runs between all four.