Test Drive: 2011 MINI Cooper Clubman

VOICE OVER: Miranda Lightstone

If you've always loved the MINI Cooper's compact nature, funky styling and retro vibe, but happen to have a family: fear not! The folks at BMW are thinking of you with their MINI Cooper Clubman, which is a slightly larger addition to the MINI family. Plus, it's just as great on the road as the other models. So you get all the unique benefits of the MINI, with a little more size. In this video, http://www.WatchMojo.com spends a week behind the wheel of the 2011 MINI Cooper Clubman to see what all the fuss is about.

Design

The look of the MINI Cooper Clubman is not that different from the Cooper. At first glance you’d barely notice a difference. Take a moment to look a bit closer and you’ll notice the stretched out rear and much larger rear passenger windows. There’s also the business of the double rear doors in place of the hatch.

MINI managed to keep the MINI-esque shape of their car despite adding the extra inches, which is great. Part of what makes the MINI so appealing is its look, a look that’s remained the same for years and is just as attractive as it was 9 years ago when they first reappeared in North America.

Inside, the Clubman retains MINI’s retro feel with a funky, rounded dash and the onboard computer system. Mood-lighting is available to change up your interior lighting color, and you’ll find a bit more space in the back seats as well (thanks to the longer rear). While not significant, it is enough to be noticeable -- unless you’re 6’7”, then a few inches clearly isn’t going to make a difference in this car.

Drive

The fear with the MINI Cooper Clubman has always been: It’s bigger, so does that mean it won’t drive like a MINI anymore? That go-kart feeling is what makes a MINI tick, and to lose that would be to lose the heart and soul of the Cooper.

Thankfully, MINI kept the Clubman feeling as MINI as ever. Despite the added length, the Clubman is just as responsive and peppy as the Cooper hatch. The wheels are pushed as far out to the edges as is the case with the Cooper, keeping the Clubman firmly planted on the road during the twisties.

Equipped with the base 1.6-liter MINI Engine, the Clubman is definitely not as fast as the Cooper S we had a few weeks ago, but it’s still quite enjoyable to drive. The manual transmission definitely helps up the fun factor in this vehicle, making your drive spirited despite the lack of a turbo.

Now, some complain that the rear doors hinder the driver’s view out the rear window. With a massive pillar down the middle of the rear window, I could see how this might be. The window is small enough as it is without taking away the entire middle of the window. However, once you get used to it, it’s really not that obtrusive at all -- and the rest of the vehicle is so enjoyable, you can easily overlook that tiny foible.