The 2014 Mini Cooper and Cooper S is due for release on November 18, the birthday of Sir Alec Issigonis; at Mini’s Oxford plant in the U.K. and then at the Los Angeles International Motor Show, but the very week Mini released fresh details about the brand’s key model, spy photography out of California has captured the top of the range 2014 Mini Cooper S completely undisguised during its debut L.A. photo shoot.
Dealing with the technicality of the next 2014 Mini Cooper and Cooper S first, the BMW Group will debut a new three-cylinder Mini TwinPower Turbo engine family that shares its roots with the BMW i-family, and that range is comprised of two turbocharged three-cylinder 1.5-litre engines: one petrol iteration with 100 kW and 220 Nm of torque and then a diesel derivative with 85 kW and 270 Nm of torque.
Mini has said another engine in the range will be a new 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and this will presumably ply its trade in the Cooper S. It is an engine not far off those offered in the BMW 320i, 520i and the like, but in this state of tune it offers 141 kW and 280 Nm of torque with 300 Nm on overboost. It should be a welcome replacement for the ageing 1.6-litre turbo of PSA Peugeot Citroen descent and gives a 6 kW and 40 Nm boost. Despite the bigger engine and increase in power, Mini say fuel efficiency will be better than before and that’s courtesy of the newly developed six-speed manual and automatic gearboxes. We look forward to seeing a more powerful 2.0-litre version for the John Cooper Works version too.
Mini say the weight of the new Cooper has been lowered and a new electronic power steering system will join electronically-adjustable suspension and two-way adjustable driving modes to give the driver full control of the car. Riding on a front strut-type suspension and multi-link rear suspension the Mini Cooper will give better rear entry and cargo space without compromising drive quality. The car will ride on BMW’s UKL1 platform which will underpin future BMW front- and all-wheel drive models.
Now, onto the styling of the much-anticipated 2014 Mini Cooper; which looks like it’s borrowed the Volkswagen Beetle’s LED daytime running light pattern that encircle the headlamps. The lower section of the bonnet appears more pinched than previously, something that no doubt satisfies pedestrian crash safety, but it does take away from the previous Cooper’s fighty spirit. What still remains is the prominent Mini glasshouse which traditionally gave the Cooper a great airiness to the cabin, except now it appears more heavily raked with a more angled roofline. Mini Paceman-style tail-lights can be found around the pert rear end.
Captured in these images is the 2014 Mini Cooper S variant and it is clearly defined by its S badge, of course, two bonnet intakes, fog lights and integrated intakes, larger alloy wheels, a very cool looking roof-mounted rear spoiler and signature twin exhaust pipes. On the inside, the current car’s centre-mounted speedometer will be replaced by a more conventional instrument cluster layout behind the steering wheel. Expect to see the 2014 Mini Cooper and Cooper S all over the automotive news in November and hopefully reaching our shores by the 2nd quarter of 2014.