Mini 3-Door and 5-Door launch on November 19

Mini will launch the 3-Door and 5-Door hatchbacks in India on November 19. While the two cars look familiar with their evolutionary styling, both cars are all new from the grounds up and come with a newly developed mechanical package as well. The 3-Door hatch we are aware of, carrying forward the baton from its predecessor, but it’s the more practical yet sporty 5-door that could be quite a hit among young well-to-do families in India.

The Mini hatch like its predecessor should be available in Cooper and Cooper S form in India. It’s highly unlikely that the entry spec Mini One will make it looking at the Car’s positioning. Same goes for the Mini 5-Door but we expect the 5-Door to get a diesel variant as well considering it’s a popular choice among similarly sized Countryman customers here. 

The hatchback is 98mm longer, 44mm wider and 7mm taller than its predecessor and wheelbase has gone up by 28mm. The 5-Door Mini is 4,005mm long, 1,727mm wide, 1,425mm in height and rides on a 2,567mm wheelbase. It is 162mm longer and 11mm taller than the regular three-door Mini Cooper hatch, and adds 72mm between the wheels for a larger cabin. Boot space is up to a respectable 278 litres and a foldable rear seat open up its capacity to 941 litres.

Power comes from a set of all-new 3-cylinder and 4-cylinder units with BMW’s twin-turbo technology. The Cooper is powered by the 1.5-litre 3-cylinder mill pumping out 137PS of power and 220Nm of torque while the 2.0-litre 4-cylinder engine in the Cooper S dishes out 194PS of power and 280Nm of torque. The Cooper SD, which is the top end 4-cylinder diesel, develops 170PS/360Nm. MINI has also developed a new set of six speed gearboxes for the new cars. These are a six-speed manual and six-speed Steptronic and a Steptronic sports transmission. India will most likely not get the manual transmission. Expect ex-showroom Delhi prices to start from Rs 25 lakh for the Mini Cooper hatchback.