VIDEO: When in New Zealand, Beware of the Most Annoying Mini in the World


Did you ever think about adding on some harmonicas to your car's bodywork? Of course not; you don't want people in your neighborhood to vandalize your car. The folks from
Mini New Zealand, however, decided to stick 300 harmonicas on a Mini Clubman, just for the sake of a marketing campaign.

Once the job was finished, they created an interactive app on the local Mini website that allows visitors to combine the different sounds from the Mini Carmonica's adventures and create their own compositions. Creative marketing or the result of boredom? Who knows, but one thing's for sure; many of you will definitely turn off the sound after the first seconds of the video below…

By Dan Mihalascu

Link: Mini


VIDEOS




SCOOP: 2012 MINI Coupe JCW Remains Remarkably Faithful to Concept Model


Given that BMW Group officials recently confirmed that MINI’s new coupe model will arrive in the market before the end of the year, it shouldn't come to much of a surprise that the company is gradually stripping away the camouflage from its test cars. Spotted here by our scoop photographers in Germany, is the most potent version of the MINI Coupe lineup, the John Cooper Works model that’s easily distinguished by the aggressive body kit with the flared wheel arches and muscular bumpers.

MINI first showed the Coupe and Roadster models through a pair of concept cars at the Frankfurt motor show in 2009. As predicted, the production version of the Coupe has stayed remarkably faithful to that show car’s design. In fact, with the exception of some very minor details such as the grille and the tail lamp crystals, nothing else has changed, including the shape of the top that’s supposed to resemble a baseball hat worn backwards.

The JCW version seen here, also keeps the concept’s sporty aero kit with the modified front and rear bumpers, beefy side skirts and extended wheel arches that house larger alloy wheels.

The same appears to be true for the interior (at least from what we can see through the window), which ditches the hatchback model’s rear seat bench for a larger boot area that in the concept, was said to be around 250 liters (8.8 cu ft) compared the 160 liters of the three-door variant.

Aside from the JCW model that will make use of MINI’s latest 1.6-liter twin-scroll turbocharged engine with 211HP, the Coupe will also be offered in Cooper S form with a 184HP version of the 1.6L unit. A base Cooper version equipped with a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine with 122HP and possibly a diesel-powered model may also be in the cards.

The new MINI Coupe is expected to receive its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show this fall.


PHOTO GALLERY

MINI Launches New USB Flash Drives for the Car Gadget Geeks


For all you MINI fans and car gadget geeks, BMW’s British subsidiary has released a new collection of USB flash drives. The data storage devices come in three unique shapes: an 8GB stick in the form of a MINI ignition key with an illuminated ring; a 4GB unit in the shape of a bulldog, which is said to reflect the firm’s British heritage, and a dual-purpose liquid mouse with a white MINI miniature swimming around in a two-tone, transparent orange fluid. More photos after the jump.


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BMW Confirms Plug-in Hybrid Version of 5-Series for China as well as New 3-Cylinder Turbo Engine and 2012 1-Series


For the past few months, we’ve been hearing various rumors about BMW’s future plans, but today, the German automaker came out with official details at a press conference in Munich starting with the debut of a plug-in hybrid version of the China market 5-Series at next month’s Shanghai Auto Show.

“A highlight at the Shanghai Motor Show in mid-April will be the presentation of our New Energy Vehicle, said BMW Chief Executive Dr. Norbert Reithofer. “This model will be our e-car from China for China – a long version of the BMW 5 Series as a plug-in hybrid. This car will benefit from the strength and the excellent reputation of the BMW brand.”

Reithofer confirmed the presentation of the production version of the MINI Coupe, first seen as a concept model at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, and the second generation of the BMW 1 Series, both of which will be launched this year alongside the new M5 sports saloon and the 6-Series models.

“Our customers can look forward to attractive models being launched in 2011:

BMW also revealed plans to add a small displacement three-cylinder turbocharged engine to its range, though the Bavarian automaker did not get into any more details.

“We are gradually utilizing the BMW TwinPower Turbo technology in all petrol and diesel engines within our new BMW EfficientDynamics motor range,” said Reithofer. “This innovative engine technology package is based on a modular strategy. This holds true for future 4- and 6-cylinder engines as well as for our anticipated 3-cylinder drive. This modular system will generate significant economies of scale. It will also facilitate the standardization of interfaces and processes.”

Finally, BMW said it will begin assembling the X3 in India alongside the 3-Series, 5-Series and X1 for the local market from the second quarter of the year, while the firm’s new Tiexi plant in China which is scheduled to start production in 2012 will produce among other models, the X1 crossover.


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BMW Group Posts 21.7 Percent Increase in Global Sales in February


The BMW Group, which includes the BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands, sold 111,720 vehicles in February 2011, recording a 21.7 percent increase over February 2010 (91,763 units) and setting a new record high for the month. For the year to the end of February, the German group’s sales volumes were 24.7% higher than in the first two months of the previous year, at 216,911 units compared to 173,913 in January-February 2010.

February sales of BMW brand cars were up 21.9 percent to 95,423 units, while MINI saw its sales climb 19.3 percent to 16,045, and Rolls-Royce posted a 276.1 percent increase to 252 vehicles.

In Europe, the German group’s biggest region, sales grew 16.8 percent to 57,381 units, while Asia accounted for 25,722 units and climbed 49.3%, and sales in the Americas were up 14.7% to 24,640 vehicles in February.

The company posted double-digit growth in its three largest single markets in February as new registrations in Germany climbed 20.8 percent to 18,883 vehicles. In the U.S. the group sold 19,919 vehicles (+10.8%) and in China, 16,511 vehicles (+72%) in February.

The automaker posted strong gains in other regions as well, with sales in South Korea rising 54.9% to 1,797 units, in India, +68% to 620 units and in Brazil, +101% to 938 cars.

“Our young vehicle fleet is currently doing exceptionally well from the recovery of the car markets in many regions of the world. In particular, strong demand for the BMW X models, the BMW 5 Series and the MINI Countryman shows that our model range is right on target. We should also see further impetus from the new BMW 6 Series, which comes onto the market in the spring,” said Ian Robertson, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Sales and Marketing.

“We expect this dynamic growth to continue throughout the first half of 2011, and then slow down somewhat in the second half of the year, due to base-line effects,” he added.



MINI Shows off New Rocketman at Milan Fashion Week [New Photos and Video]


Only a few days before its motor show debut at next week's Geneva Salon, the MINI Rocketman concept made its first public appearance at a special event on the sidelines of the Milan Fashion Week. The presentation was held at the Istituto Europeo di Design, which is a design school with a focus on automotive and product design.

The BMW Group said the debut of the Rocketman Concept was stage-managed by London-based film artist, photographer and director Marcus Tomlinson, who also made a short art film for the car featuring Model and actress Lily Cole.

MINI's new concept model is supposed to hark back to the classic Mini in terms of its exterior dimensions while keeping up with the times in terms of safety requirements and occupant space, and also provide a glimpse into the firm's future design language.



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