hen my new long-term test car turned up on the Fagelson household’s doorstep I had yet to see a Mini Countryman at close quarters. Yes, I’d viewed the early press shots with curiosity, and even briefly caught sight of one on the road, but I really didn’t know what to expect. In photographs it's difficult to judge the scale of the thing: would it be big and high like a Freelander, or small and dinky like a Panda 4x4?
The reality was somewhere in between. Certainly it is more car-like than I had imagined, but park it next to a regular Mini and it appears far more brutish and pumped-up than its sibling. The styling is odd, with so many design cues lifted the Mk2 hatch that it’s difficult to judge the design on its own terms. I fear it may always just look like a bigger, uglier Mini, but then we all thought the same of BMW’s Mk2 Mini…
To make way for the Countryman we’ve sold our much-loved Golf GTI. The Mini is much the same size as the dearly departed VW, and the Countryman range is priced similarly to the Golf’s too. Expensive price tags will nothing new to current Mini owners, but this is the first grown-up Mini, a Golf rival for people in need of four doors and a boot. With the promise of Golf practicality, BMW build quality, Mini coolness, what’s not to like?
I’ll be putting all of that to the test. Besides the GTI, in the past I’ve also owned a BMW Mini in Mk1 Cooper S guise, so know all about the style and chic that the brand can offer. And beyond that, with a family and my life as a photographer, the Countryman’s load-lugging ability will be tested daily.
I don’t want to judge it too soon, but one thing’s for sure: it’s a strange beast, neither butch SUV nor clever MPV but undeniably different and unique. The Mini qualities of style and character are present and correct, but will the substance of the package leave me wanting my Golf back?
We’ll find out over the next six months or so, and in the next report I’ll be digesting the spec of my Countryman. Made the plunge and already bought one? Click ‘Add your comment’ below and let me know what engine, colour and options you’ve gone for.
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