MINI launches Countryman Park Lane, new JCW at Geneva

MINI has kicked off its Geneva Auto Show with the launch of a special edition Countryman and a brand new John Cooper Works edition.

The first is called the Countryman Park Lane and is MINI’s venture into what it calls the premium compact segment. We’re not exactly sure that the standard Countryman screams “peasant”, so it’s a little unclear why anyone would pay so much extra for it. Then again, MINI is owned by BMW, a company renowned for getting every penny it can out of its customers.

There are plenty of minor stylistic changes, including an Earl Grey body finish, 18-inch alloy wheels, silver body elements for the front and rear apron as well as the side sill and “exclusive emblems on the side scuttles and the cockpit surface bear the inscription ‘Park Lane'”.

The MINI Countryman Park Lane is offered in up to eight model variants, depending on the market. It is also optionally available with the all-wheel drive system ALL4 in all model variants.

MINI John Cooper Works

The new John Cooper Works edition meanwhile comes with a new 2.0-litre 4-cylinder engine, capable of pushing out 170kw (228bhp). That makes it the most powerful engine ever to be installed in one a production model MINI.

Modifications include a sports suspension with Brembo sports brake system, exclusive John Cooper Works light alloy wheels, the John Cooper Works aerodynamics kit, what MINI calls “particularly large” air inlets and a model-specific interior in sports-car style.

Together with the engine, that package means that the MINI is capable of going from zero to 100km/h in 6.3 seconds. And if you’re the kind of person who believes that fractions of a second matter on your day-to-day drives, then you can shell out for the 6-speed Steptronic transmission, which will see you hit the 100 mark in 6.1 seconds.