Small wonder

Although, thinking back to the years of the first mini (not a Cooper) - about £500 worth then - that was also far from perfect, but how the owners loved and coveted it: so what if it had pull-string door openers, sliding windows and suspiciously thin metal floors, as well as scooter size wheels!

But the joy of this car is that outside the city it excels. I think the 1.6-litre engine prefers being driven fast. Dawdling around the city it did not really settle down, with the hard suspension introducing a few worrying thumps and bumps generated through the tyres.

Designers given the task of producing a 21st Century Mini, but without losing sight of the original that came from the studio of Sir Alec Issigonis, have done a reasonably good job.

There are two models at the moment, the MINI One, costing £10,300, the Cooper and on the way a Cooper S. Incidentally, BMW is marketing the MINI in capital letters.

The technology has changed dramatically, electrics, safety and security, as well as under-bonnet performance, but to look at there are still strong Issigonis influences.

From the front there is the low-crouching Mini of old. It comes in three-door hatchback form, and features an all-in-one bonnet with large round headlamps, radiator grille with chrome strips, flared wheel arches with larger wheels at each corner with little hang-over, while at the back there are dominant rear lamps.

What the BMW version Cooper does not have is the much-loved feature of the original, the black or white bonnet stripes, but patience is to be rewarded and these are going to be offered towards the end of the year.

Further echoes of the past are found with the toggle switches which operate the powered windows, central locking and optional foglamps, except that these switches are specially sprung to return to the central position after operation.

Yet another striking reminder of yesteryear is the large round clockface speedometer that sits prominently in the middle of the dashboard, slightly off-view for the driver, while positioned over the steering wheel directly in front of the eye, is the rev counter.

There is much to commend this car, and it obviously brings back lots of happy memories among the motoring public. A few days of driving in and around York as well as much further afield, brought home the true extent of the Mini's appeal. Pedestrians pointed and stopped, youngsters (obviously brought up on telly's motoring programmes), cheered, pointed and whooped, while other motorists hooted and also gave it the thumbs-up.

Whether they would buy it is another thing. But once the cheque book has been opened the Mini breaks new ground by offering as an option, a five-year or 50,000-mile service pack for a one-off charge of £100 - that's £85.11 plus VAT - covering parts and labour.

The test car, with its pure silver body and black roof, arrived with more than £2,000 worth of optional equipment. It had automatic stability control at £100, the panoramic sunshine roof at £500, manual air conditioning for £600 (automatic air conditioning is £830), upgraded black panther leather upholstery for £530, a single slot CD player for £70, together with special radio and cassette upgrade for £135, heated windscreen washer jets at £40, and a metallic paint finish for £250.

There is lots of chrome on the outside, door handles, sills and so on, while inside there is eye-catching aluminium-look surrounds to the dashboard and its supporting struts, as well as on the rev counter.

Getting back to the Mini design, the doors open wide and the driver and front passenger seats fold down and move forward to make it easier to step into the back. There is not a great deal of room once there, although the backs of the front seats have been specially designed to allow extra knee room.

The boot room is bigger than that of the old Mini but is still no more than can be expected, pretty tight, but the rear seats can be folded flat to provide more carrying space.

It is the engine that really makes this car, powered by variations on the four cylinder, 1.6-litre Pentagon basic engine, developed jointly by BMW and Chrysler. The Cooper's engine delivers a crisp115bhp, and with its low centre of gravity and hard suspension its manoeuvrability through the traffic is reassuring. The engine is matched to a nice chunky-feel five-speed manual gearbox, with an automatic available.

Safety and security is good. Disc brakes, ABS anti-locking, as well as electronic braking distribution and cornering brake control. Available as optional is dynamic stability control (it can detect oversteer) and traction control (for any wheel slip on unstable road surfaces). The Mini is also fitted with a tyre pressure warning

There are airbags front and side, and an optional head airbag system can be added if wanted.

An engine immobiliser is standard as well as alarms. The Tracker security system, with its direct links to the police, is also being introduced because car thieves have been showing an unhealthy interest in the car, particularly since demand has shot up, and some impatient customers have been prepared to pay over the odds for one. Legitimate sales here are expected be around 20,000 a year.

Footnote: I was much impressed by the aluminium dashboard surround and trim ... but have just learned that it is plastic. Now that is a real let down.