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In the Autoblog Garage: 2007 MINI Cooper S Posted Oct 18th 2007 12:01PM by Damon Lavrinc Filed under: Garage , Hatchbacks , MINI Click the image above for more high-res images. MINI was kind enough to furnish a fully-stocked iPod in our 2007 Cooper S tester, and after a few days of enduring OPPs (other-people’s-playlists), we swapped in our own to catch up on podcasts and to sample the Beastie Boys’ second installment of instrumental stylings.
We know our place in the world, so we’re not going to pretend to be music critics, but after flogging the MCS over the course of a week, blaring The Mix-Up through the dual-zone moon roof, we found ourselves comparing both the old and new cars with the old and new albums. The verdict: both are superior in their own way, and only nostalgia tips the previous iteration into favor. Gallery: In the Autoblog Garage: 2007 MINI Cooper S All photos Copyright 2007 Damon Lavrinc / Weblogs, Inc.
While lazier reviewers disregard the MINI’s new sheetmetal, any gearhead worth their cred will instantly recognize the R56 whether stationary or at speed. The new front end dispatches the former model’s Brit Bulldog fascia in favor of a more sophisticated — albeit chunkier — appearance, while the northward-bound beltline gives the new-new MINI a more planted persona.
The turn signals have found a home within the headlamps and although the hood scoop is no longer functional, MINI was smart enough to keep it blocked off so airflow wouldn’t be disrupted when feeding the intercooler. As a whole, it’s certainly not a coup in the styling department, but it’s subtle in the same way the new-for-’05 Porsche Boxster was; one of our favorite mid-cycle refreshes to date.