Country: United Kingdom

Language: English

Currency: Pound

Year: 2015

Distance: ~2,000 km

Route and Map: London > Peak District National Park > Manchester > Lake District National Park > London

Ride on: Left Side

Metric System: Speed in mph and Fuel in gallons.

Machines: MINI Cooper S

Hardknott Pass in the Lake District; a beautiful drive, but not easy with its ultra-sinuous road and steep climbs.

They say Mini is longer (than) what it used to be. It is a BIG Mini now. Now isn’t that ironic? As the roads get more congested and parking spaces more pricey, an iconic car does the opposite of what it stands for. It may be ironic, but it is not unexpected, or wrong. Like any product, it has to reinvent itself even if it may entail throwing the old American adage out of the window – ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’! Well, I guess that’s because we are talking about a British car anyway. 

The London Eye.

Enough on the size of that thing. Let me tell you summarily right off the bat – the Mini Cooper S is a great package and it is still small enough to feel snug inside and feel as if you can lane filter like a motorcycle. Well, it’s almost that small. And it does go well. With a 192 bhp Turbocharged 2L engine propelling the 1,250kg kerb weight, it does feel like a pocket rocket at times.

One of the many castles I encountered.

For the football fans out there!

Mini has also reintroduced a stick shifter since last year, which has been welcomed by most. This car is now eligible to be in Fast and Furious, going by all the memes making fun of automatic cars out there. It would have been completely stress-free in the insane London traffic which it was but truthfully it was more involved in the countryside, especially the high country. 

The London Skyline.

Talking about high country, I decided, after much checking of weather forecasts on all sides of London (yes, weather is a big issue in that country!), to head towards the Lake District in Cumbria. Mountain passes get me excited. I made my way from London to Oxford and through to Shrewsbury. Further up north I entered the Lake District in the Cumbria region and then back down through Manchester and Peak District National Park.

England’s fall season is beautifully littered with multicoloured leaves.

Oxford Natural History Museum.

Some of the greatest minds on Earth; from Aristotle to Darwin.

Some of the roads were so narrow and sinuous in the national parks that I thanked my stars I was doing them in a Mini. The ultra-steep climbs and hairpin bends were quite effortless in the car, thanks to its manual gearbox as well. I especially liked a few features like the auto engine shut off at red lights and the 360 degrees safety net it had thanks to the cameras and sensor system which would sense if a car was too close for comfort. In fact, I had a scary moment when the car self-applied brakes in slow London traffic and there was no car too close in the front. In India, I could have credited that to a dog that I couldn’t see, but over there in England? 

The Lake District provided for some stunning night views.

This was the second Mini that I drove, the first one being the bigger five-door Countryman in 2012 in India. But I suspect, like everyone, my favourite Mini will have to be the 212Bhp souped-up JCW edition!

These kind of roads in wet and at night are quite isolated and provide a bit of a challenge even if you are in a car.

I just wish they would price the Mini down by around 20% in India and that I think would make it sell like hotcakes. Oh yes, it and would be perfect if Mini introduced just one model that is as small as the original one. That would complete the line-up and keep everyone happy. It’s the Christmas season, no one can stop me from dreaming and wishing…

Ultra-narrow roads were quite common in the countryside.

The original Mini was a brainchild of the British Motor Corporation and Sir Alex Issigonis in the 50s. Fuel shortages and the need for efficient cars fuelled the development of this small car into a two-door, 4-cylinder, which was eventually launched in 1959.

The Mini immediately became popular and gave the car a separate identity from its sister brands. It became so popular that John Cooper of the Cooper Car Company decided to make a sportier version of it and the Mini Cooper and Mini Cooper S were born in 1961 and 1963. The company went through a rough patch in the 70s and 80s as it went through Spanish and Italian ownership till it was finally bought by BMW as part of the Rover group in the 90s. BMW sold off the Rover brand, but retained the Mini brand and re-launched it in 2000. And in this last decade and a half, Mini has gone from strength to strength under BMW ownership.