A Quick Preview Of The Future

[badwolf340]

[QUOTE=Mon the fish;320980]Would you not put the heat shielding on the bumper itself, if that's what it's main purpose was?

valid point ,all of the Evo's that I had,had carbon "heat shields" as standard and they looked all points considered I'am a sucker for a nice piece of carbon in fact I'am picking up another piece of the stuff on sat

[ELFMAN]

Everyone knows each piece of carbon adds 10bhp and every sticker adds 5bhp so your findings would make sense ! Lol :)

Wise Words Mate!

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I read an interesting article the other day which done comparisons between MINI and Porsche from past to present and it was of the view that the newer "hot" minis are now Rivals to Porsche's! At first I dismissed it thinking it was a load of rubbish but when you actually started to read through it all you soon start to see the similarities between the brands and the target markets so maybe this is just another step in that direction ?

Well both the VW Beetle (which spawned the Porsche family) and Mini started off as "Peoples' Cars" (Volks Wagen).

Back to the Future? Quite ironic if the brands and target markets are similar again today. I know that speccing up a MINI can cost a packet, but hopefully MINI's pricing structure won't start to reflect that of Porsche...

I can see where they're/you're coming from, but I'm still not sure if MINI will ever be seen in the same 'league' as Porsche - that might be wishful thinking on the part of MINI's marketing dept. And TBH I'm not that comfortable with MINI being positioned in that way - it was and is a car which has a following across a wide demographic spectrum, whereas Porsche (leaving out your 924/944s etc) is very much still limited to those with large wallets or easy credit. You could argue that there are similarities (MINI was and is seen as a quality product - backed by BMW - which stood apart from your 'run of the mill' hatchback) and that GP's are MINI's GT2/3 equivalents. So a bit of 'Social Climbing' might be OK for MINI, but to most folks a MINI will be a realistic proposition which stands on its own merits, and comparisons with the likes of Porsche could have both positive and negative effect.

I remember years ago (80's) that we in the 'West of Scotland Mini Owners Club' entered a team in the Doune Car Gymkhana for the first time and won, which severely p*issed off some members of the Porsche Owners Club (who usually won apparently), so much so that they changed the rules and the course the next year so it totally didn't suit the Minis... So to me, Mini/MINI will always be a real "Peoples' Car" which thumbs its nose at the really expensive stuff while running rings round them. Like your local Comprehensive taking on Eaton in the footy. So much more FUN than trying to become part of the elite!

Going back to the beginning, Lest We Forget - the Beetle was the idea of Mr. Porsche and a certain rather nasty wee man (with a moustache soon to be named after its owner) and a duff haircut, so the Mini at least wins in the 'Not the brainchild of an evil dictactor hell-bent on genocide and world domination' stakes.

[Mon the fish]

Latest on fire GT3 aside, Porsche's are also far better engineered then Minis, but I do see your point.

For the price most folk will end up paying for a JCW, you could get a really nice 997. I know where I'd put my money

[Sideways Steve]

Have a read of this - http://jcwadventures.com/2014/03/10/...e-new-porsche/

[MINI William]

[QUOTE=badwolf340;320999]

Would you not put the heat shielding on the bumper itself, if that's what it's main purpose was?

valid point ,all of the Evo's that I had,had carbon "heat shields" as standard and they looked all points considered I'am a sucker for a nice piece of carbon in fact I'am picking up another piece of the stuff on sat

And a lovely bit of carbon it is to

[ELFMAN]

Have a read of this - http://jcwadventures.com/2014/03/10/...e-new-porsche/

Interesting, BUT Is MINI "the new Porsche"? Er, No

That would intimate that Porsche was now something else, which it isn't. (Despite the Cayenne and the Panamera). You could argue that Porsche lost its way in the 80s trying to satisfy red-braced £££ bloated London Stock Market Traders, and in fact it's only in the last few years that the company has rediscovered its true mojo and produced a series of great drivers' cars again. So you could say that "Porsche is the Old Porsche"!

Let's just forget comparisons and say that "MINI is the new MINI"

By the way, I REALLY like this... Black alloys would be cool, but the silver suits it.

(photo from above link)

[illegalhunter]

Are there any interior pictures of the car ?

[MINI William]

As you will be able to see the windows on the concept were blacked out. As they wanted to keep it under wraps