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Top 10 cars for summer

6. MINI Cooper Roadster

Courtesy of MINI Cooper/File
Sacrificing a rear seat, the Roadster looks like a “Greased Lightning” version of the original Cooper. It is flatted out and pushed down, with the roof made even smaller to give the car a more performance-oriented appearance.

  • By Andrew P. Collins Contributor

The convertible version of the retro-styled MINI Cooper has been unique since its introduction. No other vehicle combines the hot-hatch and convertible segments quite the way the Cooper Convertible does.

Thanks to the popularity of the Cooper and Cooper Convertible, MINI has seen fit to release a few new variants, including the sporty Cooper Roadster.

Sacrificing a rear seat altogether, the Roadster looks like a “Greased Lightning” version of the original Cooper. The whole concept is flatted out and pushed down, with the roof made even smaller giving the new MINI a more performance-oriented appearance.

Power options are similar to the Cooper with a 121 hp. four-cylinder propelling the base model, a slightly beefier turbocharged version in the midrange, and a high-performance “John Cooper Works” package with 208 hp. and a valiant top speed of 147 m.p.h.

The Roadster is a welcome edition to the MINI stable as it brings some edgier mojo to a generally whimsical marquee.

I can’t imagine the loss of rear seats will be mourned as MINIs are rarely purchased with the intention of carrying more than two people on a regular basis, anyway.

Front-wheel drive bars the Roadster from being a true driver’s car, but quick steering, a low center of gravity, and a BMW-engineered transmission should make the car an enjoyable experience to operate, especially in turbo guise. The base model starts at $25,050 with the special JCW edition commanding an additional $10,000. All versions return 30 m.p.g. in combined conditions, if you can keep the revs down.

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Mark Sappenfield
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