MINI News - Better Late than Oily: America will have to wait for diesel MINI
February 11, 2009 by tsikot · Comments Off
Better Late than Oily: America will have to wait for diesel MINI
While the new electric MINI E is proving even more popular than expected and the Cooper D continues to sell big across the pond, MINI has been contemplating bringing the diesel hatch Stateside. However, the current diesel in the Cooper D, which AutoblogGreen drove last summer, isn’t deemed clean enough for U.S. emissions regulations. While previous reports suggested a modified version of the current Cooper D could make the trip across the Atlantic to the land of heavily-taxed diesel fuel, company spokesmen now say it could have to wait until a next-generation clean-burning diesel can be developed for the MINI.
Although the artificially high price of diesel in the United States has prevented oil-burning vehicles from taking the lead here, MINI points out that the price difference between the premium gasoline their vehicles require and ordinary diesel is actually quite a bit more manageable. Add to that equation the 60 miles per gallon a diesel MINI being tested by Bosch here in the good old U S of A gets and a diesel Cooper is making more sense by the minute.
Gallery: ABG Garage: 2008 MINI Cooper D
[Source: USA Today via Kicking Tires]
Better Late than Oily: America will have to wait for diesel MINI originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 10 Feb 2009 18:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: www.autobloggreen.com
[tags]mini cars, mini news, mini models[/tags]
MINI News - Times of London looks at half a century of the frugal Mini
January 27, 2009 by tsikot · Comments Off
Times of London looks at half a century of the frugal Mini
Filed under: MINI
One of the most iconic and recognizable shapes on the road is the Mini, and 2009 marks the golden anniversary of the original. The brainchild of Sir Alec Issigonis, the Mini was created in response to the 1956 Suez crisis which strangled the supply of Middle East oil to Britain. Issigonis set out to create a car that maximized interior space within a minimal exterior. He came up with a mechanical layout that would eventually be adopted in cars the world over. By turning the four cylinder engine sideways to drive the front wheels, he was able to take all of the powertrain out of the passenger space. The wheels were also pushed out of the way to the corners of the car and shrunk down to a mere ten inches; a change that necessitated the development of new tires. The Mini went through a number of iterations and remained in production until 2000 when it was finally discontinued. The Mini was sold under several brands including Morris, Austin and Rover. At the turn of the millennium, when Rover was under BMW ownership, a new modern MINI was developed. Meeting modern safety requirements meant the MINI grew nearly 22 inches compared to the original, yet it still remains one of the smallest cars on the market.
Happy birthday Mini!
[Source: The Times of London]
Times of London looks at half a century of the frugal Mini originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]mini cars, mini news, mini models[/tags]
MINI News - MINI succumbs to the green labels trend and introduces MINIMALISM
January 25, 2009 by tsikot · Comments Off
MINI succumbs to the green labels trend and introduces MINIMALISM
Filed under: Diesel, MINI, European Union
BMW has announced a new green label for MINI cars. It’s called, wait for it, MINIMALISM. Similar to many other eco labels in other European markets, MINIMALISM can be found on cars that would otherwise be the base model with a few additional improvements that reduce fuel consumption. The first MINI MINIMALISM is nothing but a Mini Cooper D with a PSA-sourced 1.6-liter diesel engine good for 110hp. BMW also applied the complete array of techniques - longer gear ratios, a Stop & Start system, a gear change indicator, improved aerodynamics, low-rolling resistance tires and and an electric oil pump - to lower fuel consumption down to 3.9 l/100 km and get this MINI to emit jsut 104 g/km of CO2, just 3 above the new Honda Insight. The brand has been just released in France, a place where most of the MINI models already qualify for the Government’s premium for cleaner cars.
[Source: MINI France]
MINI succumbs to the green labels trend and introduces MINIMALISM originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 17:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]mini cars, mini news, mini models[/tags]
MINI News - New York City to get 10 MINI Es for road test
January 17, 2009 by tsikot · Comments Off
New York City to get 10 MINI Es for road test
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, MINI, Green Daily
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced that MINI USA will be providing ten of its MINI E electric cars to the city for the next year. The cars will be used by the Street Condition Observation Unit which prowls the city in search of potholes and graffiti. The ten NYC cars are part of 50 being reserved for special fleet use while the remaining 450 are going to individual retail customers. Those customers will get the cars for a one year field test so that BMW can get experience with real world use of electric vehicles. BMW claims a 150-mile range for the car which has its entire back seat area filled with a lithium ion battery pack. BMW will take the lessons learned from this test and incorporate them into a new dedicated electric vehicle that it is developing.
Related:
Gallery: Quick Drive: MINI E
Photos Copyright (C)2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Continue reading New York City to get 10 MINI Es for road test
New York City to get 10 MINI Es for road test originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 16 Jan 2009 13:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]mini cars, mini news, mini models[/tags]
MINI News - Visiting AC Propulsion, Tom Hanks with Current TV
December 13, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
Visiting AC Propulsion, Tom Hanks with Current TV
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, MINI, Scion, Green Daily
A crew from Al Gore’s Current TV was able to chat up Peter Scolari’s better half (that’d be Tom Hanks, above) about driving his all-electric eBox, the converted Scion xB and visit the AC Propulsion headquarters for an interview with CEO Tom Gage. Current host Kristen Reeves opens her report by saying that AC Propulsion can convert pretty much any car to electric drive, but the company has focused on turning the xB into the eBox, i.e., Tom Hanks’ favorite car. Watch the report after the jump.
AC Propulsion also supplied the electric drive system for BMW’s 500-strong MINI E test fleet. Regular readers will know that the MINI E turns on the brake lights when the driver’s foot is removed from the acceleration pedal because of the strong regen brake system. Hearing Gage talk about slowing down in the eBox in the video makes us wonder if the converted Scion does the same thing.
Gallery: Electric MINI E
[Source: Current]
Continue reading Visiting AC Propulsion, Tom Hanks with Current TV
Visiting AC Propulsion, Tom Hanks with Current TV originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 12 Dec 2008 14:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: www.autobloggreen.com
[tags]mini cars, mini news, mini models[/tags]
