Say yes to the ‘S’!

Driving on a race track or on unrestricted tarmac, like an abandoned or unused airstrip maybe, is always great fun. It can also be quite a humbling exercise, when you realise your own abilities, even as you try to understand the car’s limitations.

But, no offer to drive on such tarmac shall be passed up and even more so if the car that is being offered is the MINI Cooper S. And so, a couple of weeks ago, we found ourselves in Aamby Valley airport holding on to our wigs and waiting impatiently for our turn behind the wheel of the 2015 Cooper S.

MINI’s expert driving trainers had laid out a couple of challenging courses for us on the, more than kilometre long, runway of the airport.

The sparingly used private airport’s tarmac is clean and conditions are breezy and sunny – the perfect weather for having fun with a car that is famous for giving you the ‘Go-Kart feel’.

The MINI Cooper S is very much like the new generation MINI, which was officially launched in India in November last year. The Cooper D was reviewed here a few weeks ago.

So, in terms of the overall design and proportions, the cars are similar. But there are still a number of cues to let people know that this is even more special. The Cooper S has a completely redesigned front grille, for a start.

The grille now features big air intakes and a black honeycomb-patterned grid. At the rear, the air outlet housing two fog lights is wrapped around the double exhaust tailpipes. The new MINI’s redesigned headlamps and tail-lamps with the optional full LED lamps creates a new light signature both during day and night.

Of course, there is more to identify the Cooper S as a special car. The signature ‘S’ badge can be found in quite a few places, the side indicator inserts, on the tailgate and the bonnet grille.

The Cooper S 3-door is striking in its stance – with the wheels pushed out to the extremities of the car and the classic MINI design traits. Despite is compact form, the Cooper S’ design is bursting with a sense of speed and disproportionate strength. You can’t quite come to terms with the fact that this midget can do the 0-100 kmph run in 6.7 seconds and has a top speed of 233 kmph.

Finally, we get behind the wheel and the first feature that catches our eye is the circular central display. The large circular touchscreen display has replaced the earlier model’s centre speedometer and now presents all car-related information and the entertainment controls. The dashboard is pretty similar to the other MINI models.

The seats are supportive and comfortable, though the squabs seem thin. The rear seat is not too cramped, but with the need to flip over the front seats, the entry and exit can be a bit of a bother. The rear backrest can be tilted a bit more for a little more comfort.

But all the action will be at the front seat. We took off too, heading into a slalom that had been set up in the middle of the airstrip. The slalom is one of the most deceptive courses that you can get yourself into and it is one of the most educative too. Keeping the line tight without hitting any of the cones and spinning quickly back from exit to reenter at the right angle is often tougher than it seems.

The Cooper S is tightly sprung, and its low, wide stance makes it perfect for the quick left-right manoeuvres of the slalom run. The Cooper S is powered by the peppy 4-cylinder, two-litre TwinPower Turbo petrol engine.

The engine delivers 189HP of peak power and a total of 280Nm of torque from as low as 1,250rpm. The usual drive modes are also there – Green to get most mileage and Sport if you want a dynamic drive.

Of course, we were switching between fully-automatic and manual (paddle) selection of gears just to test the standard six-speed transmission’s response. And of course, we had the engine start/ stop switched off.

The automatic gearbox’s shift quality, efficiency and dynamics have been improved compared to the previous model. The next track course we put the Cooper S through was a twisted cone-lined, timed lap, which included a circular loop, the instructors called it ‘Bollywoodian’ and “just like the Hero and Heroine running around a coconut tree”.

After a revved-up, floored-throttle start, we manually choose between the second and third gears to keep the Cooper S’ engine on a boil. Tyres squeal, the engine roars and we furiously flick the car around every cone and corner, but the Cooper S manages to keep its poise and makes you realise why they refer so much to its go-kart feel.

The MINI Cooper S is meant for fans. It just isn’t a car that can be bought after a debate about which is the best option in the ₹ 40 lakh price segment. The MINI Cooper S starts at ₹ 34.65 lakh (ex-showroom), and there is a big list of optional extras to choose from.