MINI introduced its Paceman line at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show. According to Mini, the company always knew that it will start the coupe version of the Countryman one day. The only question it could not answer was when. Most of the stakeholder; the market, dealers, product designers, and engineers all wanted an athletic 2-door car two compete with the budget Nissan Juke and the premium-priced Range Rover Evoque in its segment. Since production started, many spy shots of the car in testing have found their way into the street, this prompted the manufacturer to release some shots of the upcoming 2014 Mini Paceman CUV (compact utility vehicle).
The crossover car debut in the United State is being delayed until the second half of 2013 but thanks to a new report detailing the European model, we now have a good idea of what the U.S. spec would look like. The Mini Paceman 2014 model is mainly a two-door version of its platform mate, the MINI Countryman. Although the “countryman” has been replaced by a funkier name, the coupe Paceman will still share a lot of things with its popular four-door crossover sibling. One of the similarities may include the introduction of a sportier variant; we just have to cross our fingers and wait!
Starting from the width, length, track, chassis rigidity and wheelbase, the similarities between the 2014 Paceman and the Countryman are noticeable. When you compared the entry-level Paceman to the base Countryman, you will notice that it is just 1.6 inches shorter in height, 0.4 inches closer to the ground, and it is 44-pound lighter with the six-speed manual transmission stick (this will eventually help boost its performance slightly). Each corner of the car lies on retuned shocks and springs, and standard 205/55R-17 summer-spec Bridgestone Dueler H/P tires. The John Cooper Work’s edition and 2014 Mini Paceman S Cooper models will have a bigger 19-inch option.
Just like the Countryman, the 2014 Mini Paceman S Cooper will come with a turbocharged 1.6 litre 4-cylinder engine. In Europe, two diesel engines rated at 110 horsepower and 141 horsepower will be provided, but in the U.S. we expect the familiar 121 horsepower and 181 horsepower, 177 lb-ft of torque gasoline engines. Both six-speed automatic and manual transmission systems and MINI’s ALL4 model all-wheel-drive system will likely be available. The Countryman S accelerated from 0-60 mph within 7 seconds when we tested it, so we expect the 2014 Paceman to make 60 mph within similar times.
The only con we noticed is that the crossover car has a light electronic power steering (EPS) tuning. The sloppy driving mechanism was so obvious when it was driven behind the front-wheel-drive Countryman. There is good news though; Mini says that at 25-27/31-35 city/highway mpg, the 2014 Mini Paceman European-cycle fuel economy numbers remains exactly the same as the Countryman and gas-powered Paceman model, depending on the configuration.
The Countryman starts at about $22,450 in the United States. The Mini Paceman 2014 model will be 1500 euros ($1850) more expensive when it is launched in Europe but it will still attract anyone who wants space and the high road performance of a Mini Cooper.
1 comment
Lauren
January 21, 2013 at 10:06 pm (UTC 0) Link to this comment
One thing that the viewers would love to watch about the 2014 Mini Paceman is the embedding of John Cooper Works treatment on the model. We could see the final instalment of JCW Package when the model debuted at the 2013 Detroit auto show.
The formula hasn’t changed and the Paceman is still driven by all four wheel system. With a magnificent horsepower and torque, one can easily expect it to be a breath-taker.