Perfect for families: The new Countryman isn’t a mini, but it’s every inch a MINI – Garáž.cz

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As is known, family crossovers should be suitable for any family, and if possible comfortably. While some earlier MINIs are essentially two-seaters and the rear seats serve more or less as covered storage space, the new Countryman can fit a person nearly two meters tall on the back (test for you). At the same time, the trunk offers 450 liters of free space in this basic configuration, and if that’s not enough, the back seat slides longitudinally, so you can choose between space for rear passengers and luggage.

So the Countryman isn’t small, but it’s still a MINI as it should be. I’m talking about the design, the unique style, because even if it doesn’t have the cute round lights anymore, you certainly won’t mistake it for anything from the outside. The whole body is more angular, as a crossover should be, but it’s unmistakably MINI – from the British flag look in the taillights to the color-coded roof and mirrors.

And what about when you sit down inside. The interior is dominated by a circular OLED infotainment display in the center of the fabric-covered dashboard. You can choose from a variety of colorful and organized themes, and since there is no second display directly in front of the driver, the instruments on board are also displayed in the center. It takes some getting used to, but luckily there is a tilting head-up display in front of the driver (supplied as an option), so you can always have the most important things in view. The interior is fun, high-quality, unusual and proves that there can be something more than an army of black plastic in today’s cars.

As for driving, it should be noted that I had a basic motor with three fifteen-cylinder in the test, so we will not talk about any sports events. But the basic version of the Countryman C drives well, three-cylinder 163-horsepower (at least, which is already known from many other applications, including as part of a hybrid drive BMW i8). The chassis is a bit of a double-edged sword – on the one hand, it enables sporty driving and on the right track it entertains even more experienced drivers, on the other hand, it is not as comfortable as it could be for her family car. You can find out what else I liked about the MINI Countryman and what I criticized in the video.