There’s only so many hatchbacks and convertibles Mini can sell, so in order for the brand to survive and keep its parent company’s stockholders happy, the BMW Group is continually expanding its reach into new segments.
After the five-door Countryman crossover, Mini is now preparing a slightly sportier looking variant with three-doors and a more coupe-like roofline, which we first saw in concept guise under the Paceman moniker at last year’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
Believed to be named the Countryman Coupe when it goes on sale in the first half of 2013, the new Mini crossover will ride on the same wheelbase but will be about 13mm longer and stand 20mm lower than the five-door model.
Besides the sloping roof, the coupe will further differ from the regular Countryman by the rising waistline that finishes off with a completely redesigned rear end sporting unique tail lamps that break MINI’s tradition of vertical units.
At launch, the coupe will be offered with the more powerful engines of the Countryman lineup including a 1.6-liter turbocharged four delivering 215bhp (218PS) and 280Nm (207 lb-ft) of peak torque in the all-wheel drive John Cooper Works model.
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