Under BMW ownership, the Mini brand has expanded big time, covering more and more segments of the luxury small car market. However, not all new models are commercially successful, and BMW plans to get rid of them when they reach the end of their lifecycle.
Of course, we’re not talking about the core Mini model, the hatchback. Jim McDowell, vice president of Mini USA, told Edmunds that the hatch and the Countryman are the brand’s core models, accounting for about 75 percent of sales. In 2012, Mini sold about 66,200 vehicles in the U.S., around 50,000 of which were those two models.
What happens to Mini’s other models? Well, according to McDowell, some of them will be discontinued. “When we start to replace models, I think you will see that we won’t replace every model exactly,” McDowell said, without mentioning names.
“When I joined Mini, we knew that we would have two models. Ultimately, we now have seven,” he added. However, McDowell hinted that while some models will disappear, new ones will be introduced. “We are starting the next generation a year from now. We know that we will have a pretty broad lineup. You may actually put your chess pieces on the board differently if you know that you can have seven,” McDowell explained.
Unfortunately, the Rocketman concept isn’t likely to be produced, as it would require “some componentry that we now don’t have,” with Mini’s engine and transmission being too heavy for a car that short (135 inches/3,429mm). McDowell added, though, that a lot of the features from the Rocketman will be seen on the next generation of Minis.
Currently Mini’s U.S. lineup includes the Hardtop, Coupe, Convertible, Clubman, Roadster, Paceman and Countryman. Which of these (except the Hardtop and Countryman) do you think are most likely to be axed?
By Dan Mihalascu
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