Mini Convertible review

A bit of a survivor. Buying a new convertible car has become a tricky task, you see. Rewind to the early 2000s and almost every mainstream manufacturer offered an accessible drop-top. Frequently several. The march of the SUV has shrunken the cabrio clan down to a niche few, however, and if you want a cute little cabrio fresh from the factory – with a modest price tag attached – you’ve a disappointingly small pool to fish from, your options effectively now cut down to a Mazda MX-5, VW T-Roc Cabriolet or this latest Mini Convertible.

The freshest member of the gen4 BMW Mini family, it looks the part up front, sharing the circular, doe-eyed headlights of its siblings. Round the back, though, you’ll find the same taillight ovals as the outgoing Mk3 Convertible. This exposes that, rather like its hatchback sibling, the oily bits beneath aren’t box fresh. While electric Minis sit atop a whole new platform, the internal combustion cars don’t – and it’s most obvious in the drop-top, where Mini’s latest, slimline taillights aren’t quite up to the structural needs of a roofless car.

Which engines can I have?

The additional weight of a folding roof ensures Mini has stuck purely to 2.0-litre, ‘B48’ turbocharged four-cylinders like you’ll find in a wealth of small BMWs. The Cooper C nips neatly under the 30 grand mark at £28,715 and offers 161bhp, 184lb ft and 0-62mph in 8.2sec. 

Precisely £3,000 more gets you a Cooper S Convertible and its 201bhp, 221lb ft and 6.9sec sprint while the range-topping John Cooper Works Convertible claims 228bhp, 280lb ft and 6.4sec for its chunkier £37,535.

They all weigh under 1,500 kilos and each and every one drives its front wheels through a seven-speed twin-clutch automatic transmission – there’s not a manual in sight.

And no electric version?

Not yet. The third-gen Convertible offered a Cooper SE plug-in with a sky-high price and strictly limited production, just 150 of them making it to British shores. Perhaps it wasn’t deemed a success, but it feels a little sad we don’t yet have the option here. Minis arguably suit slicking through cities in silence better than most cars, and the idea of doing so on a sunny day – kerbside gossip spilling into its idiosyncratic cabin – isn’t without appeal. Let’s wait and see.

What about the rest of it?

The soft-top itself is rather like before – a large fabric hood that stows electronically in 18 seconds at up to 19mph, with a halfway sunroof mode for when you crave fresh air but a dash of privacy (or quick shelter when the weather suddenly turns). With the car fully open, its pram-folds still nibble away at rear visibility, while the roof-down 160-litre boot capacity is just as stingy as before. Keep the roof up and the figure climbs to 215 litres.

Several option packs can be supplemented by a large Union Flag emblem on the roof to really trumpet Mini’s British heritage – plus the fact Mini Convertible production has returned to Plant Oxford after a decade’s break. Not the ideal time to be parading a dash of patriotism on a British street, though.

And on the inside?

Mini is a bit of an interior leader right now, and its dinner-plate touchscreen is a bewitching thing to sit in front of (it’s in easy reach of both front-seat occupants, too). Its high-res OLED display is impressive enough in its hard-top relatives; here, it seems even cooler, because with the roof down and the sun beaming, it retains its clarity in a way most other cabrio screens can only fantasise about.

The interior materials are all thoroughly likeable too, with most surfaces clothed in quirky, technical fabrics and dashboard awash with ambient lighting whose colours change as you flick through the car’s generous number of drive modes. ‘Go-Kart’ is signalled by aggressive red illumination, naturally…

What you don’t get – unless you’ve bought the JCW or stuck an options pack on a Cooper S – are gearshift paddles. We suppose operating it purely as a two-pedal car is very go-kart-like.

Equipment is otherwise strong, with base spec bringing plush in-built nav, adaptive cruise control and park assist functions. Technology overkill in a dinky little Mini, perhaps, but it all helps the Convertible battle the spunkier, rear-drive MX-5, which has a startling similar RRP in Roadster trim. The Mini gives you two extra seats, but only for your slimmest of compadres.

Alright, it’s classic Mini fare in every way imaginable. Practicality and ultimate ride and handling etiquette sit much lower down its priority list than fun and frivolity. But in a market that’s depressingly sparse in convertibles full stop – never mind affordable ones – a smart-handling, cute-looking Mini cabrio is something we’ll always thoroughly embrace, not least when it kicks off below thirty grand and can’t be specced past forty without trying really hard. An MX-5 is sharper to drive, but in truth we’re thankful both Mazda and Mini continue to proudly wave the flag for cheap, drop-top fun.