Does the new Mini look better or worse than before?

It’s facelift time for the good ol’ Mini. And as is the norm with BMW nowadays, the new car has quite the snout.

Mini says the new design, which features a bigger grille with a hexagonal surround, new air intakes and more contoured wheel arches, makes the Hatch look “even more modern…by means of reduction”. Huh.

Either way, new colours and wheels are available, as is a black pack (pictured above) that de-chromes the entire car. Besides the nose the biggest news on the looks front is the optional blue/black “Multitone Roof”, for which Mini uses a special painting process. “Changing environmental conditions during [said] painting process” means each one is unique.

Inside there’s a new steering wheel. All cars get the digital dashboard from the Mini Electric and GP, plus an 8.8-inch touchscreen running new operating software. Elsewhere the air vents have been more smoothly integrated into the dashboard, there’s less chrome and you can have an electronic handbrake instead of a conventional ratchet.

As for dynamics, the engines are the same (1.5-litre petrols for the One and Cooper, a 2.0-litre for the Cooper S and JCW, a 181bhp e-motor for the Electric) but there is a new adaptive suspension system that “achieves a noticeably optimised balance between sportiness and ride comfort”.

Prices for the three-door hatch start at a £16,045. The five-door is £700 more. For a Convertible you’ll pay at least £20,705, while the Mini Electric starts from £27,920.