Mini Hatch (2013-2024) review

Very little has changed to the technical specification of the whole Mini Hatch line-up. However, with each passing update the Mini becomes more sophisticated, at the slight expense of the ‘lively puppy’ character that first endeared us all to its charms when it burst onto the scene in 2001.

For reference (even though you can't currently buy one), the One’s 3cyl petrol provides 101bhp these days, while the same engine makes 134bhp in the Cooper. The pleasingly brawny Cooper S gets 176bhp from its 4cyl and the three-door-only JCW tops the charts (under the full-fat GP anyway) with 228bhp.

Manual or auto?

Well, at the time of writing the six-speed manual is back as an option on the Mini configurator in the UK. Hurrah! Due to partsageddon it was previously unavailable, meaning the seven-speed dual-clutch was your only option on the Cooper and Cooper S, and the eight-speed auto from the BMW M135i the only choice for a JCW. Now though you can have a proper manual gearbox with any engine, and you absolutely should spec one before the manual Mini dies with the next generation. 

The dual-clutch transmission is everything you would expect: quick to respond to throttle inputs, virtually seamless when slushing shifts together and generally a good match for the petrol engine’s character. We’d stick with the notchy manual, but it cannot be ignored that the Steptronic makes the Cooper and Cooper S both quicker from 0-62mph by a tenth of a second and much greener for emissions and economy.

Perhaps the biggest change with the 2021 facelift concerned the dampers. Not something we find ourselves saying often. The Intelligent Adaptive Suspension is standard on the Sport trim Cooper and Cooper S and a £400 option elsewhere. It actually ditches the electronic damping of old so may sound like a backwards step, but Mini has replaced it with a mechanical setup that remains stiff in normal driving, but reacts quickly and is far better at dealing with bigger jolts, sending less shudder through the cockpit and making the Hatch feel more grown up as a result.

So how does it go? 

There’s still marvellous body control, a lovely balance front-to-rear and communicative steering too. Although in the Cooper S there’s a needlessly artificial heftiness to its weight in Sport mode, which makes it less pleasant to deal with than the standard setting. Without a configurable individual set-up being available, this means you need to keep the Mini in ‘Mid’ mode to get the best steering, but that robs you of the sharper throttle response and noisier pop-pop sounds of the exhaust in Sport.

Refinement is far better than previous generations of Mini, although there’s still a fair amount of road noise at motorway speeds.