| Remember when you went go carting as a kid | | | | understatement. |
| and went whipping around the track? It was a | | | | Acceleration with the Mini is a mixed bag. You can |
| blast, wasn't it? Well, the Mini Cooper offers an | | | | manually switch between normal and sport |
| opportunity to relive those days as an adult and | | | | options with the flick of a switch by the shifter. |
| on the wide open road. | | | | The non-sport options is okay, but not great. With |
| The Mini Cooper comes in a couple of different | | | | the automatic transmission, it has the typical lag |
| versions. The Mini Cooper is the basic version with | | | | between when you press the gas pedal and the |
| a normally aspirated engine. The Cooper S is a | | | | car reacts. Flip on the sport option, however, and |
| turbo charged version of the car that comes with | | | | the process is seamless. |
| an optional sport suspension. There is also a high | | | | One of the fun options with the Mini is the |
| end performance version called the "John Cooper | | | | steering wheel shifter. Depending on the model |
| Works" that is really high performance, but we will | | | | you have, the automatic transmission can be |
| stick with the "S" for this article. | | | | switched to a manual transmission. The gear |
| The first thing you notice about the Cooper is | | | | shifters are found on the interior of the steering |
| how roomy it is. Despite appearing small from the | | | | wheel and you can fire up and down the gears |
| outside, the car is fairly spartan inside, which gives | | | | like with an Indy or Formula One car. Driving this |
| you a lot of room. The only serious inconvenience | | | | way is a good bit of fun. |
| is you tend to sit a bit high in the seat. Why does | | | | If I have one complaint with the Mini Cooper S, it |
| this matter? When you pull up to a light, you | | | | has to do with the breaks. They work find, but |
| often have to lean forward to see it if you are | | | | they definitely feel a bit soft at time. You tend to |
| first in line. It is just one of those oddities you will | | | | get used to it fairly quickly, but your first few |
| notice about the Cooper. | | | | trips in the car can be a bit herky-jerky. |
| For performance, the Mini Cooper S is hard to | | | | Is the Mini Cooper S a car worth your attention? |
| beat. It handles like a go cart. You can fly around | | | | Definitely. It packs a lot of performance and |
| corners and circular onramps with the only | | | | character, particularly with a price tag in the |
| limitation being how brave you are. The car simply | | | | $25,000 range and an estimated 30 mpg. I liked it |
| runs like a train on rails. Whatever you have heard | | | | so much, I bought one. |
| about the handling being good is an | | | | |