Mini Cooper S 20th Anniversary Edition - The Most 'Murican MINI

MINI Cooper S 20 year edition

Review channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU0wHgKkQYdzoFWl3q5x3fw

Follow Downshift to see what's coming next!
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dwnshftMKE/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/downshiftmke/?hl=en
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@downshift_media?lang=en
Website: https://downshiftmedia.us/

If you want to support the channel, visit our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/downshiftmedia

--

This is the MINI Cooper S, but it’s a weirder, more quirky Cooper S than usual. And that’s because this one is celebrating MINIs 20 year anniversary of being back in the US.

Over the years doing Downshift I haven’t spent much time in MINIs which now seems like a bit of a crime especially since I like weird cars and these are some of the weirdest cars on the road

But yanno what another word for “weird” is? Personality…as in what MINI owners have

And usually a MINI will put its personality on display with nods to its English heritage in exterior styling details that vary in subtlety. HOWEVER, not the case here. To celebrate 20 years of MINI in the US, this Cooper S swaps out the Union Jack for Stars and Stripes

And we’ll get to that when we do our exterior walk around, but what I’m wondering here is whether this is a normal Cooper S or something else

Well it gets the same 2.0T 4 cylinder making 189 hp and 206 lbft, same gearbox and the same 6.5 second 0-60 sprint

So if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and goes like a duck…well it’s a MINI Cooper S

And that’s perfectly fine with me because it remains a fun little 4 door hardtop hatch

The steering has a little bit of a voice telling you whats happening up front. The damping is soft enough to really enjoy daily duty and stiff enough to encourage a little hustle from time to time. The brakes are solid and it doesn’t sound like a rattle can like so many other 4 cylinders

So is it fun to drive? Yeah of course! It’s a Cooper S!

And it’s fun BECASUE it doesn’t have a million horsepower
It’s fun BECAUSE you can drive the pants off of it without going to prison

BUT some of the things that make it the most fun aren’t even happening behind the wheel so let’s step outside and I’ll show you what I mean

Here’s another elephant in the room that I think needs addressing
You can have a FUN car without it being a sportcar
To a lot of people a fun car means it’s alittle peppy but it as personality and just LIKE being in it and driving it
And THAT is what I think this MINI is
So many cars try to be fun by being SO sporty, but then the rest of the car is so serious and boring
Not here, these MINIs are oozing personality
The 20th anniversary car is only available in Chili red, Pepper White, or Island Blue…aka the colors that make up the British and American flags
They also all get red and white offset hood stripes with a star at the point
Black accented grille
17 inch tentacle wheels
Silver wing mirror and a silver roof with roof rails and the pano roof
There’s an American flag accent on the front fender
As well as a red white and blue 20 decal on the lower driver & passenger side door
There’s black accenting all arounf the car and the offset red and white stripe appears on the trunklid
And finally you have dual center mount exhaust
So the exterior still remains unmistakable MINI, but with a plethora of USA details so there’s no mistaking you got a special one, but the fun doesn’t stop there so let’s step inside

The interior though is a bit more subtle. You get a couple 20 year decals, but it’s largely a normal Cooper S
But again, that’s not a bad thing as the interiors of these MINIs have some of the most personality in the market
Most cars use rectangles to dominate the interior because screens are that shape and they simpy fit the interior.
Not MINI tho, there are circles everywhere
The most dominating one is your center stack
The center light does stuff based on what you’re doing
No practical purpose, but sometimes those are the most fun things!
Volume, back up proximity, climate, fan speed, drive mode
Another fun thing is you get toggles overhead and below to operate things from
Ambient light
To turning on the car
Again, most cars would use toggle switches to feel hardcore, but there’s a sense of silliness here that is just cool
And then within the head unit you can go to your current status
Race flag, rocket, sunglasses, be mini
But it’s not all quirky shapes and fun gimmicks
You also have the usual fare like ACP and AA
You’ve got the most sensible wireless charger I;ve ever seen
It uses spring tension to keep your phone in place so it ACTUALLY charges
It’s not quite perfect though
It doesn’t have a 360 camera
The phone integration isn’t wireless
The circle theme is cool and fun but it results in a smaller screen than others
And no power seats
Your rear seats can actually fit someone over 6 feet
You have a nice pano roof to bring in light
The build is excellent
And the trunk is big…enough

Видео Mini Cooper S 20th Anniversary Edition - The Most 'Murican MINI канала Downshift