Conversely, my 13 year-old daughter and her two friends, whom I drive to school every day, were over the moon for this Surf Blue box of whimsy.
“It’s soooo cute!”
“Every thing in here is, like, oh my gawd, round!”
“Look at the speedometer. It’s huge!”
“The cup holders, they slide!”
And so it went.
The Countryman inspired them to roll down the windows and wave to strangers. They were so, like, happy.
So why am I so, like, grumpy?
Maybe because I’m quite fond of the regular Mini Cooper hatchback, and admire BMW for capturing the spirit of the original (one of which I owned as a youth) in a thoroughly modern car.
Maybe because this four-seat not-so-mini Mini crossover is a bit too style over substance for my tastes.
First and foremost, Minis should be fun to drive. In base Cooper trim with six-speed manual transmission (a six-speed auto with paddles costs $1,490), and carrying a not insubstantial MSRP of $27,850 ($32,150 as tested), the Countryman falls flat.
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