Currently reading: Mini Countryman coupé to be called Paceman
Mini's new Countryman coupé will be dubbed Paceman, it has been confirmed

Mini has confirmed that the coupé version of the Mini Countryman will be dubbed Paceman when it makes production.  

Seen in these spy images in Mini Paceman S flavour, the new car is tipped to go into production alongside the five-door Countryman next year. The Paceman was previewed as the Paceman concept at the 2011 Detroit motor show.

As this Mini Paceman S prototype indicates, the three-door coupé stays true to the styling of the Paceman concept. It uses the same platform and floor structure as the five-door Countryman and the same inner structure up to and including the bulkhead.

The car also uses the same windscreen as the Countryman, although it's had 20mm shaved off its height. From the screen rearwards, the Paceman gets an entirely new exterior. It's 4110mm long, marginally more than the Countryman, even though the front bumper is 20mm shorter.

However, there's likely to be no loss of shoulder room in the rear cabin compared with the Countryman. Unlike most coupés, the Paceman is also set to have significant rear legroom and more than adequate headroom.

As well as the rising waistline, the Paceman has a sloping version of the Mini family’s 'capped' roof which, combined with the rising waistline, further reduces the size of the side windows, emphasising the Mini’s 'three-layer' design theme of roof, windows and bodyside. The car’s C-pillars are tinted the same colour as the glass to give the impression of complete wrap-around glazing.

The big break from modern Mini tradition comes at the rear of the car. The vertical shutlines and vertical sheetmetal that characterise the other models in the range have been replaced by a surface that’s much softer and more flowing.

Mini has dumped the rule that Mini tail-lights should be vertical and surrounded on all sides with painted bodywork. The Paceman’s lights are substantial and cut right across into the tailgate, resulting in a most un-Mini-like rear elevation.

However, the combination of the wide tracks, sloping roof and narrower glasshouse means the rear wheels are well outboard of the side windows, and it all combines to make the Paceman look extremely purposeful from the rear.

The Paceman is likely to be offered only with the most powerful versions of Mini’s engines, in keeping with its billing as the most expensive Mini yet.

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TS7 16 July 2012

Fry boring? No, entertaining

Fry boring? No, entertaining and errudite.

Verbal diarrhoea? And in another breath you accuse 'swearers' of having a limited vocabulary. You must have missed taking your Risperidone.

C'est tu j'accuse, it is the pompous prickery of you and your ilk that makes the world a duller, greyer, regressive place. Playing the strawman is the first resort of those who have already lost their argument.

I swear when appropriate, and it is not for you to dictate when others should or should not do so. Mind your own damn business, in other words, and get back to watching Songs of Praise.

petegeoff 15 July 2012

TS7

That will be the day I take notice of the most boring person in the world. Stephen Fry! And you really do have verbal diarrhoea, don't you? People like you are one of the many reasons standards have fallen so much. I expect you're one of those that think it's trendy or fashionable to be foul mouthed. Do you swear all of the time or moderate yourself, perhaps when you go into a shop? Or when you visit your doctor? If not then you really are sad. Regards.

kraftwerk 15 July 2012

So much moaning

Carmaker in 'We want to sell more cars' shocker. It's not for you. Get over it.

And... there is no siuch thing as 'bad language'. Only 'language'.