Soft replaces hard as Mini debuts drop-top new Cooper Cabriolet

After a product roll-out that stretched over almost a year, BMW has finally completed the fourth generation Mini Cooper range with the debut of the soft-top Cooper Cabriolet.

Previously known as the Mini Cabriolet, the newcomer joins the three-door and five-door by adopting the Cooper name as part of its moniker rather than a trim level designation.

Going soft

Besides the roof, the Cabriolet appears little changed aesthetically from the Cooper three-door as it still offers the option of either the standard LED or Matrix LED headlights, wheel sizes up to 18-inches and the same trim grades; Classic, Favoured and JCW.

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Taking prominence, the fabric roof opens and closes in 18 seconds at speeds up to 30 km/h. Besides the “always open” timer which times how long the roof has been open, a Union Jack monogram now make its showing as new inclusion.

As before, the inclusion of the soft-top has a resulted in the rear facia being redesigned to accommodate the roof that still folds on top of the bootlid behind the rear seats.

Tipping the scales at a reported 88 kg heavier than the three-door, the Cabriolet offers-up 160-litres of boot space with the roof down, and 215-litres with the soft-top up.

No change inside

Inside, little has changed design-wise as the 9.4-inch OLED infotainment roundel remains, along with the streamlined centre console and physical toggle switches for the gear selector and ignition.

Aside from the same steering wheel as the fixed-roof Coopers and Head-Up Display, the Cabriolet features a wind deflector behind the rear seats, as well as different materials and fabrics depending on the trim grade.

Petrol power only

Standard specification is identical to its siblings, as is the choice of powertrains which, for now, omits electrification in both mild-hybrid or full electric forms.

The range, therefore, kicks-off with the Cooper C Cabriolet that develops 120kW/250Nm from its 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbocharged engine, resulting in a top speed of 220 km/h and 0-100 km/h in 8.2 seconds.

For now flagship, the Cooper S Cabriolet’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder produces 150kW/300Nm, allowing it to accelerate from standstill to 100 km/h in 6.9 seconds and hit 237 km/h.

As with the three-door and five-door Cooper, drive in both Cabriolet variants goes to the front wheels via the seven-speed dual-clutch Steptronic gearbox.

UK made in South Africa next year

Heading for production at the Oxford Plant in the United Kingdom rather than the Zhangjiagang facility in China where the all-electric Cooper is made as part of BMW’s partnership with Great Wall Motors (GWM), the Cabriolet has been approved for South Africa from the first quarter of 2025.

While pricing remains unconfirmed, expect it to come with a substantial premium over the three-door priced from R602 052 for the Cooper C to R646 395 for the Cooper S.

At the same time, it will also sit above the five-door priced at R624 052 for the Cooper C and R676 395 for the Cooper S.

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