By: IOL Motoring Staff
Johannesburg - In Mini speak, One means bottom of the range and South Africa's line-up now has such a base with the release of the One 3-Door and 5-Door models.
Of course, the pair lower the entry point to Mini ownership, with the One 3-door coming in at R259 800 and the 5-door at R269 800. That is quite a saving over the Cooper, which starts at R303 500, but what are you missing out on then?
For starters, there is a smaller engine under the stubby bonnet. It's a 1.2-litre version of Mini's new three-cylinder turbopetrol with direct injection, rated at 75kW and 180Nm. The Cooper's 1.5 makes 100kW and 230Nm. Performance is not too bad though, with Mini claiming a 9.9-second 0-100km/h sprint for the One 3-door and 10.1s time for the 5-door, with respective clamed average fuel sipping figures of 4.7 and 4.8 litres per 100km.
The engine is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox and a six-speed autobox is optional. As for standard features you air conditioning, a basic sound system and 15-inch alloy wheels, but there is a huge options list available for those with deeper pockets.