AUTOS: Mini Unveils John Cooper Works GP

New Models

AUTOS: Mini Unveils John Cooper Works GP

New performance coupe reprises 214-horsepower limited-edition model of 2006 with exclusive motorsports tweaks.

AutoWeek | http://www.autoweek.com/ | Posted May 13, 2012 Le Castellet (FRA)

The Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works GP was unveiled during a gathering of the Mini faithful in France. (Photo: Mini)

Mini unveiled its latest Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works GP performance coupe over the weekend at the Mini United festival in Le Castellet, France.

The first Mini JCW GP was produced in 2006 to mark the end of the first generation of the Mini developed by BMW. Only 2,000 were produced. Mini is bringing the GP name back in 2012 in the same limited number, with the cars arriving at dealerships later this year.

The Works GP gets motorsports-bred powertrain, chassis and aero upgrades, as well as its own styling enhancements. (Photo: Mini)

The Mini JCW GP gets an exclusive powertrain, chassis and aero technology directly from motorsport. It gets large front and rear aprons, lower side skirts, a roof spoiler and a rear diffuser that smoothes turbulence on the underbody.

Final power figures and pricing will be announced closer to launch, along with the volume allocated for the United States. The last Mini GP delivered 214 horsepower; we expect that much or more from this car.

We do know that the new Mini GP made its way around the Nürburgring's Nordschliefe circuit in just eight minutes, 23 seconds, which makes it the fastest factory-produced Mini ever. That time puts the car in good company: Just above it on the Wikipedia lap-time list for Nürburgring is the E46 BMW M3, and below it are the 2008 Lotus Exige S and the older Jaguar XKR.

This story originally appeared at AutoWeek.com.