Mini John Cooper Works GP Concept on grid

The Mini has managed to remain popular through all its incarnations. Now a new race inspired Mini John Cooper Works GP Concept car has been made official.

The new sporty Mini will make its official debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this month.

Inspired by the carmaker’s legendary triumphs in the Monte Carlo Rally exactly 50 years ago, this design study embodies undiluted dynamic flair and the ultimate in driving fun – on both the race track and the road.

The new Mini John Cooper Works GP Concept will apparently be released in limited numbers, although this has not been confirmed as yet.

Mini John Cooper Works GP Concept

The design of this new Mini is much wider than the current Mini and sports a more powerful look.

Large front and rear aprons, side skirts and a prominent roof spoiler goes towards its confident appearance.

Styling

The new design retains much of the iconic Mini cues such as the elliptical headlights and a hexagonal radiator grille.

There are, however, new points of interest. Such as the powerdome with prominent air scoop in the bonnet and the air intakes in the front apron.

Further colour accents in Highspeed Orange enhance the visual impact of the headlights and air intake.

The lower edge of the large front apron reaches down close to the road and the prominently flared wheel arches nods to high cornering speeds. Am I the only one that’s getting a hint Renault 5 Turbo with a Dimma kit?

Additionally, the front apron’s all-carbon-fibre construction is another performance upgrade. There’s yet more carbon-fibre to be found on side skirts.

I quite like the half-Union Jack on each side of the rear lights. The prominent roof spoiler is a visual statement of intent and slots cleanly into the geometry of the side elements. Subtle, however, it is not.

The 19-inch Racetrack lightweight multi-spoke wheels finish the exterior.

Interior

Of course, this sporting heritage has to include a roll cage. This is partnered by little more than a pair of low-mounted bucket seats with five-point belts.

You get a cleanly-designed instrument panel to look at with gearshift paddles either side of the steering wheel.

The digital instrument cluster and Head-Up Display places the relevant information for the situation at hand directly in the driver’s eye-line. This allows absolute focus on the road to be maintained.

A rear seat bench, headliner and conventional door trim panels are conspicuous by their absence, sacrificed in the interests of weight minimisation.

Instead, the surfaces between the elements of the roll cage and the rear compartment are trimmed in lightweight panels with textured details and a hexagonal pattern.

More information as I get it.