09 Apr 09
John Cooper Works
Back in 2001, when BMW dared to reinvent a British cultural icon, it knew that Cooper had to be a central part of that.
Cooper Car Company was created in 1946 by Charles Cooper in Surbiton, Surrey and it fast-earned a reputation for its rear-engined race cars that dominated motor racing in the 50s and 60s man.
With the introduction of the BMW-developed Mini, John Cooper once again set about developing a performance upgrade. Called the John Cooper Works Kit, BMW was so impressed that in 2007 it bought the legendary brand.
Best car: Mini Cooper JCW
Sure the Mini Cooper JCW torquesteers like hell, but even with a modest-sounding 208bhp it hurtles to the horizon with urge you can barely believe. Better yet, come off the throttle aggressively and it pops and bangs like an Eighties rally car.
What were they thinking: Mini Cooper Convertible JCW
The same as the regular Cooper JCW above but 100kg heavier, noticeably slower, less stiff and stupidly expensive.
