Category: Superminis 
Price Range: £12,220 to £12,345
Fine handling and visual flair now matched by a peppy engine.
Even this basic model doesn't come cheap.
Entry-level Mini no longer lags way behind the Coopers.
The cabin is slightly roomier than before, thanks in part to clever reshaping of the seats and seatbacks. It's still highly borderline as a four-seater, if more than two of those four people are adults. The boot is slightly bigger than before.
The list of standard equipment is a bit hit and miss: there's a single-CD player and iPod-friendly socket, plus runflat tyres, but air conditioning and a trip computer are extras, as is height adjustment for the front passenger seat.
If you opt out of the options craze, and stick with the most basic of Mini Ones, you're still in a car that looks and feels far, far more special than just about anything else of this size or price.
Latest Readers' Drives About the MINI One
wrote on 24 03 2007
wrote on 28 08 2006