TWO Awards Worth Note For MINI Cooper

It’s not only the “Greenest” Sports Car, it’s also featured in the cinema’s best car chases of all time! Twice!

That’s right. Your MINI Cooper S has been singled out by What Car? Magazine to take the Green Sports Car award in the strangely-named pub’s “Green Awards” ceremony at the 2008 British International Motor Show.

The award is in recognition of MINI’s commitment to manufacturing frugal and fast premium small cars, with minimal harm to the environment.

Sure, we all know it’s fun to drive, but the systems that make it such are known as MINIMALISM technologies, which is basically a version of BMW’s EfficientDynamics, which includes:

• Auto Start/Stop
• Shift Point Display
• Brake Energy Regeneration
• Variable Valve Timing
• Lightweight materials
• Turbocharging
• Electro mechanical Power Assisted Steering

Steve Fowler, editor of What Car? said: ‘The MINI Cooper S proves that fun doesn’t have to go out of the window if you want to be green. We love the way the clever MINIMALISM technology works to cut damaging emissions without damaging driver enjoyment.’

OK, now let’s get to the chase. The car chase, that is. In a new poll of actual filmgoers – not snobby elitist reviewers - the car chase in 'The Italian Job' has been voted the 'Best Car Chase Of All Movies'. This was in the original 1969 version that followed three Mini Coopers around the streets of Turin, Italy at break-neck speed.

'The Blues Brothers', which features a huge pile-up finale, was placed second in the survey, conducted for cinema advertisers Pearl and Dean.

But then, charging hard in third place, stood MINI once again, this time in the 1998 action-thriller 'The Bourne Identity'.

Of course, the greatest award of all is the thrill we get from driving our MINIs, but it’s nice to see the little guy get some props back once in awhile.