|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 Thursday December 04, 2008 |
|
MINI Concept Geneva |
|
|
|
Written by Jeff Seabrook
|
|
Tuesday February 28, 2006 |
|
Page 3 of 8
MINI Concept Geneva Exterior.
Unmistakable: MINI all the way.
Just one look is sufficient: Like the “regular” model, the Concept Version of the MINI is “as small as possible and as big as necessary”.
Particularly this was the special challenge facing the MINI Design Team,
with MINI Concept Geneva being a truly unique car all the way from
its characteristic hexagon grille to the very functional split-door rear end.
MINI Concept Geneva naturally boasts numerous highlights which have made MINI design a genuine hallmark in the course of many years and decades: These include the straight shoulder and roof lines with the shoulder line rising up gently to the rear to give the car the exciting wedge shape of a genuine MINI further accentuated especially on this model by the extra length of the car.
The wheels positioned far to the outside, the very wide (more than 160 cm or 63.0´´) driver and front passenger doors relative to the overall length of the
car, and the characteristic joints around the side direction indicators all bear out the enhanced, upgraded design language so characteristic of
MINI Concept Geneva.
The diagonal joint between the side direction indicator and the side door is a genuine icon which has developed consistently over the years, originating from the welding seam on the classic MINI. The glazed window line extending all round the car and the omission of a B-pillar creates the impression of
a “free-standing” roof again characterising the Concept Car just like the door handles so typical of MINI.
Firm, sporting, masculine.
Many features of MINI Concept Geneva are familiar – but in actual fact
everything is different: In its overall look and appearance, the car is firm, sleek and smooth, with features such as the wheel arches, the shoulder line and
the powerdome standing out as particularly striking details. At very first sight, MINI Concept Geneva makes a clear statement – the car has stance,
looks muscular and elegant all in one. This impressive appearance is further accentuated by the headlights integrated directly in the engine compartment lid and by the hexagonal grille sculptured in one single piece to give
the Concept Version a particularly alert, performance-oriented, likeable
and charming appearance.
Engine compartment lid hinged at the front.
This sporting look is further enhanced by the engine compartment lid hinged at the front, the wheel arches and radiator grille forming one homogeneous component without any seams or dividing lines in between. And like on a classic sports car, the engine compartment lid swivels to the front and upwards when opening, with only the headlights remaining in their original position.
A further benefit of this particular configuration is optimum access to the engine compartment at all times.
Sophisticated design and top-quality materials also give MINI Concept Geneva its particular qualities beneath the engine compartment lid:
The wheel arches and all visible parts on the engine are finished consistently in Satellite Silver, the exterior colour of the car, the engine thus standing out almost as if it were being presented in a display cabinet.
Sporting drivetrain, sporting features.
To ensure that the car accompanying the rally is always there when needed, MINI Concept Geneva comes with a MINI Cooper S power unit clearly characterised by the additional air intake scoop on the engine compartment lid and the dual tailpipes. Right in the middle above the air intake scoop,
the engine compartment lid proudly bears a graphic reminiscent of the classic symbol of the Monte Carlo Rally.
Further ingredients ensuring that go-kart feeling so typical of MINI are
the long wheelbase, the wide track and short overhangs both front and rear.
The grid in the radiator grille is finished in black acting, just like the integrated chrome-plated additional headlights, as an indispensable attribute of a genuinely sporting car. The logo on the radiator grille
of MINI Concept Geneva reminds the beholder in the year 2006 that the creator of Mini, Sir Alec Issigonis, was born exactly 100 years ago.
All doors with parallelogram kinematics.
Extra space inside naturally calls for good access from outside. Ensuring easy access and loading was one of the fundamental philosophies in developing MINI Concept Geneva. So through the driver and front passenger doors
as well as the two rear doors, MINI is introducing a design configuration simply ideal for much easier and more convenient entry to and exit from the car,
as well as better loading and unloading even under confined conditions:
All four doors run on “intelligent” hinges and pivots in kinematic parallelogram arrangement, the doors swivelling in one single motion with minimum
movement to the side and maximum movement to the front. This significantly reduces the space required all around the car when opening the doors while nevertheless offering the user generous access to the interior.
Coupé-like appearance for convenient access. Long side doors,
split side windows at the rear.
Through their parallelogram kinematics, the long coupé doors turn
the occasional disadvantage of a smaller opening angle into a significant advantage ensured by the concept of the car – especially because the
side doors on this design concept are more than 160 centimetres or 63.0´´ wide. And a further important point is that the side doors, like on every MINI, come with frameless windows.
MINI’s new cosmopolitan athlete takes up the elements of a two-door coupé also in many other respects, at the same time offering particular practical value through easy access and loading.
Further highlights are the two split side windows at the rear merging directly when closed with the side windows at the front and the front section moving electrically beneath the rear section when opened. This principle of split windows at the rear incidentally comes straight from the classic Mini Traveller and has been re-interpreted on the MINI Concept Geneva.
Longer wheelbase for extra space inside.
MINI Concept Geneva quite simply offers more space for the team accompanying the rally with all their equipment, fully prepared for any eventuality. The long wheelbase, for example, guarantees particularly
ample space on the rear seats of the car. An important contribution to the excellent driving characteristics so typical of MINI, on the other hand,
is the particular position of the wheels “right at each corner” of the car.
Deliberately maintaining this important feature so typical of the brand,
MINI Concept Geneva – like all other MINIs – boasts an extra-short and
compact body overhang at the rear. And last but certainly not least,
the two wide-opening rear doors hinged at the side make loading and unloading very easy and convenient.
The Cargobox – the “butler” within the luggage compartment.
Behind these doors MINI Concept Geneva takes up items loaded into the car on two different levels. This is made possible by the Cargobox, a very
helpful “butler” for handling both small bags and big cases. Just one feature is that the floor can be pulled out to the rear, enabling the team to simply
put down their toolbox on the floor panel and slide it smoothly into the car.
A further feature is that the floor of the Cargobox may be swivelled up, serving as a partition between the passenger compartment and the luggage area.
The entire Cargobox can then be moved easily and smoothly to the rear and up into the opening in the rear doors, for example to accommodate exchange parts and other materials.
Fully retractable, frameless windows in both rear doors serve, finally, to provide extra fresh air and again allow convenient access to the luggage compartment without requiring the driver to open the doors.
The Sports Utility Box: Take along anything you want.
Whether it is tools or spare parts – you always need the right equipment
in your car to be a real member of the team. And that’s easy with
MINI Concept Geneva: Just fit the Sports Utility Box into the opened rear side window and you’re ready to go, fully prepared for the challenges
on the next leg of your trip.
The Sports Utility Box is an additional, multi-functional, storage compartment made of specially moulded plastic. In its length and height, it fits perfectly into the rear side window, where it is fastened in position.
To do this, all you do is open the vertically split window (the front section moves back electrically) and hang the Utility Box with its lower section
into the window opening. Flaps on either side of the Sports Utility Box allow the user to load and unload the Box both from outside and from the passenger compartment, with the additional and very practical option
to pass through all kinds of odds and ends. The lower section of the Box extends all the way back on the car to the C-pillar.
MINI Concept Geneva provides for simultaneous use of several Sports Utility Boxes used flexibly and individually depending on the user’s requirements. The Boxes may be fitted either on one side of the car or –
as is the case here – on both sides to provide extra storage space.
Roof structure with integrated spare wheel.
MINI Concept Geneva uses the roof structure to consistently gain extra storage space inside the car. A recess in the rear section of the roof serves to house the spare wheel. This special structure ensures optimum streamlining of the spare wheel in the car’s direction of travel, with the grab bar above the rear doors shaped as a spoiler for aerodynamic reasons.
Pulling the grab handle, the user can pull this part of the roof to the rear and fold it down, gaining convenient access to the wheel on two bracket handles fastened to the bolting points for the rim inserts.
Free-standing round search headlights are positioned directly above
the A-pillars on the roof left and right.
Multi-functional wheel rims in twin-colour look.
The wheels of MINI Concept Geneva also boast a wide range of interesting features: Being multi-functional, they give the driver the opportunity to personalise the design and expression of his car without having to change the entire set of wheels in a long and laborious process. The Concept Car presented at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show comes with wheels in a discreet grey colour reminiscent of high-quality, sophisticated castings. The wheels incorporate ten white spoke elements taking up the design language of the current MINI Cooper S rims. The final touch is provided
by the cover on the wheel hub complete with the MINI logo and
a red accentuation colour rounding off the design of the wheels on
MINI Concept Geneva.
Purist looks with a unique “chameleon” effect: surface trim in
the MINI Concept Geneva.
MINI Concept Geneva takes a new approach not only in its technical and functional highlights, but also through the design of its trim surfaces specially created by the MINI Design Team: In all, the exclusive combination of white and silver surfaces emanates a touch of modern elegance, with red contrasts adding the thrill of an active and sporting lifestyle. So nothing appears overdone or let alone obtrusive, since the emphasis remains on those specific qualities so typical of MINI.
This intentionally minimalist understatement and neutral style is enhanced, first, by the exceptional quality and innovative character of the materials used and, second, by the exterior colour changing with the perspective of the beholder and reflecting the surrounding area around the car. As a result,
MINI Concept Geneva is almost like a chameleon, acting as both an element and the highlight of the colourful world typically surrounding every MINI.
Satellite Silver paintwork colour.
The paintwork of the MINI Concept Study offers an entirely new rendition of aesthetic looks, an exciting duality of non-metallic and metallic paint:
Satellite Silver comes with a brilliant silver look in the light, while all points not directly illuminated from the perspective of the beholder come out in
a refined and sophisticated greyish tone. MINI achieves this special effect by way of the Silver Metallic paintwork applied in two layers, the colours of each layer varying slightly from one another.
Racing Red und White – the accentuation colours.
Using appropriate contrasting colours, MINI Concept Geneva underlines its individual, sporting performance and thus takes up an additional
design feature again typical of MINI: The wide range of equipment options allowing each customer to personalise his or her car.
At the same time the two accentuation colours Racing Red and White are a clear and honest tribute to the colour scheme of the MINI Cooper Works Rally Cars back in the 1960s: With only a few exceptions, Tartan Red was the body colour on all rally versions of the Mini.
On MINI Concept Geneva the covers on the Sports Utility Boxes on either side form an attractive contrast in Racing Red. A further feature is the stylised Monte logo also presented on the engine compartment lid as an attractive eye-catcher.
The diagonal joint between the side direction indicator and the side door is an icon which has grown over the years, originating from the welding seam on the classic Mini. This particular design element is made of polished aluminium with red inserts. The roof insert upfront of the spare wheel recess as well as the central covers on the multi-functional rims are also finished in Racing Red.
As consistent as the Mini Rally Cars were in their use of aggressive red paint, the roof always came in white. And indeed, this special touch was also boasted on the particularly sporting Mini Cooper and Mini Cooper S production models and remains a design feature typical of MINI to
this very day – together with the white mirror caps. Precisely this is why the entire roof on MINI Concept Geneva, together with the spare wheel recess and mirror caps, is finished in white.
Black neoprene contourline.
Normally surfers and sailors wear neoprene suits to protect themselves from cold temperatuares. MINI Concept Geneva, in turn, uses neoprene to maintain the special touch and feeling of its surfaces also on the exterior.
Through its special qualities and properties, neoprene offers several exciting effects all in one: The first point is that the sophisticated, silken-matt surface contrasts beautifully with the high-gloss Satellite Silver of the car’s body,
with similar, distinctive contrasts between the hard surface of the doors and wheel arches, on the one hand, and the soft structure of the neoprene contour, on the other: The neoprene returns after being pressed in or touched to its original shape, at the same time offering a unique feeling never experienced before in the world of motoring. So choosing this material clearly dedicated to active outdoor sports, the designers creating MINI Concept Geneva are again able to accentuate the car’s sporting appeal.
Aluminium adding a touch of lightness and sophisticated style.
Glossy and matt aluminium accentuates the exterior look of MINI Concept Geneva, conveying a very special message in the process. This applies particularly to all sections and components of the body taking over design features from the classic Mini Traveller. As an example, the C-pillars in striking aluminium look at the rear bear testimony to the car’s great heritage.
The frame around the radiator grille, the light surrounds at the front as well as the exhaust tailpipes are also finished in aluminium, emanating a touch of high performance combined with sheer luxury.
|
|
Last Updated ( Tuesday February 28, 2006 )
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| |
BMW AG News 
BMWsport Home | Supporting Members | Newsletters | BMW Racing News | Racing Schedules | BMW AG News | BMWsport Site News | Photo Galleries | BMW e30 Owners | For Sale | Giveaways | Sponsors | BMW Tech | Geneva Auto Show | NAIAS | Product Reviews | Special BMW's | BMW M1 Homage | 2009 ALMS M3 | 2006 BMW M5 | BMW History | Main Download Page | BMW Wallpapers | Videos | WinAMP Skins | Search | Links | Affiliates | Sitemap |
Maybe you all could support me a li...
Mike is #1 ;)
Clear the decks for the race versio...
Look out porsche...
login/logout disabled
fixed
Kumho Tires
2 years later - these tires were put ...
about the site lately
remember the PIC'S