Second life-time-tweak for Mini’s models – 3-Door, 5-Door, Convertible, Electric and two John Cooper Works models – in Singapore brings cosmetic updates and less cluttered, more techy interior, active safety and more

SINGAPORE – Here’s something you don’t see every day – a double-facelift for a non-East Asian (Japanese or Korean) car. That’s exactly what Mini has done with six cars in its model line-up: The 3-Door and 5-Door hatchbacks, the Convertible, the Electric, the JCW 3-Door, and the JCW Convertible. 

Mini Singapore also says the re-refreshed range is on display from Saturday 5th June, 2021 at the Mini Habitat on 27 Leng Kee Road.

That leaves the Mini Clubman and Countryman (both regular and JCW versions) untouched by this face-facelift (internally termed ‘LCI 2’ in BMW speak, as the BMW Group owns Mini). That’s because these two cars were already facelifted at the end of 2020 – you can read our reviews of them here. 

2021 facelifted Mini lineup

We’re still on the third-generation Mini, and it first debuted in 2013, with a first LCI update in 2018/19. This 2021 LCI2 is
as far as nip-tweaks go, this is quite mild, but quite welcome as it adopts a less cluttered design both inside and out, and the addition of one or two novel interior features. 

Taking the face-facelifted Mini One 5-Door hatchback as the case study, you can see how the round foglights have been deleted and replaced by air-curtains (an aero feature first commonly seen on BMWs). 

The grille isn’t larger, but appears that way thanks to a new unifying oval that circles both the grille and the lower air intake section. It’s also on the rear of the car, encompassing the car’s tailpipes – though it’s absent on the zero-emissions Mini Electric. Behind the numberplate, the body section is now painted the same as the rest of the car, where previously it was black.

The LED lights now have a black inner section. The Cooper S Convertible and Mini Electric come with Adaptive LED headlights as standard, with automatic matrix high beams that avoid dazzling other drivers at night. 

Typical of facelifts, there are new colour and wheel options. For the non-JCW cars, Rooftop Grey Metallic, Island Blue Metallic, and Zesty Yellow. The latter can be seen along with the new Pulse wheel design on the Cooper S Cabriolet here. 

Inside, driver’s will notice the new touches first: There’s an updated steering wheel which comes with Nappa leather on all of the regular Mini models mentioned, and there’s Piano black ‘one piece’ buttons that look much sleeker than the previous setup. 

Behind the wheel is the new 5.0-inch driver’s multifunctional instrument display, which we first saw in the Mini Electric, but which the other Minis lacked. That car receives a HUD too, this time around. 

How far can the fully electric Mini Cooper SE really go in Singapore?

The central infotainment screen has jumped from 6.5-inches to 8.8-inches, and also gains a new laser-etched LED light surround that’s fancier than the LED ring from before.  Next to it, there’s a new, enlarged dashboard trim panel

The infotainment seens an improved interface that features cleaner icons, a more modern (read: smartphone-esque) design, and widgets. The Connected Navigation option (with realtime traffic info) is now standard on all cars, and wireless Apple CarPlay makes its bow as well – Android Auto remains wired for now. 

There’s a new Mini App, which adds more features for the BEV (battery electric vehicle) Mini Electric in particular – we explore what the Mini Connected suite and the app can do in this story. 

Mechanically, all the cars maintain their current levels of performance, but they do gain the better Euro 6d emissions rating, thanks to a gasoline particulate filter. 

One very welcome addition to the face-facelift models is active safety, which at this price range should certainly be expected as standard equipment. Mini’s active safety suit consists of collision warning/mitigation for cars and pedestrians, lane departure warning, and speed limit detection. All new Mini models pack it, including the JCWs, explained further below. 

John Cooper Works Models

The two John Cooper Works models – the Cabriolet and 3-Door – see largely the same changes as the regular Minis do: Tweaked styling, improved interior tech and ergonomics. As BMW M is to BMW, so is JCW to Mini, so the cars have the typical uprated engines, brakes, and chassis improvements.

Mini says the highlight of the new cars is the Adaptive Suspension, which is standard, and has updated dampers which vary/respond based on the frequency of the ride quality. It has a response time of 50 to 100ms, says Mini, and now has up to 10 percent more damping force than previous. 

If you want something sporty and not costing an arm and a leg, why not consider a used Mini or similar – find one and lots more at ucars.sg!

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