Mini is offering Americans a new pocket rocket. A car that promises to be launched with blistering speed even on snow. It accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h in 5.2 seconds and reaches a top speed of 265 km/h. The MINI John Cooper Works GP is the fastest model of the British premium brand ever to receive road approval. And this also applies in winter, of course. For this reason, MINI is offering winter tyres specially designed for this extreme athlete.
The ultra-high performance tyres developed by tyre manufacturer Hankook for the cold season are ideally suited for enjoying the outstanding power and race feel of the MINI John Cooper Works GP even on snowy tracks.
Just like the summer tyres in the Ultra Ultra High Performance category specially tailored to the MINI John Cooper Works GP, the manufacturer Hankook also supplies the tyres for the cold season as an original equipment manufacturer. Winter i*cept evo 2 tyres, size: 195/45 R18 87H XL are available for the high-performance athlete. They are mounted on model-specific, 18-inch John Cooper Works light-alloy wheels. This combination ensures hallmark MINI agility and precise handling characteristics in demanding winter road conditions. In particular, an asymmetric tread design with specially shaped sipes and grooves optimises both traction and braking on snow-covered roads.
With the enhanced grip of its winter tyres, the MINI John Cooper Works GP, manufactured in a small series of just 3 000 units, is ideally equipped for excursions through snowy landscapes. Neither packed snow nor icy stretches of road nor wet and thawed roads can stop the irresistible forward momentum of this extreme athlete. The model-specific winter tyres ideally complement the suspension technology, which is perfectly tuned to the car’s high engine performance delivered thanks to the John Cooper Works racing expertise and the precisely tuned suspension control systems. Traction from a standing start is optimised, as well as driving stability during fast cornering manoeuvres.
The MINI John Cooper Works GP takes the premium small car performance experience to a whole new level. Its 2.0-litre 4-cylinder engine with MINI TwinPower Turbo technology generates a peak output of 225 kW/306 hp and a maximum torque of 450 Nm. This concentrated power is transmitted to the front wheels, which are fitted with the model-specific ultra-high-performance winter tyres, via an 8-speed Steptronic transmission, which ensures that the drive torque is converted into thrilling performance without any loss thanks to an integrated differential lock.
The mechanical differential lock is networked with the DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) driving stability system and acts as a transverse lock to reduce the speed difference between the right and left front wheels. Under load demand, a blocking effect of up to 31 percent can be generated. The differential lock also counteracts a loss of traction when road friction varies. To achieve this it directs a higher proportion of the drive torque to the wheel with the better grip. This prevents the car from under or oversteering at an early stage.
The optimised grip properties of the winter tyres also make the MINI John Cooper Works GP’s sports braking system even more effective. The system features four-piston fixed-calliper disc brakes on the front wheels and single-piston fist-calliper disc brakes on the rear wheels.
