MAXIMUM WITH THE MINI

Mini Cooper Sets Pulses Racing

As a MINI technician at ONYX, Joe Peterson knows the brand’s vehicles inside and out—literally. Not only does he get to see a side of MINI that most owners aren’t privy to, as a top technician he was once offered an opportunity to experience MINI in a way that very few people ever will.

“I actually got to drive one down the straightaway at Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” Peterson said.

MINI has a history in motorsports dating back six decades and across the pond to when British automaker John Cooper first realized the racing potential of the MINI after driving a pre-production model. Cooper and his father, motorsport mechanic and designer Charles Cooper, had founded the Cooper Car Company, which produced innovative racing cars in the 1950s and 1960s. John Cooper, still lauded today for a rear-engine chassis design credited for transforming the sport of auto racing, was also an occasional driver. In 1960, he created a modified version of a 1959 MINI model for driver Roy Salvadori to race against an Aston Martin DB4 at the Monza track in Italy. The MINI won the event—by more than an hour.

MINI continued to be successful in racing, making its mark especially in the 1960s and 1970s; a MINI won at Monte Carlo four years in a row, among other victories. The Cooper name was eventually licensed for the higher-performance versions of MINI cars, and John Cooper (who died in 2000) and his son, Mike Cooper, both served in advisory roles for the MINI design team. For its 60th anniversary in 2019, MINI introduced a special edition vehicle in British Racing Green with unique anniversary racing stripes on the hood. It was a tribute to John Cooper’s role in launching MINI racing, as well as to the designer of the classic MINI (and Cooper’s friend), Sir Alexexander Issigonis.

MINI vehicles are still seen in races today, including right here in the United States. LAP Motorsports, based in Indianapolis, was founded in 2008 and is now a leader in race programs and teams in both North America and Europe. The organization owns and operates the “giant-slaying” MINI John Cooper Works team in the SRO TC America Series.

MINIs are powerful vehicles, Peterson said. He’s heard the jokes poking fun at the MINI’s diminuative measurements— the brand is called “mini” for a reason— but the vehicle’s small size, light weight, maneuverability, and robust engine make it ideal for racing.

Peterson said he “jumped all over the chance” to get behind the wheel of one of the racers, a JCW (for John Cooper Works) base model with standard racing mods but a stock MINI engine. The ride was brief but memorable.

“It was super quick,” he said, adding that although he didn’t know the exact miles per hour he reached, he certainly felt the sensation of speed. “I was like, ‘Wow, this is fun! I wanted to just keep going.”

Peterson looks back on the experience fondly. “I was honored and humbled to even get the opportunity to go do something like that.”

ONYX does carry JCW models, including the GP (for Grand Prix) versions that look most like racers, Peterson said. However, any JCW will “usually sell pretty quick.”

“From what I see, the customers who do like a sporty car, a small car, they go for the JCWs,” he said. “They know they do have power.”

“Well, people say that they look like a golf cart or similar, but they’re actually more like a go-kart. I would say a pretty quick go-kart,” Peterson said with a chuckle. “They have an ample amount of power and torque. They are fun, especially the manual transmission (models).”

MINIs also have different driving modes to optimize their performance in various driving conditions, he added. They’re low to the ground, making them very stable, and they handle turns very well. And some models have 300-plus horsepower, exceptional for their size. The MINIs modified for racing also have interior components like passenger seating scaled down or stripped out for reduced weight, and they have an impact-resistant fuel cell instead of a fuel tank for safety. So, all told, a racing MINI is “fast, fast, fast,” Peterson said. And seeing them up close on the track when he was invited to visit the MINI John Cooper Works team was an incomparable experience.

“You’re never going to see a tiny car like that just move the way it does, maneuver the way that it does,” he said. “Actually seeing these cars in action and some of the slight modifications that they made to make them able to handle on a track—it was pretty impressive.”

Peterson said that not only are MINIs outstanding on the track, they’re also great vehicles for everyday drivers, too.

“Being here at ONYX with the MINI brand for almost four years now, I’ve learned so much about these little cars,” he said. “Honestly, they are fun.”

Peterson praised the line’s solid construction and consistently high safety ratings, especially considering the compact size of even the largest MINI models (Countryman and Clubman). He also pointed out that MINIs are quality vehicles with a reputation for reliability and that the vehicles are incredibly fuel-efficient.

“Sometimes we do preventative maintenance services on these cars, and one of them is a fuel service. It takes so long to run through this little tiny car just because of the fuel efficiency,” he said. “MINI is a good economy car.”

For more information on the MINI, visit onyxautomotive.com.