Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
According to GulfWeekly assistant editor and chief motoring correspondent Charlie Holding, besides its Hollywood history, there are other, more important, reasons for the Mini’s worldwide adoration … the way it looks and handles.
Although the marque has come in many variations over the years, its iconic design is instantly recognisable and it remains ‘effortlessly cool’.
He was full of praise for the Mini Cooper he recently tested. The model he drove featured two-tone leather seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with audio and Bluetooth controls and ‘the biggest speedometer’ he had ever seen housed within the central stack.
‘Sitting close to the ground, these cars have a low centre of gravity, which not only gives the impression you’re travelling faster, it also holds them to the road like glue. Thanks to this phenomenal handling, the Mini delivers a driving experience not easily forgotten,’ he wrote.
‘Despite my best efforts to remember there are two t’s in ‘butter’, as a Londoner, my inner Cockney occasionally comes out and never was it more prevalent than during my day in the Mini. I am under no illusion that I am as cool or famous as Sir Michael, but I certainly felt like it while cruising around Manama in this car.
‘Highway driving was a doddle thanks to the rapid acceleration and the manoeuvrability was, in Cockney terminology, blinding! Even stop and go traffic around Exhibitions Avenue was met with ease in this car, smooth and comfortable all the way’.
Under the bonnet was a deceptively powerful 1.6-litre engine boasting 140bhp, paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission.
The most famous line in The Italian Job is ‘You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!’ delivered by Sir Michael. Well, this car ‘blew my bloody mind off!’, he reported.
Prices start from BD11,000. For more information, visit the Sitra showroom or call Euro Motors on 17750750.
