Road test: The MINI 5-Door Cooper D

MINI already has its five-door Countryman, so why bring out a five-door hatch as well?

For a start, the Countryman is a fair bit bigger, competing with cars such as the VW Golf, whereas the three-door MINI Hatchback’s competitors include the VW Polo and Ford Fiesta, and their best sellers are the five-door versions. So Mini wants a bit of that action.

The new car is 161mm longer than the three-door, about half of which goes into extra rear legroom. So while it is roomier, legroom is still pretty scarce. The real advantage is that it is much easier to shoehorn small children into the back with the extra set of doors.

There are still 278 litres of loadspace in the boot, which has a height-adjustable floor and is much more commodious than MINIs of old.

Does the extra length rob the five-door Cooper D of its “go-kart” handling, as MINI likes to call it? Well, frankly, MINIs haven’t really handled like go-karts for years, and this car feels much like the three-door, although the longer wheelbase slightly improves the ride. On the minus side, the extra length loses a little of the three-door’s squat charm.

The cost of choosing five rather than three doors is £600 for each model, and the engine line-up remains the same. Prices range from £13,830 to £19,530.

Mini 5-Door Cooper D
Top speed: 126mph;
Emissions: 95g/km;
Combined MPG: 78.5;
Price: £17,050