I wasn’t a fan of this small SUV – I was so wrong

Minis have always been an oddball choice in Australia. Whether it’s the Mini Cooper or the Mini Countryman, you have to be a certain type of buyer to sidestep the obvious premium-oriented options – such as the Audi A1/A3 or the BMW X1, respectively – in order to put money down for a Mini.

That’s no bad thing, I promise. Take the Mini Countryman for example. It’s a stylish car offering a dose of luxury and some unique design in a popular segment. But small SUV buyers don’t automatically gravitate towards the British classic – you have to be a Mini person to want one.

I am not a Mini person. For better or worse, I’m geared in a more pragmatic way in which Minis have typically not really appealed to me before.

But, keen to give it my best shot, I recently drove one across the United Kingdom on holiday and I think it changed me.

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This story is best told in separate stages so you can follow along and take note of any highlights in case you ever find yourself in that neck of the woods.

Here’s what the Mini Countryman and I got up to after spending a few weeks and a few thousand kilometres together…

The Mini Countryman takes on its namesake…

First of all, allow me to set the scene. The specific Mini Countryman I had was the entry-level Mini Countryman C with a turbocharged 1.5-litre engine and an automatic transmission.

There are some minor spec mismatches between the British version and the cars we’re offered locally, but the equivalent model in Australia costs $49,990 before on-road costs.

The car we had featured an option package that added some properly handy features: keyless entry, a panoramic glass sunroof, sliding rear seats, a Harman/Kardon sound system, head-up display, and adaptive cruise control with lane-centring all tied in nicely with our road trip across the country.

The car ferried us from London to England’s north, where my partner grew up and her family still reside, and back again over the course of a fortnight.

I’ve only ever been to London before, so getting out of the city and touring England proper was something I was looking forward to – especially by road.

London to Carlisle

We picked up the Mini Countryman during an uncharacteristically sunny morning in London’s west and immediately set course for Carlisle, the last major English city you pass before entering Scotland.

This is a 5.5-hour journey on a good day, but London’s traffic is painfully slow-going on a Monday – even outbound.

After seeing the Mini’s 505-litre boot first-hand, I was a bit worried about stowing two large suitcases side by side. But they slotted into place beside each other perfectly without too much hassle. They did end up being too long to close the power-operated boot, but luckily the rear bench slid forward to allow a bit of extra space.

I love this feature in a small SUV, it allows the interior space to be much more customisable than you’d ordinarily get for a car of its size.

Locked and loaded, we were on the M6 motorway heading north out of the city. There’s relatively little to see in the way of views because the motorways in England are often surrounded by lush, green hedgerows.

That said, we weren’t missing out on much anyway. England is notoriously flat until you get to the northern parts. Anyway, the highway schlep provides a good opportunity to explore the Mini’s weird circular infotainment screen and interior.

I love the way it looks – quite unlike anything else on the market. The functionality is great too – it’s quick to respond, navigation around the system is easy to remember once you’re familiar, and the included features are handy.

Because the Mini system is a BMW iDrive derivative underneath, it still gets the confused Apps screen that contains too many options, but all key shortcuts are represented on the home screen on a panel at the bottom of the display.

The home screen layout is full of information without overburdening the driver. You’ve got a speed readout at the top (in addition to a head-up display) and air-conditioning controls at each bottom corner.

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The Apple CarPlay/Android Auto displays in an odd square format on a circular background; hopefully, there will be revisions in the future to make it seem more integrated.

As for the interior itself, I’m a huge fan of how it looks and feels. In place of leather coverings, the Mini selects knitted panels for the dashboard, door tops, and around the centre console. It not only looks brilliant, but it’s a nice touchy-feely part of the car too.

There are cool pull tabs for the centre console bin, enough storage for cameras, wallets, keys, and phones, plus a pair of lovely-feeling front seats.

It’s a premium interior done differently and it’s a joy to interact with.

But I digress. Mid-way through our journey I’m reminded that the English have a weird obsession with motorway service centres because it was time to grab lunch and my partner was hurriedly Googling which motorway stop was the best bet.

We settled on a spot just out of Stafford and picked up some salads before eating them by the man-made lake within the centre.

In the time it took to eat lunch, a stoppage of traffic had amassed just outside the service station on the freeway which took 45 minutes to clear. I’m not saying that Australia’s traffic situation is any better than England’s but the way in which traffic banks up almost instantaneously in England is wild.

At least the countryside was starting to look more interesting once we hit the north. After passing through Preston, the surroundings start to become hilly and dramatic, the roads become windier, and less traffic clogs up the motorways. The weather also turns sour, but I’m told that’s commonplace.

My partner takes over the driving as we near Carlisle and the countryside surrounding her village. Despite the Mini’s size and almost no vision of the road, she’s confidently tackling tight B-roads with alarming pace.

The hedgerows reach high and block the road ahead which means you have to take the roads slow and in anticipation of a car coming the other way – or at least I thought. Turns out the locals know better.

Carlisle to Edinburgh and the Scottish Highlands

Crossing the border into Scotland is a 10-minute exercise from my partner’s childhood home and it’s done without fanfare. There are no major landmarks, no rivers to cross, and no bagpipers on hand to serenade our entry.

However, the scenery is stunning – even viewed from a motorway. The southern Scottish countryside is typified by bright green hills, acres upon acres of cattle (sheep and cows mainly), and cute country cottages.

It’s almost enjoyable driving the Mini on the freeways throughout the United Kingdom. The drivers are so much better disciplined and have an acute awareness of their surroundings.

Merge onto a freeway and other motorists will change lanes to get out of your way, they’ll get out of the right-hand lane if you’re coming up behind them, and it’s generally a much more social way of driving.

That said, the Mini revels in a chance to turn off the motorway and flex its 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine too. Outputs in the UK-spec versions are slightly higher than the cars we get in Australia – 125kW/280Nm vs 115kW/230Nm – but it can still feel out of puff when you press the throttle at the wrong moment.

At full throttle it perks up nicely for overtakes – important in the UK where overtaking lanes are rarer than in Australia – but there’s a latency to response at lower speeds. The seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is quick to shift on the move but can stumble over itself at low speeds.

The A-road run into Edinburgh is dotted with little villages to trundle through and rural sections with tall tree canopies. Each neighbourhood has its own little idiosyncrasies and differences which have probably stood for centuries.

Edinburgh itself is absolutely stunning. This is the proper old-timey experience and architecture I was expecting on my visit to the United Kingdom. I wasn’t disappointed.

It’s easy-going threading the Mini’s nose through the tight city streets of Old Town. The car barely gets a second look due to the sheer abundance of Minis running about the place; they simply look right at home on the cobblestones of the stone-walled streets.

I loved the bright sun shining into the cabin from the huge sunroof. The extra light makes it feel very spacious inside the cabin. Despite the new-generation Mini Countryman being the biggest one yet, it remained a simple prospect to reverse park in the street.

Although I could have spent an entire holiday milling about Edinburgh, it wasn’t our final destination. We set a wacky course for the Scottish Highlands, trying to hit as many landmarks as possible on the way there.

It’s not long before we pass by the first attraction – the Scottish Kelpies. The Kelpies are two monumental horse heads protruding from the earth, designed to pay tribute to Scottish water spirits.

Another tourist-trap tick-box is to stop off and see a furry Highland cow, which we achieved just outside Callander. The breed is known for its leaner beef, but judging by the tourist shops that offer endless Highland cow-related souvenirs – the tourism draw is arguably more important.

As we neared our Glencoe turnaround point, the scenery became much more mountainous and there were plenty of idyllic lochs in the valleys to appreciate. It’s hard not to think of the geological history in such a gorgeous, dramatic-looking place.

Weirdly, grass follows the mountains right up to their peaks, which make them seem smaller than they are.

Although the roads become increasingly tight and twisty the further north you go, the tourist traffic is real. The one-lane roads are a tricky prospect given you have to wait in designated “Passing Places” for other oncoming traffic to pass by.

But the Mini Countryman seems built for this country. It’s easy to thread the car’s nose past other SUVs, buses, and trucks.

All the lochs have beautiful glassy reflections and it seems every direction you look you’re met with a postcard view.

We opted for an alternate route back down into England, but it doesn’t matter which way you go – whatever Scottish countryside you see on your route you’re bound to witness awe-inspiring scenery.

Our journey passed through the Peebles and Moffat before leaving Scotland and these remote towns are surrounded by incredible uninterrupted mountains and lochs. The fields were full of bright wildflowers and the gloomy sky over the meadows looked straight out of James Bond’s Skyfall.

Although I praise the way the Mini was able to tackle the tight roads through this countryside, I wouldn’t want to be driving anything bigger. The truck drivers looked like they were having a bad time trying to negotiate with other cars, and the blind corners beside steep drop-offs seemed threatening.

All in all, we made it back into England in one piece – though plenty of flies and insects had given their lives along the journey if the Countryman’s grille was anything to go by.

Carlisle to Yorkshire

The next major road trip completed behind the Mini’s wheel was down to Yorkshire – famous for tea, puddings, castles, and various historic towns and cities.

Ordinarily, the journey from the west side of the country to the east is a straight shot on the motorway, but ever-keen to explore more Britain, I plot a southerly route that touches the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

I thought the roads were tight in Carlisle and the Scottish Highlands – but the thoroughfares in this part of the country are on another level.

It’s genuinely wince-inducing passing between hand-lain stone walls on either side of the car and quite often you’re genuinely waiting to hear the screech of metal-on-metal as you sidle up against another vehicle.

Yet, the Mini Countryman escapes unscathed. It’s the perfect size, allowing my partner and I to ferry her parents, while packing in enough luggage for everyone in the boot. A large SUV like a Toyota Kluger or a Kia Sorento might have more interior space, but it would have become difficult to maneouver in some of the areas we ventured.

When I picture Australia, I like to think it’s a pretty lush and green country – especially the east coast where I live. But England puts that to shame.

There is so much greenery and so much growth, and it’s a lovely sight to see on a sunny day. It’s cool that the country’s past is always on display no matter where you go.

Copious hand-built aqueducts point towards Britain’s railway past and it’s awesome to see farm stone walls – built to demarcate property lines – are still standing hundreds (even thousands) of years later.

Before heading down to York city itself, we made a stop for a fish and chips dinner in the port town of Whitby on the east coast. Whitby’s the seaside town where the story Dracula is largely set, and it’s the port where Captain James Cook first set sail on his journey of discovery to Australia.

Today, it’s a quaint fishing village with historic abbey ruins and countless chippy shops.

Back on the road, the Mini was winning fans from both the front and back seats. The three-cylinder engine is very quiet on the open road and minimal wind noise makes its way into the cabin. Even though we were all sat in the car for an entire day, no one was particularly tired which is a good sign.

It’s also a comfortable cruiser in terms of ride quality. Though it only has a single set of dampers, the suspension absorbs all kinds of road impacts without upsetting the cabin refinement.

I do like the fact that Mini opted to include a head-up display with a speedometer – the central speedo display can be hard to track because it’s out of your line of sight.

My partner didn’t love how thick the steering wheel was, but I like a chunky grip on the wheel – it fit my hands perfectly. The steering doesn’t offer too much in the way of feedback, but it is direct and allows you to hook into a corner with minimal effort.

In addition to the adaptive cruise control system, our Countryman came with a Driving Assistant Plus program that can automatically slow the car down before roundabouts or corners.

It’s cool how Mini stuck with funky turn-key-style switchgear for the ignition, and the rocker switch for the gear selector was easy to use. At night, the cabin can light up with impressive projections over the dashboard and the mirrors throw puddle lights down onto the ground whenever you open the doors.

York’s city centre itself isn’t a great place to travel by car – it’s busy and the parking options are limited. But there’s still plenty to check out, either on foot or by boat on the River Ouse.

Outside of town, it’s worth stopping by the ornate and oversized Castle Howard to check out how the other half lived (and continue to live). You might recognise the building and surroundings from the Netflix series Bridgerton.

Carlisle to the Lake District

The final journey on our whistlestop tour of Great Britain was to visit the Lake District. With breathtaking mountains and giant lakes, it promised some of England’s most scenic countryside, and the region has become a tourist hotspot in recent years.

Through Covid-19 and the shutting of borders, many Brits took to touring their own countryside and the Lake District hit the mainstream thanks to its relative closeness and awe-inspiring views.

As became a theme for our trip, I was forewarned of the narrow roads and tourist traffic. But a sunny day in England beckoned and busy roads did little to deter my enthusiasm for what sounded like an epic place.

The Lake District is a holiday spot with hundreds of individual walks to conquer and a series of lakes for boating and swimming. It’s also a big farming district and it’s common to come across sheep and cattle running about the various country lanes and over the hills.

Despite the sheep seemingly having a death wish, I managed to avoid them on the journey towards Keswick.

Though our Mini Countryman was solely front-wheel drive, the little SUV trundled up the mountainous passes without any issues. It wasn’t raining, but the bitumen did get scraggly and broken up with overuse so I imagine it could be difficult for some cars to find purchase on the imperfect roads.

In any case, the views at the top of one of the largest hills were insane. Arguably more dramatic than Glencoe and the Scottish Highlands, the mountains seemingly go on forever.

They’re covered in thick bracken ranging in colour from green to purple, while the lakes down below looked resplendent in the sunlight. Despite a temperature barely above 20 degrees celsius, we saw swimmers in the lakes down below making the most of the British summer.

The Lake District is no different to any other part of England, there are various villages to pass through and each one is either known for something different or has long-standing ties to the past.

Keswick (one of the main towns) lies on the lake called Derwentwater, where Derwent Pencils was founded in 1832, while Buttermere is a small village known for its sheep farming and one of the best viewpoints in the district.

The Lake District is the perfect spot for a hike and picnic, as we did, though you have to pick your day well or be careful how quickly the weather rolls in. Clouds began threatening our walk along the hilltops and when the rain falls, it falls hard.

Wet, muddy, and exhausted – including the dog – we jump back in the Mini for the journey back home.

There are plenty of other Minis on the road proving that the English have some proper country pride. Everyone I talked to along our journey had some kind of Mini-related story and it’s obvious that they continue to cherish the car today, some 60 years later.

As for me, I can’t deny that the Countryman grew on me over 1823 miles (2933km) and two weeks. In my view, it transcends being a left-field offering and stands out as a genuinely well-appointed, practical, and spacious luxury small SUV.

The fact that it retains cool, kitsch styling attributes is just a bonus.

The post I wasn’t a fan of this small SUV – I was so wrong appeared first on Drive.

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