The Mini Clubman Is Weirdly Appealing Now Prices Have Dropped Under £2k
I remember being highly sceptical about the Mini Clubman when it was first revealed. First off, it had the wrong name - ‘Traveller’ was the term usually reserved for estate Minis, but since BMW didn’t have the rights to it, the ‘Clubman’ moniker used for the slab-faced Mini of the same name was borrowed instead.
It also wasn’t as practical as hoped, and it has that weird rear-hinged ‘suicide’ door, which was only on one side. That side being the ‘wrong’ one in the UK because it opened into the road. Awks.
However, as with so many cars we probably wouldn’t have given a second look before, depreciation has won us over. Prompted by a Tweet from a journalist at CT sister title Car Buyer, we dived into the classifieds, finding that early R55 Clubmans start under £2000.
What’s more, with the new version having a bulbous and bloated aesthetic, the original one now looks especially smart. And, they’re potentially quite quick - Cooper, Cooper S and even JCW derivatives were available.
A stretched wheelbase inevitably brought with it an increase in weight, but tipping the scales at around 1200kg, the Clubman isn’t exactly a heavyweight. So, go for a Cooper S with a 1.6-litre, 168bhp turbocharged inline-four (the supercharged 1.6 died off with the previous generation, unfortunately), and you’ll be able to hit 62mph in a respectable 7.3 seconds.
If it’s a Cooper S-flavoured Clubman you want, you will need to up the budget - prices start at around £3500. This one is up for £3900, and looks lovely in Orient Blue with a silver contrasting roof and racing stripes.
It’s done 73,500 miles, which is about average for the year. There’s a full service history, and although we can’t quite tell in the pictures, it looks to be wearing Dunlop tyres all round - a boon when a lot of cars of this age will come with a mix of random brands you’ve never heard of.
Tempted? Or would you go for another practical-ish hot hatch from the mid-2000s?
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
The reason why that rear-hinged suicide door (called the ‘Clubdoor’ by MINI themselves) on the early R55 Clubmans opened into the road in the UK and other right-hand-drive markets where it was sold is because “having the Clubdoor on the other side, or on either side, would have meant re-engineering the whole chassis, moving the fuel tank rearwards into a less safe position, redesigning the fuel system and doing a whole set of new crash tests. It would have been prohibitively expensive.”
So it really came down to cost. It was just cheaper to have the Clubdoor on only one side of the car - the driver’s side in the UK - regardless of whether it was a left or right-hand-drive car.
Thanks for pointing out - have since updated. The new one has two regular rear doors, it’s worth pointing out, no doubt made much easier as there’s now a five-door Mini hatch to base it on. Also, the Clubman is now a lot bigger…
If my OCD can get over the singular suicide door I’m really drawn to it.
If my OCD could, so could yours. I have a rare end run last Kite Blue ever built 2014 John Cooper Works Clubman with the Recaro interior.
My Mum had a Cooper D. Loved it; that or the MGB Roadster were the two cars that meant most in my childhood.
Love mine! Best. Car. Ever.
A rare car.
Love my little Hampton edition Cooper SD. Made to mark 50 years of the Clubman name plate and one of only 104 on UK roads. Frugal and fun!
For me it’s an awesome sleeper material.
Love mine - 08 Cooper S with nearly every option ticked. Picked up for 3500 with 75k. decent little car. N14 engine will keep you on your toes with regular checkups and maintenance however :P