THE new Mini convertible has gone on sale just in time for summer, in Europe, which means it lobs here just in time for a frosty winter. Even so, Mini Cabrio fans will be glad to see the new drop-top pick up all the improvements that came with the latest generation R56 Mini hardtop. That means new engines, improved suspension, upgraded interior and a raft of other tweaks. The Cabrio also has some new attractions including a re-worked roof that can be retracted with a press of a button on the remote, or retract a little bit to simulate a sunroof. Its fixed roll hoops also remain largely hidden behind the rear seats, popping up in an accident, thereby improving the look of the car when the lid is down, as well as rear visibility. Like the hardtop Mini, you can choose between Cooper Cabrio and the rorty turbo Cooper S Cabrio.
R52 Mini Cooper Cabrio
Released: January 2005
Ended: March 2009
Family Tree: ConvertibleTHE R52 Mini Cabrio followed the first generation of the BMW Mini and was introduced in Australia in December 2004. Mini continued to sell the Cabrio even after the second-generation hardtop (R56) arrived in 2007 running all the way through to the launch of the new car in March 2009. It was available with the same engines as its hardtop brothers, an 85kW four-cylinder for the Cooper and a supercharged 125kW four for the Cooper S. Weighing in at around 100kg more than the regular car, the Mini Cabrio had a bottom hinged boot to allow more roof for the retracting roof which was fabric rather than metal. The Cooper S Cabrio could dash from 0-100km/h in 7.4 seconds, which, at the time, made it the fastest accelerating convertible below $100,000. Mini fitted the R52 Cabrios with rear parking sensors as standard because of the fixed rear roll hoops that obscured vision.
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