LIKE a lot of people of my generation, my first car was a Mini. So was the second.
They were small and uncomfortable but I didn't care because, above all, they gave me freedom and were great fun to drive.
Very similar, in fact, to the BMW-built MINI (capital letters to distinguish it from the iconic 1959 design of Sir Alec Issigonis) that I was driving last week.
The 21st-century MINI looks and handles like a Mini, but it rides considerably better and has a great cabin - something the original never aspired to.
But MINI One, like its predecessor, has an engine that lacks real punch and gets thrashy when it's revved.
And it's not the full four-seater it's claimed to be.
But whatever its faults, MINI is a cult lifestyle choice to rival cars like the VW Lupo and Ford Ka on size, and the VW Beetle and smart on image.
The MINI One is competitively priced at £10,400, but the test car came with numerous options like the Salt Pack, air conditioning, alloy wheels, CD, rev counter and automatic stability control, all of which bumped up the cost to £12,620 which I think is a tad overpriced.
Standard kit is generous and includes ABS, electric mirrors and windows, disc brakes all round, electronic braking distribution and cornering brake control. It also has a height-adjustable driver's seat and rake-adjustable steering wheel.
The MINI is built in England, at the Cowley plant in Oxford that turned out the original Mini, but it is of BMW design, which ensures quality, and power comes from a Daimler Chrysler sourced engine built in South America. You can't get more international than that.
Behind the wheel the steering is sharp with plenty of feedback. With its wheel-at-each-corner design, body control is excellent and suspension sporty but a little too firm.
Grip and roadholding are good, particularly on the optional 16-inch alloys, and overall it is an engaging drive - very reminiscent of the original but far more refined and sophisticated.
The One is powered by a 16-valve 1.6-litre engine developing 90bhp. Performance is adequate but needs to be worked hard for it to give its best. Customers looking for sportier performance will, I suppose, buy the 115bhp Cooper or, best of all, the 163bhp Cooper S.
In the comfort stakes MINI One has a low-slung driving position that feels very sporty, (the seat does adjust for height if you feel too low down) and head and legroom in the front is excellent.
Not so in the back, where accommodation isn't much better than the cramped original. The rear seats are also fairly hard and unsupportive.
Boot space is woeful compared to some rivals, although the rear seats do split and fold forward to increase luggage capacity.
Despite its shortcomings, however, the MINI is going to be a "must have" fashion accessory for years to come, and therefore "desirable" in the eyes of car thieves.
So it is just as well that it comes with an immobiliser and remote locking as standard. An alarm is, surprisingly, only an option, but one worth having along with the tracking system
- Alistair Coull
THE Mini made its debut back in the late fifties, creating a beam of light among an otherwise drab and uninspiring line-up of economical runabouts.
The diminutive automobile, with its cheeky personality, was an immediate sensation, merging fun and modernity in the Swinging Sixties.
Its endearing demeanour won hearts across the globe, driving through age and class barriers to gain unprecedented popularity at every level of society.
Its famous wheel-at-each-corner layout and cute, road-hugging profile made it a certainty for the race track, where it collected trophy after trophy.
Even in its purest, unadulterated, road-going form, it still offered fun at the wheel and became a universal car, selling in some of the most unlikely corners of the world.
Today, the new MINI blends the best of tradition, innovative design and quality, and is primed to retail in no less than 50 different countries. Such is the might of the MINI.
It was a tall order, but BMW achieved the unnerving task - taking a much-loved cult car and injecting it with new vigour to match 21st-century standards, without sacrificing charisma.
The MINI One, on test, was powered by a 1.6-litre engine also common to the MINI Cooper, developing 90bhp as opposed to 115bhp. Nevertheless, the former was able to perform well.
However, it's not so much engine muscle, the 0-60mph sprint, or top speed that makes this supermini excel, but the agile way it handles - as well as its limpet-like grip on the road. Throw it around a corner and it sticks like glue.
But the real driving pleasure is the feeling of control fed through to the steering rim. The electronic power steering is wonderfully direct.
Its low-lying profile has always made the car vulnerable to being a bone-shaker, but intelligent damping in the suspension has helped to provide a very acceptable ride. Yes, you do still register the potholes, but somehow they don't seem quite as bad as you anticipate.
The new MINI has a neat, all-in-one bonnet, which sweeps into the subtly-shaped wheel arches, perfectly absorbing the large, round headlights.
Inside, the cabin is superbly planned and styled to give it maximum impact. A total retro look with lots of satinised aluminium furniture, which evokes a mix of the traditional and contemporary.
The seats are a masterpiece, providing excellent support - though not exactly comfortable for long-haul trips. Although the MINI One is a four-seater, I wouldn't want to travel in the back for too long. The big plus is the truly generous headroom - sufficient to take on board the six-foot brigade.
In its Liquid Yellow livery and Black Panther upholstery - and its seemingly seamless all-round glass - the test car cuts a dash.
There's an armful of standard safety and security features, such as four "intelligent" airbags which react according to the severity of the accident, non-skid brakes, and the MINI is the first in its segment to be fitted with a tyre pressure warning indicator. With approximately 80 per cent of all blow-outs being detected before the tyre bursts, this is a valuable safety feature.
- Val Jessop
FAST FACTS
MINI One
Price: £10,400
Mechanical: 90bhp, 1,598cc 4 cylinder petrol engine driving front wheels via 5-spd manual gearbox
Max speed: 112mph
0-62mph: 10.9 secs
Combined mpg: 43.5
Insurance group: 5
CO2 emissions: 158g/km
BiK rating: 15%
Warranty: 3yrs/ unlimited; 6yrs anti-rust