Skip to Content

» Buyers Guide » Mini Convertibles » Mini Convertible

Mini Convertible (2004-2008)

Slicing the top of the Mini Coupe made the Mini Convertible, a cute little car all the more desirable with all the lively characteristics still intact. The extra weight added by chassis stiffening has blunted the car’s straight-line performance, but it is still one of the most fun and agile handling cars you will find at any price. The Mini’s open top drive is refined with little wind gusting into the well designed cabin however room for back seat passengers is limited. The electrically folding roof works well but does restrict rear vision when either up or down.

It has four-seat practicality and a quality roof that means it can be used all year round without worries that the weather might come in. On the downside, the Mini Convertible isn’t relaxing to drive over a long distance and the engine and gearbox need to be worked hard to get the best out of them. There isn’t a lot of space in the back seats, as you might expect and even less in the luggage compartment so you will need to pack light.

Standard equipment is excellent, but the popular Chilli Pack adds some extras such as air-conditioning and xenon headlights that are well worth having. The bigger wheel options look great but they do harm the ride quality and the handling doesn’t flow so well from one bend to the next.

Mini Convertible Details

Production Dates2004-2008
Length 3635 mm / 143 in
Width 1925 mm / 76 in
Height 1415 mm / 56 in
Wheelbase 2467 mm / 97 in
Turning Circle 10 m / 394 in
Luggage Capacity 120 litres / 4.24 cu ft
Fuel Tank Capacity 50 litres / 13.2 US gal
Warranty 3 years or unlimited miles
Service Intervals Variable miles

Mini One Convertible

The Mini has been a massive success for BMW by providing a premium quality small car with a unique personality and cheeky styling. The Mini One Convertible is the entry level of the drop-top version and packages the most desirable components into one affordable model. The Mini One Convertible gets the same 1.6 as the Cooper just as a detuned version. It still has plenty of go for everyday driving and has the same characteristic enthusiasm as the other models.

Specifications

Fuel type Unleaded Petrol
Engine type Straight 4
Engine Capacity 1598 cc
Power 90@5500 bhp
Torque 103@3000 lb.ft
Transmission type 5-spd manual
Kerb Weight 1165 kg / 2568 lb
UK Retail Price from £13,640
UK Insurance Group 6/17

Performance

Max speed (manual) 109 mph / 175 kph
0-60mph (manual) - seconds
0-100kmph (manual) 11.9 seconds

Economy and Emissions

EU Combined Fuel Economy (manual) 40.4 mpg / 7 L/100km
CO2 Emissions (manual) 168 g/km

Mini Cooper Convertible

The Mini Cooper Convertible is an iconic little car that is fun to drive top up or down. It literally out maneuvered the established competitors with great handling and youthful style. This winning combination has made it a common site but it still remains desirable and they hold onto their prices well.

The Cooper engine is characterfully keen to go and brings out the best from the agile chassis. While this Mini might be a long way from the compact original it does share its nimble handling which makes it as much fun around town as bombingaround windy country lanes. The steering is sharp and provides good feedback leaving you with lots of confidence that you can place it exactly where you want.

Specifications

Fuel type Unleaded Petrol
Engine type Straight 4
Engine Capacity 1598 cc
Power 115@6000 bhp
Torque 110@4500 lb.ft
Transmission type 6-spd manual / 6-spd auto
Kerb Weight 1175 kg / 2590 lb
UK Retail Price from £14,970
UK Insurance Group 9/23

Performance

Max speed (manual) 120 mph / 193 kph
Max speed (auto) 113 mph / 182 kph
0-100kmph (manual) 9.8 seconds
0-100kmph (auto) 11.2 seconds

Economy and Emissions

EU Combined Fuel Economy (manual) 38.7 mpg / 7.3 L/100km
EU Combined Fuel Economy (auto) 37.2 mpg / 7.6 L/100km
CO2 Emissions (manual) 174 g/km
CO2 Emissions (auto) 182 g/km

Mini Cooper S Convertible

The supercharged Mini Cooper S Convertible has the power to make this fun little car into a serious performance machine. Only the bonnet scoop and a few discrete badges mark it out from a standard Cooper but get behind the wheel and you realise that this is quite a different car.

In the other cars the agile chassis is crying out for more power and the Cooper S prooves that it can comfortably cope with it. It is hugely confidence inspiring to drive and forgiving when you push it a bit too far which means you can make use of all that power whenever you want to. The supercharger whine isn't subtle and has been compared to the transmission noise of the original Mini so seems to fit in well. Steering is pricise and full of feedback so you always know what the wheels are doing.

Thanks to the light weight and small capacity engine the fuel consumption and emissions figures are very reasonable which make this one sporting car that is easy to live with.

Specifications

Fuel type Unleaded Petrol
Engine type Straight 4
Engine Capacity 1598 cc
Power 170@6000 bhp
Torque 162@4000 lb.ft
Transmission type 6-spd manual / 6-spd auto
Kerb Weight 1240 kg / 2733.7 lb
UK Retail Price from £18,005
UK Insurance Group 16/32

Performance

Max speed (manual) 134 mph / 216 kph
Max speed (auto) 134 mph / 216 kph
0-100kmph (manual) 7.4 seconds
0-100kmph (auto) 7.9 seconds

Economy and Emissions

EU Combined Fuel Economy (manual) 34 mpg / 8.3 L/100km
EU Combined Fuel Economy (auto) 32.5 mpg / 8.7 L/100km
CO2 Emissions (manual) 199 g/km
CO2 Emissions (auto) 208 g/km

Information last updated

2 Owner Reviews

Do you drive a Mini Convertible? Would you recommend it to others? Join the conversation and let us know what you think of the car. This Mini currently has 2 owner reviews.

  1. Avatar for sonia sonia says:

    would like to know what is the price for an automatic diesel , convertible mini.

  2. Avatar for Editor Editor says:

    Your local dealer will be able to give you a price but roughly it will be an additional £1000 GBP / €1200 / $1600 USD over the manual price.

Leave an Owner Review

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


By submitting a comment you grant Convertible Car Magazine a perpetual license to reproduce your words and name/web site in attribution. Inappropriate and irrelevant comments will be removed at an admin’s discretion. Your email is used for verification purposes only, it will never be shared.