0:00
/0:10

Watch with sound!

Yesterday, 20 August, AGMC welcomed guests to The CARS Café at Dubai Autodrome and unveiled the MINI 1965 Victory Edition in Dubai. It is a modern John Cooper Works created to honour the 1965 Rallye Monte-Carlo victory of Timo Mäkinen and Paul Easter in the Mini Cooper S. Hence the Chili Red paint, white roof, body stripes and, above all, racing number 52. The current version produces 231 hp and 380 Nm, accelerating to 100 km/h in 6.1 seconds.

This is how it looked at yesterday’s presentation

Our relationship with MINI is almost a family one. Ira drives a green Cooper, and we genuinely love it. When she is away — especially in summer — I happily swap my huge Tahoe for it. It uses considerably less fuel, yet can sometimes deliver even more pleasure: small, agile, quick and beautifully responsive, it darts around Dubai like a green goldfinch.

Yesterday reminded me again why this car has so many fans. MINI does not try to look big or serious — it simply knows how to turn an ordinary drive into something enjoyable.