2013 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman ALL4

2013 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman ALL4 2013 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman ALL4
Instrumented Test TESTED

Mini went maxi when it introduced the five-door Countryman in late 2010, and our response was tepid. Not much larger than a Honda Fit, it was snug inside for its circa-$28,000 price, none too pretty, a bit shivery over the bumps, and not quite the playful frolic that Mini’s other cars are. So nothing spectacular was expected with the arrival of the John Cooper Works, or JCW, which landed for 2013 along with a few upgrades to the Countryman.

Thus far, the JCW versions of every Mini have been characterized by hypertense reflexes and unyielding suspensions that hammer away at the softer elements of your spine and turn them to jelly. A suspension hardened into granite to satisfy some British fantasy of a freshly paved world comprised entirely of off-camber decreasing radii would undoubtedly destroy what is the Countryman’s chief selling point over its smaller brethren: greater everyday utility.

So count us surprised that the JCW Countryman ALL4 (unlike the base Countryman, the JCW only comes as an all-wheel-driver) proves such a startlingly appropriate balance of sport and utility. You get some welcome extra muscle from the 1.6-liter turbo four in the form of 208 horsepower, up by 27, and you get tight control responses and firm brakes. With an acceleration time to 60 mph of 6.8 seconds, the go-fast buzz is still mild by today’s standards—it’s just 0.1 second quicker than the standard Countryman ALL4—but it still means the 3322-pound JCW springs forward to a brisk beat drummed out by each upshift of the six-speed stick. (A six-speed auto is optional.)

And the expected pounding over urban pavement is strangely absent. The springs and shocks are mostly carried over from the regular Countryman but with a 0.4-inch height reduction. It’s all tuned to give way to speed bumps and potholes, softening the impact shock to a minimum and allowing you to just live with the JCW, especially on those odd days when a racetrack isn’t on the schedule. It’s all the more impressive given the JCW’s optional $750 19-inch wheels and 40-series Pirelli run-flats, normally a surefire recipe for ride harshness.

Dare we suggest that the Countryman’s less-rigid structure has something to do with Mini’s pragmatic suspension tune? As we mentioned, the biggest Mini isn’t quite the stiffy that its smaller counterparts are, and sending more impact energy rattling through the body would have been a bad idea. So the engineers have wisely chosen a lighter touch.