MINI premieres the next big thing in MINI Motorsport’s distinguished history, the all new MINI John Cooper Works Rally. First competitive foray for the new star is the 2017 Dakar Rally.
The introduction of the all-new MINI John Cooper Works Rally underlines MINI Motorsport’s long-term commitment to its involvement in motorsport especially in the arena of rally-raid and the FIA World Cup, the legendary Dakar Rally and the latest long-distance endurance challenge of the Silk Way Rally.
The 2017 MINI John Cooper Works Rally is an exciting new development from MINI and X-raid and destined to repeat race success achieved so far. Based on the all-new MINI Countryman, its sporting dynamics readily provided a platform for the new MINI John Cooper Works Rally and its role as a specialist cross-country rally car.
To produce a car able to successfully tackle and survive the rigours of cross-country rally is a challenge in itself. However, the MINI John Cooper Works Rally has been designed and constructed to achieve and exceed the same level of success as the previous car thanks to an exacting development programme.
The MINI John Cooper Works Rally will also be subject to constant development via motorsport partner X-raid in order for the new MINI John Cooper Works Rally to become as victorious and iconic in the cross-country rally world as its predecessor. At the same time, technical feedback gained from its racing development programme can, of course, be used to further aid reliability and performance programmes in all aspects of MINI production cars.
The exterior of the MINI John Cooper Works Rally replicates MINI Countryman and, therefore, MINI typical handling agility for racing use. It is also one of the areas of the car that has received special attention from X-raid technicians. Many hours spent in the BMW Group Wind Tunnel with in house motor sports specialists have resulted in aerodynamic detailing to considerably reduce drag.
Because the overall dimensions of the MINI John Cooper Works Rally are the same (1:1) to the former rally car, and that engine performance and overall car weight is, as in previous years, determined by FIA regulations, the improved aerodynamics of MINI John Cooper Works Rally are important for improved top speed on flat, open trail sections and the required stability at speed.
Reduced fuel consumption and better subsystem cooling is also experienced with the improved aerodynamics.
Composite bodywork e.g. carbon fibre and Kevlar is used for the MINI John Cooper Works Rally outer shell, while a honeycomb mix of the same materials is used for an underside tier. The use of such materials is threefold: 1) strength and durability – ideal for additional safety protection of the two-man crew 2) reduced weight with greater strength, and 3) panels are easily removed or replaced during servicing periods or if damaged.
The underside tier now houses all three of the allotted three spare tyre // wheel combinations and two hydraulic jacks operated from within the cabin. Previously only two spare wheels were carried in the underside. By moving the third from the boot space to underneath, a lower CG was obtained along with a change in weight distribution to improve stability and associated driving dynamics.
With the advent of the new MINI John Cooper Works Rally, new colourways and styling cues are being introduced in keeping with the sporting stance of the John Cooper Works road car range. It will feature the exclusive MINI John Cooper Works body colour Rebel Green with the exclusive MINI John Cooper Works contrast roof colour Chili Red as well as new designed Sport stripes. Further MINI body colours for the X-raid competitor cars are Chili Red, White Silver and Light White. The exterior design has been developed in close collaboration with the MINI Design team. Thus, the original rugged and vertical exterior design of the new MINI Countryman was transferred to the competition cars, such as bumpers, grille, bonnet, side and tail geometries, lights, roof rails and side scuttles. A new style of racing alloy wheel is also to feature at key times during events and is derived from the John Cooper Works accessory wheel collection.
The original design of the all-new MINI Countryman was transferred into MINI John Cooper Works Rally by emphasizing the main features. The design team were designing to ‘form follows function’, by purposeful changing the original. The expressive fender flares are stressing the crease-lines which are very characteristic on the new MINI Countryman. The body itself is a lot wider on the fenders, which is helping to integrate an air-outlet in front of the doors.
The expressive hood was lowered for a better visibility for the drivers, by enhancing the landscaping of fenders and power dome, and the rugged looking John Cooper Works ALL4 Exterior Optic Pack was adapted to fit the car. The side covers for the underside tier housing the spare wheels are new “Rocker panels” and form a new design icon of the MINI John Cooper Works Rally.
An expressive air inlet is integrated in the roof geometry, framed by the original roof racks. The rear is showing the MINI typically cascading, a self-confident stance and an interpretation of the All4 Pack.
Exemplary engine performance in terms of response, power // torque delivery and ultimate reliability is provided by a BMW Group TwinPower Turbo Six-Cylinder Diesel engine. Designed with endurance competition in mind, the 2993 cc dry sump engine produces 340hp @ 3250 rpm, and torque of approx. 800 Nm @ 1850 rpm with the regulatory 38mm air restrictor in place.
The use of the BMW Group Twin Power Turbo Technology is an obvious choice for the MINI John Cooper Works Rally within the BMW Group engines’ family. The powerful and torque-laden engine is race proven unit that has captured MINI many major victories. Delivering peak performance at low rpm contributes to its renown reliability and is ideal for all terrain conditions from uphill, rocky trails to wide open WRC-like stone covered tracks. Its tractability is also an advantage on desert sands. Low fuel consumption of a race-tuned diesel engine is also an important consideration.
Improved fuel consumption also comes with the use of new engine management mapping. Many hours of testing has realised even greater potential in racing conditions especially at altitude.
The cabin interior has been renewed. A carbon fibre dashboard area consists of three sections: driver, central and co-driver info units displaying essential info. The driver has selected gear display and LED readout for RPM and gear ratio shift alert. Speed, oil pressure, fluid temperatures and electronic functions are displayed on the central dashboard to enable both crew members to view. All navigational systems are located on the co-driver’s dashboard.
