MINI Cooper Convertible (2024 - ) review

There was a time when the Mini Convertible had a range of rivals from the VW Beetle Convertible to the Peugoet 207 CC, but the Mini has outlived most of its peers. You could choose the smaller Fiat 500C, or the SUV-like VW T-Roc Convertible, but neither encroaches on the Cooper Convertible’s niche, nor does the sportier Mazda MX-5. This allows Mini to name its price and by the time you’ve worked your way through the options list, your Cooper Convertible could cost you a pretty penny. However, the Cooper Convertible should be reasonably economical to run – officially it will do around 40mpg – and you can spread the cost of servicing with pay monthly plans.

Mini achieved the Most Reliable Brand award in the What Car?’s 2024 survey, beating Lexus and Suzuki at their own game. This bodes well for the new convertible model which will be made in Mini’s Oxford plant here in the UK. All Minis come with a standard three-year unlimited mileage warranty. Although this is not as generous as the seven years of cover you’ll get with a Kia, it does provide peace of mind for the duration of most finance agreements and there are extended warranty options once it runs out.

While a ragtop won’t give you the protection of a solid roof, the Mini Copper Convertible does come with all the safety features you’d expect from a new car. Blindspot monitoring – our favourite feature – comes as standard and your Mini will alert you if it thinks you are about to reverse out into traffic, which is handy as the roof impedes your rear viability when it’s down. There’s also lane keeping assistance, adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, a reversing camera, parking sensors and a front ISOFIX point. We didn’t find the systems to be too intrusive on our test drive, which was a welcome change from some of the cars we’ve driven lately.

While models such as the Countryman have distorted our view of how much space you can expect from a Mini, the inside of the Cooper Convertible is in line with what you’d traditionally imagine. We love the new minimalist interior featuring recycled textiles, and those up front should have plenty of space. As with other models from Mini and BMW the steering wheel is excessively chunky and those with smaller hands might find this uncomfortable to hold. However, all cars come with a heated steering wheel and heated front seats are included on cars with higher trim levels. Moving back is where the inevitable compromise arises. The rear seats are cosy and legroom is a squeeze for adults, but the boot is not as small as it appears. It can accommodate three cabin cases with the roof up, or two with it down (which is more than an MX-5) though the opening is awkward, even with the clever levers to raise the roof while you’re loading. With the roof up, headroom is decent, and refinement is good. Pop the roof down and the wind deflector in place and buffering is minimal, but you do obviously still get plenty of wind noise.

The 24cm circular screen is a unique selling point in all the latest Minis – we love the crisp and colourful graphics, although we did encounter a few niggles with software updates when we lived with a Countryman on long-term test. This is forgivable because it’s such a playful set-up and gives the car extra character. Of course, on the Cooper Convertible the electric roof is the true highlight. Again, Mini has added extra fun factor by including an Always Open Timer to tell you how many hours you’ve had the roof down. This can be opened and closed while you are on the go at up to 19mph and you have the flexibility to partially open it like a sunroof if you prefer. There are three trim styles, comprising Classic, Exclusive and Sport. Additionally, you can add one of three option pack levels. We’d recommend you choose at least Level 1 for the head-up display otherwise you will have to use the central display for everything. The highest Level 3 pack gains electric front seats with memory function, 360-degree cameras and advanced driving assistance capable of adjusting the cruise control to changing speed limits and steering the car for you, but this significantly bumps up the asking price.

There are three grades of Cooper Convertible: C, S and John Cooper Works. These have 163 horsepower, 204 horsepower, or 231 horsepower respectively and all Mini Cooper Convertibles come with a seven-speed automatic gearbox. We drove the S, which had decent pace but didn’t feel quite as spritely as the numbers suggest. We enjoyed the responsive steering on our test route around the hills of Barcelona, but if we were being picky we would have liked a touch more weight to the wheel to make it feel more engaging. With a flick of a switch, you can cycle through the various experience modes, ‘Go kart’ for example making more noise and adding a heightened sense of fun. The Cooper Convertible S was nicely composed on the motorway and easy to drive, with enough power for most people’s needs. However, we’d stop short of saying it felt sporty, so look forward to trying the John Cooper Works version with a little more grunt.