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Almost 14 million tourists were counted on the Spanish Mediterranean island of Mallorca in 2019. Due to the latest travel restrictions, the onslaught of visitors has been slowed down considerably, but now holidaymakers are returning. There is no shortage of reasons for this. Some long for relaxation on the beach or in luxurious hotel complexes, for some the party atmosphere on Playa de Palma is the focus, and still others swear by “the other Mallorca”. Lonely bays, natural landscapes and small, original villages away from the tourist strongholds can be found in almost all regions of Mallorca, as an island tour in the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman shows. The extremely sporty premium compact model, with its storage space that can be expanded from 360 to up to 1 liters, offers enough space for holiday luggage and, with the standard ALL250 all-wheel drive, it can also be used confidently where a particularly beautiful stretch of beach can only be reached via unpaved roads or gravel tracks .
MINI John Cooper Works Clubman
The standard equipment of the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman not only includes a decidedly sporty flair in the interior, but also a multifunctional instrument display on the steering column and a new operating system with which vehicle functions, audio program, communication, navigation and apps can be controlled particularly quickly and intuitively. The respective menu items are now shown in a modern form as live widgets on the 8,8-inch touch display in the central instrument and can be selected with a swiping movement, similar to a smartphone. This makes entering a destination even easier when looking for places on the island that are well worth seeing, and the right music program for the journey there is also available in no time at all. Two color schemes are also available for the graphics on both displays: relaxing blue and turquoise tones in the “Lounge” mode or a combination of red and anthracite in the “Sport” mode.
The discovery tour in the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman begins in Palma de Mallorca. Like many Spanish coastal towns, the island's capital has a rambla. On the promenade lined with plane trees in the center of the city, numerous florists offer their goods. It was once laid out in a dry river bed, so the term Rambla can also be translated as “road that leads to the sea”. The Passeig des Born, further south and not far from the cathedral, also has the character of a rambla with its shady trees. From there it is actually only a few hundred meters to the Palma marina.
This is where the Real Club Náutico de Palma has its headquarters, which annually organizes one of the most important sailing competitions in Spain. Members of the Spanish royal family have already participated several times in the regatta for the Copa del Rey, which will be held in the Bay of Palma. But Mallorca offers ideal conditions not only for sailing, but also for numerous other disciplines. The many opportunities for active leisure activities make the island so special for many visitors. The varied route profile with winding coastal roads and sometimes quite steep mountain stages creates a training area that is popular with amateur and professional cyclists alike. Extreme swimmers cross the 40 kilometer wide strait between the east coast of Mallorca and the neighboring island of Menorca in less than ten hours. And for some years now, adventurous people have been practicing coasteering, climbing steep coastal cliffs.
Mallorca travelers who are enthusiastic about motorsport will also find what they are looking for on the island. The Circuit Mallorca, a car and motorcycle racing track with an attached go-kart track, has been located directly on the motorway, about halfway between Palma airport and Llucmajor, for almost 25 years. Mallorca's motor sport associations use the track for competitions on two and four wheels. A control tower, a pit lane, a start light, an electronic timing system and grandstands for up to 1 spectators are available for this purpose. In addition, both local and foreign racing enthusiasts can optimize their driving skills on the Circuit Mallorca alone or under professional guidance. Five left and eight right bends have to be negotiated on the approximately 500 meter long asphalt runway on the main route.
Maximum output of 225 kW / 306 PS and 450 Nm
For the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman, a trip to the racetrack is a more than welcome opportunity to demonstrate the qualities of its drive and chassis technology, which has been developed with in-depth racing expertise. Its 2,0 liter four-cylinder engine with MINI TwinPower Turbo technology develops a maximum output of 225 kW / 306 hp and a maximum torque of 450 Nm. The furious temperament enables an acceleration from zero to 100 km / h in 4,9 seconds. The sprint from a standing start is perfect thanks to the launch control function of the standard 8-speed Steptronic Sport transmission. The MINI-specific ALL4 all-wheel drive system also contributes to the traction-optimized power transmission.
In the tight and quickly successive corners of the Circuit Mallorca, the precisely controlled distribution of power between the front and rear wheels also promotes the agility and driving dynamics of the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman. The ALL4 system is supported by the differential lock integrated in the automatic transmission. Their mechanical locking function shifts the drive torque from the relieved inside of the bend to the outside front wheel when the driving style is particularly sporty. This means that both turning and accelerating out of the bend can be performed with maximum dynamism and without any loss of traction. The sports brake system developed in cooperation with the specialist manufacturer Brembo guarantees the highest level of precision when braking before the curve. With its four-piston fixed-calliper disc brakes on the front axle, it offers constant deceleration and an optimal pedal feel even after various high-speed laps on the Circuit Mallorca.
the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman
The fact that the drive remains largely unaffected by the heat of the race track and the Spanish sun is thanks to the model-specific cooling system of the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman. Two external coolant coolers, an expansion tank with a particularly large volume, an independent cooling module bearing, an electric fan with increased performance and a third cooling level implemented by means of a condenser ensure that the engine's operating temperature is always optimal, even under extreme loads. In addition, the gear unit has a separate cooling circuit with an external oil cooler.
So the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman remains a fascinatingly "cool" top athlete even after several laps on Mallorca's hottest slope. And the driver can also be helped. It is only five kilometers from the Circuit Mallorca to the beach of El Arenal, where the tides of the Mediterranean cool off.
Don't worry, of course that was far from being the case when it came to auto / auto tuning. Our magazine still has tens of thousands other tuning reports in stock. Do you want to see them all? Then just click HERE and look around. Or are you particularly interested in everything to do with the manufacturer Mini? Then the following excerpt with other vehicles is definitely the right one.
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MINI John Cooper Works Clubman
Photo credit: Mini (BMW Group)
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