June 22, 2006:

The Paul Mullett GP write-up

Following Pauls trip to the Adria Raceway for the GP press launch, he has posted a great write-up with more excellent GP pictures over on his MINI2 website:

(picture credit Paul Mullett / MINI2)

The Works GP isn’t a hardcore track day car … an obvious compromise to many when the final specifications were revealed in detail, 218hp and a reduction in weight of 50kg failed to impress many previously excited MINI enthusiasts … it’s not all just about facts and figures …
… one aspect of the evolution of the vehicle to continue beyond the basics of power and weight was the aerodynamics and suspension of the car … suspension is 10mm lower than standard, and the damper settings are around 50% firmer, based on the John Cooper Works sports suspension accessory option, then tweaked and tuned … The rear spoiler creates downforce and a low pressure area out behind of the rear of the vehicle …

The Works GP isn’t the most powerful MINI I’ve driven, but the combination of modifications add up pretty much perfectly and made driving the GP a real pleasure. As impressed as I was, it’s very hard to tell how good a particular MINI is without a fair comparison. So I found myself in the fortunate and rather privileged position of driving the one other John Cooper Works MINI Cooper S in attendance around the course back to back with the Works GP for a fair comparison. When I took out the “regular” Works Car (complete with accessory spoiler, suspension, brakes and so on) I was immediately convinced that the GP car really was “that good”.

Read the complete write-up on MINI2 for even more enthusiasm!