The Mini is an iconic car and has been through countless guises since its launch in 1959. Its Superleggera Vision concept gives the marque a sporty and environmentally sound lease of life. Mini has provided some more details about the car and is showing it off at the UK's Salon Privé motorshow.
Quite asides from the variety of different Mini production models there have been over the years, there have been a host of Mini concepts. Last year, the company showed off three different camping concepts and, more recently, the Paceman Adventure pickup concept.
The Mini Superleggera Vision, first unveiled in May, sees the car stretched lengthways into a classic roadster shape. The body is designed to be lightweight and is shaped from aluminum by Touring Superleggera. Meanwhile, the car retains aspects the traditional Mini styling, such as circular headlights, a hexagonal grille and bonnet stripes that, in this case, are embossed into the bonnet.
Internally, the dashboard is formed from one piece of aluminum. Instruments and dials are kept to a minimum, with a simple speedometer in front of the steering wheel and a rounded touch-screen display centered on the dash that provides information such as satellite navigation and the time.
There are no details available at present about the Superleggera Vision's power output or speed, but BMW (Mini's parent company) tells Gizmag that the car is 4,167 mm (164 in) long, 1,964 mm (77 in) wide excluding mirrors and 1,209 mm (48 in) in height. It sits on 19-in wheels.
It is runs using BMW's eDrive system, which uses a lithium-ion battery to power an electric motor. Intelligent management is used to ensure efficiency, and a cooling system is used to keep the battery at its optimal operating temperature.
The Superleggera Vision is being shown at the Salon Privé motorshow this week.
The video below provides an introduction to the Mini Superleggera Vision.
Source: Mini
