Mini Coupe Takes Its Baseball Cap Off

For those who love the idea of the Mini Coupe but don't want a roof that looks like a baseball cap, I bring great news. Mini has released images of a new convertible version of the coupe called the Roadster.

The new Roadster has a fabric roof, just like in the bigger Mini Convertible, but unlike it's bigger brother, the fabric roof folds away into its own storage compartment instead of lying on the back end. The roof is semi-automatic meaning that to put it down you would unlock a latch yourself and then the roof will fold away by itself.

There are other differences with its bigger convertible sibling. The Roadster sits 20mm closer to the ground, the windscreen is tilted 13 degrees more towards the driver, the boot can fit 240 litres and the Roadster is more expensive.

The range is pretty much the same as the Coupe starting with a Cooper Roadster costing £18,015 and at the other end of the scale, a John Cooper Works Roadster costing £24,850. There will also be Cooper S and Cooper SD versions. All roadsters come with stop start technology to help efficiency and a spoiler that pops up when going faster than 50mph.

The new Roadster isn't only for Mini fans. If you were considering a Mazda MX-5 or looking forward to the forthcoming drop top Citroen DS3 you now have another competitor on your list.

You can expect to see the Mini Roadster in showrooms from Spring 2012, just in time for next summer.