The verdict: The redesigned 2025 Mini Cooper S Hardtop 2-Door leans all the way into its quirkiness — for better and worse — but if that’s not your style, you might find its personality grating.
Versus the competition: There are plenty of alternatives that are more practical, affordable and efficient, but the Mini remains a one-of-a-kind, heart-over-brains choice. It’s just a shame it’s not more fun to drive.
Mini’s two-door Cooper hatchback may no longer be the, well, miniature car driving down some steps in The Italian Job (1969), or even the still-small-but-bigger-than-a-Kei-car sporty hatchback that blasted through the LA River in The Italian Job (2003), but even as it’s grown in size, the Cooper remains dwarfed by the glut of SUVs and pickups on today’s roads — and it’s every bit as full of personality as the original.
For 2025, Mini gave the Cooper a thorough styling update, giving the hatch a more minimalist and modern exterior; a funky, eco-friendly interior; and a choice of gas engines. While Mini’s choice to stick with internal-combustion power doubtlessly pleases purists, the company also eliminated the Cooper’s manual transmission option for 2025, leaving just a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic.
Related: 2025 Mini John Cooper Works Countryman Review: More in Some Ways, But Not Where You’d Think
We got our hands on a 2025 Cooper S in Iconic trim, equipped with Mini’s John Cooper Works Style Package, to see just how fun and funky this latest incarnation of the classic Mini Cooper is. At an as-tested price of $39,495 (including destination), there’s literally not a lot of car for the money, but there is a lot of personality.
A $40,000 Go-Kart?
The most appealing way to experience the Cooper S is to drive it with purpose; even though our test car was fitted with winter tires instead of summer performance tires, the car felt agile and grippy — and we appreciated the winter rubber, given it was neither warm nor dry during our test drive near Cars.com’s Chicago headquarters.
The Cooper S’ steering is communicative, though the rim of my test car’s John Cooper Works steering wheel was too thick for my taste. Its ride is on the sporty side; at least one editor complained that it was too firm. I found it to be most comfortable when set to the optional adaptive suspension’s softest setting — and the winter tires likely helped, too — but even then, the ride still felt firm. Mini’s suspension does a good job soaking up bumps and road imperfections and keeping the chassis under control, but you’ll feel and hear the thwack of every pothole in the cabin.
Mini estimates the Cooper S’ 0-60 mph time at 6.3 seconds, and that feels disappointingly accurate. With a curb weight around 3,000 pounds and a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 201 horsepower and 221 pounds-feet of torque, the Cooper S is fun, but it’s no rocket ship. The dual-clutch transmission drops gears snappily when you want to accelerate, but the engine is at least half a beat behind in trying to deliver its power. That reinforces the notion of the Cooper S as a sort of “momentum car,” with a focus on grip over power. I found myself wanting snappier acceleration even in normal situations, like merging onto and driving on the highway. As it stands, you’ll need to plot and time your maneuvers. Multiple staffers also lamented the lack of a manual transmission option; while the dual-clutch automatic works well, a manual would provide a more engaging and visceral experience (see our recent 2024 Mazda Miata review). It would make us more forgiving of the car’s sluggish acceleration.
At least the Cooper S doesn’t guzzle gas like a rocket ship, either: It earns an EPA-estimated 28/39/32 mpg city/highway/combined, though Mini recommends (but doesn’t require) premium fuel.
This is where Mini’s equation starts to fall apart, and that’s because of another new car that’s just as quick as the Mini but more fun to drive and significantly more fuel-efficient: the 2025 Honda Civic hybrid hatchback. More fun than the Mini and a 50/45/48 mpg EPA rating? Seems like the more logical choice, no?
Quirky Inside
The Mini really gets weird inside. Its cabin is premium, but nearly every design and ergonomic decision seems to be based on how novel Mini could be. The biggest offender is the touchscreen interface, dubbed “Mini Interaction Unit.” It’s circular, because why not? At 9.4 inches in diameter, the display is not small — which is good given it also contains important information like the speedometer. Unfortunately, much of the screen’s real estate is unused when connected to Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the small viewing area you do have for these features is frustrating.
Though there’s no physical gauge cluster in front of the driver, there is a standard folding head-up display. It contains helpful information, so the driver doesn’t have to look away from the road to the touchscreen, but it can wash out when wearing polarized sunglasses.
The car’s physical controls also tend toward whimsy, both in name and in user experience, but they all feel solid to the touch. Rather than a button to start or turn off the car, there’s a faux ignition key to twist. The gear selector is a toggle switch, which is unusual and also somewhat unintuitive. The row of controls also includes a Mini Mode switch labeled “Experiences.” It allows you to select from up to seven driving modes, many of which have their own quirky names and only some of which actually alter the driving character of the Cooper S. What would traditionally be Sport mode is instead Go-Kart Mode, and selecting it brings a “woo-hoo!” sound. (You can turn that part off, thankfully, because it got old quickly.) My favorite non-Go-Kart mode was Core, which turned on the Mini’s massaging front seats.
Our test vehicle had John Cooper Works sport seats instead of more comfort-oriented ones, but I still found them to be rather comfortable, with quality upholstery and visually interesting details. I found headroom adequate (I’m 6-foot-1), but my 6-foot-6-inch colleague scraped his head on the headliner. We both found the backseat utterly useless for people hauling. With the driver’s seat adjusted to my preferred location, there’s such scant legroom in the back that I preferred to just fold down the rear seatbacks to maximize available cargo space — which isn’t all that much. According to Mini’s measurements, with the backseat in place, there’s just 8.9 cubic feet of cargo space. With the seats folded down, space increases to a Mini-reported 34.4 cubic feet. If the goal of a hatchback is to offer carlike driving with SUV-adjacent cargo space, the Cooper S nails the first part but falls short on the second.
The Cooper S is an emotional choice, not a practical one. In the Civic hybrid hatchback, which admittedly has four doors versus the Mini’s two, you get adequate luggage space — Honda reports 24.5 cubic feet — and a usable backseat at the same time.
More From Cars.com:
- 2025 Mini John Cooper Works Hardtop and Convertible: Maximum Performance Minis
- 2025 Mini Cooper 4-Door: Next-Gen Mini With a Bigger Backseat
- Mini Releases Full Trim Level and Pricing for 2025 Mini Cooper S
- 2025 Mini Hardtop Sticks With Gas Power, Priced From $29,945
- Shop for a 2025 Mini Hardtop Near You
The Heart Wants What It Wants, Even at a Cost
If the Cooper S isn’t the most pragmatic or logical choice, let’s examine its value proposition. On the one hand, its as-tested price of almost $40,000 is a lot of money for what is essentially a sporty, two-seat hatchback with decent fuel economy but minimal practicality. On the other, it does boast a number of premium touches, including high-quality interior materials and some features, like massaging front seats, that would feel at home in a pricier vehicle. BMW’s ownership of Mini shines through in the Cooper S’ high-end interior.
The Mini’s quirkiness will be part of its appeal to the right buyer. How many cars have an interior camera you can use for an in-car photo booth? How many cars literally go “woo-hoo!” when you engage their sportiest driving mode? The two-door Cooper S is all about fun at the expense of almost everything else.
If you want to be logical, go for something like a Honda Civic hybrid. Its price — a top Civic hybrid Sport Touring hatchback trim is $34,300, including destination — impressive fuel economy and sportier driving experience make it a great, practical purchase. But the new Cooper S’ fundamental goal is fun, and it delivers. We’re glad it exists, even if it isn’t for everyone.
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