Mini hatches Seven grand of features for $2000

AFTER nearly 60 years, Mini has revived the Seven badge for a limited run of feature-packed special-edition Hatch variants, throwing in $7000 worth of features for a $2000 premium until the end of July.

The Seven edition is available across all variants of the three- and five-door hatchbacks, and contains a number of visual tweaks that set it apart from its regular siblings.

Base-level Cooper and Cooper D Sevens receive 17-inch two-tone alloy wheels, while the sportier Cooper S benefits from 18-inch Mini Yours vanity alloy wheels, a John Cooper Works rear spoiler in Melting Silver and panorama glass sunroof.

The Seven can be optioned with a number of exterior paint colours including Lapis Luxury Blue, Midnight Black, British Racing Green and Pepper White, while all versions get their roof, mirror caps and bonnet stripes adorned in Melting Silver, as well as chrome side scuttles marked with the ‘Seven 7’ emblem.

On the inside, the Seven badging appears on the door sills and centre instrument surround. Cooper and Cooper D variants also gain Mini’s Multimedia Essentials package which includes sat-nav, Visual Boost multimedia interface, reversing camera and Bluetooth audio, to go with cloth/leather upholstery finished in Carbon Black with Malt Brown detailing.

The Cooper S Seven is boosted by the addition of the Mini Yours leather lounge in carbon black, along with a Mini Yours leather steering wheel.

In May last year the Seven was announced for European markets, a year before its short-lived arrival in Australia.

The Seven name is a nod to the original 1959 Austin Seven version of the first-generation Mini, essentially a Mini with Austin badges.

Mini Australia general manager Tony Sesto said the Seven offered a tempting blend of exclusivity and value.

“With the MINI Seven we’re bringing exceptional quality and added value to our customers,” he said.

“This regeneration of an iconic name is being done in a fashion typical of MINI.

“The Seven package is exclusive and premium, combining functionality with fun, and with $5000 worth of added value for customers it’s a limited time offer worth taking advantage of.”To the end of March this year Mini has sold 595 examples of the Hatch (three- and five-door variants), making it comfortably the best-selling model in the brand’s stable.

However it is down five per cent on the 626 sold to the same point last year, with an overall 1.7 per cent dip in sales across the range.