Recently, MINI started their new strategy for improving the efficiency of all MINI models by adding new particulate filter and petrol dual-clutch variants to the systems. The changes made ahead of WLTP switchover promise significantly low emissions and smoother automatic shifts which makes the UK car brand yet another showing a serious interest in improving efficiency and producing more environmentally-friendly systems. It was announced that all MINI models will now come with a particulate filter and the recently introduced by the brand dual-clutch automatic gearbox available for all petrol engines and the improvements in MINI’s efficiency are definitely well-improved by the fans of the British car brand.
In September the current New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) will be replaced by the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) and the changes made in MINI’s system are mostly focused on conforming to the new regulations and recommendations. Thanks to the new and improved particulate filter all the MINI engines will be able to meet the current Euro 6d-TEMP emissions standard. This is not a new practice for the UK car brand as the 1.5-litre diesel engine has featured the filter since March this year. This diesel variant also features a NOx and selective catalytic reduction converters that use a urea injection (AdBlue) as a promise of a further cut of emissions.
As an addition to all changes made, the two petrol engines – the 1.5-litre three-cylinder and the 2.0-litre four-cylinder – are now available with MINI’s seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, which was already introduced this year with the diesel engine of Countryman and Clubman models. Thanks to the improved transmission, all MINI owners can benefit from a better start/stop system application with the advantage of minimizing fuel usage, quicker shifts, and smoother running. The car models equipped with sat-nav guarantee a smarter system that can easily switch to the most efficient gear for the road ahead. MINI claims that the changes will offer great efficiency and speed with lowered emissions, so the Clubman 1.5 Cooper will be able to achieve 49.5mpg with an emit of 130g/km of CO2, while the Countryman 1.5 Cooper will be able to achieve 48.7mpg with the surprisingly low emit of 132g/km of CO2.