First batch of U.S.-bound Fiat 500s coming with manuals

Fiat dealerships are just about ready to swap your money for the keys to a brand-new 500. If you are planning on being one of the first to park one in your driveway, we hope that you know how to drive a manual transmission – the first units being shipped to dealers in February will all be equipped with manual transmissions.

If you can’t handle the three-pedal setup, you’ll be forced to wait a bit longer for your Fiat 500. Examples equipped with the six-speed automatic will begin arriving in March and April. Then again, you may have to wait that long regardless of your transmission preference, since currently, only 20 percent of the 130 Fiat dealerships are ready to open. The first one, Motor Village in Los Angeles, is set to open its doors later this month.

Photo Album from MINI's 50th Anniversary Festivities at Silverstone

This past weekend (May 22-24), the MINI celebrated its 50th birthday with a three-day festival at the Formula One track in Silverstone, England. More than 25,000 MINI aficionados from all four corners of the world made their way to the event with some 10,000 MINIs of all sorts and colors being displayed. The British automaker also unveiled three special edition MINIs at the event, including the limited run Mayfair and Camden specials plus a one-off interpretation of George Harisson’s 1966 Cooper S painted with psychedelic images. Follow the jump to check out the full gallery from the MINI United event.

Restored 1960 Morris Mini to be Raffled at UK Classic Motor Show

A fully restored 1960 Morris Mini with 56,600 miles on the clock will be raffled at the British Classic Motor Show to be held at Birmingham’s NEC from 13th to 15th November 2009. The red Morris Minor was restored to its former glory live on stage at last year’s classic motorshow by Edd China from TV’s Wheeler Dealers programme. The car will be given away in a text-to-win competition where participants are asked to answer a rather lame question of the sort “Which anniversary is the classic Mini celebrating in 2009″. For the record, the answer is ‘Mini Golden’…

VIDEO: MINI 50 Camden and 50 Mayfair Specials

MINI has released video footage of its special edition ’50 Camden’ and ’50 Mayfair’ models that were created in celebration of the brand’s 50th anniversary. Both cars made their first public appearance at the firm’s birthday party that was held in Silverstone at the end of May. Available in Cooper, Cooper S and Cooper D guises, the MINI 50 Camden and 50 Mayfair feature special color schemes along with unique design cues. Production will be limited to one year with deliveries set to start in September. Hit the jump to watch the videos or click here for more details.

Citroen Reveals MINI Challenging DS3's 'Insides': Photos and Video Included

Taking advantage of the news-thirsty internet media, Citroen is slowly revealing new bits and pieces of its MINI rivaling DS Inside hatch that will be called DS3 when it enters production during the first quarter of 2010. Although the premium hatchback made its world debut as a thinly disguised concept at the 2009 Geneva Show in March, this is the first time that we get a chance to see the car’s interior which is for the most part, production ready. The French automaker has yet to release details, but it is clear from the photos that the designers have tried to give the DS3′s interior a contemporary and upscale feel.

Highlights include the two-tone leather sports seats, a neat instrument panel with three deeply-dished instrument dials, the flat bottomed three spoke steering wheel and the decorative chrome trim. Following in the footsteps of MINI, Citroen will offer DS3 buyers the chance to customize the interior with various individual options.

The DS3 that will not replace the C3 in Citroen’s range, will be offered with a variety of four cylinder gasoline and diesel engines including the BMW and PSA Peugeot-Citroen developed 1.6-liter petrol unit in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged forms.

Via: Worldcarfans & Citroen

Shanghai Clone Wars: Lifan 320 aka the Chinese MINI Cooper

Take a close look at the sign behind the Lifan 320, it reads “Innovation Lifan, Quality Lifan”. Now gaze upon the 320; what an innovative -and poorly executed- ripoff of the MINI! The 320 is one of the many China-made clones that filled the booths of various automakers at the Shanghai Show. Lifan’s minicar that pays an undesirable tribute to the new MINI’s design has been on sale in China since 2008.

It is offered exclusively with a 1.3-liter gasoline engine producing a puny 80-horsepower and 110Nm of torque that launches (…) the British flared five-door hatch to 100km/h from standstill in 14.5 sec. The car’s top speed is electronically limited -just kidding- to 155km/h or 96mph.

AC Schnitzer MINI Convertible Performance Package with up to 226HP

The new MINI Convertible has caught the attention of engineers from famed tuner AC Schnizter that have developed a comprehensive sport package for the drop top. The German firm started by tuning the MINI’s 1.6-liter turbocharged engine to produce a reported 208HP for the domestic market model and 226HP for the export model, up from the standard unit’s 175HP. At the same time, the Cooper S and JCW models get a limited slip differential and a sport exhaust system.

Sans the JCW model, the rest of the MINI Convertible range can be upgraded with a sport spring kit and height-adjustable racing suspension. Customers can also choose from a variety of alloy wheel designs available in sizes 17-inches, 18-inches and 19-inches.

Those not content with the MINI Cabrio’s exterior looks can opt for AC Schnitzer’s bodykit that includes the usual front and rear aprons and side skirts along with a set of decals available in white, black or chrome-black. For the interior, the German firm offers an array of accessories such as gear knobs, handbrake handle, pedals and foot rests in aluminum and special floor mats.

MINI Clubman with Airstream Trailer Concept: First Official Photos

These are the first official photos of a one-off concept of a specially modified MINI Cooper S Clubman and a 6.80-meter or 22-foot Airstream trailer that was created in collaboration with Danish furniture producers, Republic of Fritz Hansen. The design study will be unveiled to the public for the first time at the INTERNI Design Energies exhibition that takes place in Milan on 22 – 27 April 2009.

The concept behind the project is the creation of a mobile base for surfers and beachgoers alike. As such, the designers of Republic of Fritz Hansen kitted out both the American travel trailer and the MINI Clubman with unique features.

Design details include the use of what MINI describes as “surfer-dude wetsuit” neoprene, fresh colors and flower prints which are common on both the Clubman and the Aistream trailer.

The trailer comes with a waterproof interior that is outfitted with numerous chairs, a table and even two surfboards halves, which double up as shelving. A special feature of the trailer is that it fully opens on one side revealing a built-in sun-bathing bed.

In the Clubman, the designers of the Copenhagen-based Republic of Fritz Hansen removed the rear seat bench and stripped out the boot to fit four specially made securing shells with purpose-built mounts that can accommodate diving gear equipment, including flippers, a mask, wetsuit and oxygen tanks.

MINI Convertible Dresses Up for "I Kissed a Girl" singer, Kate Perry

You may not know her by her name, but we’re pretty sure that you’ve heard Kate Perry’s 2008 pop song, “I Kissed a Girl”. So what has MINI got to do with Kate Perry, we hear you ask? Well, the British automaker decided to create a “Kate Perry” style Convertible for this year’s Life Ball event, Europe’s largest annual HIV/AIDS charity gathering. At last year’s event, MINI came up with an erotic themed Clubman styled by lingerie firm, “Agent Provocateur”. The Kate Perry-style Life Ball MINI Convertible 2009 is the work of “The Blonds”, aka Puerto Rican Phillipe and US designer David Blond.

Aside from a design mock-up that shows a pink leopard-skinned MINI Convertible, we don’t have any specific information on the car so we have no idea what it means to be styled for Kate Perry. Of course we could use our grimy imagination and the lyrics of her only well-known song to come up with an idea or two, but we’ll behave – this time…

New Special Edition MINI Graphite

MINI is enhancing its UK lineup with the launch of a special edition model called ‘Graphite’ that comes with numerous standard features and is available in MINI One, Cooper and Cooper D guises. All Graphite models are finished in a Dark Silver metallic paint that is normally reserved for MINI Cooper S and John Cooper Works models. Priced at £13,075 OTR the MINI One Gaphite’s standard equipment includes black stripes, white indicators, piano black interiors, special badges on the B-pillars and 15-inch alloy wheels

The Cooper and Cooper D Graphite models cost £14,590 and £15,660 OTR with buyers being able to choose between black or white bonnet strips while both versions get larger 16-inch alloy wheels. According to MINI, if a buyer were to specify these options on a standard hatch, the total cost of the extra kit would be £225-£280 over that of a Graphite edition.

Rumorville: MINI GTI Model Based on the Crossovermi

We’ve yet to see the production version of MINI’s small crossover model that will most likely be called the Crossman, but there already reports that the British firm is exploring the possibility of adding a sport version to the range aimed directly at the Golf GTI and its likes. Citing sources within the company, Autocar magazine is reporting that the GTI variant is one of two other proposals (the other being a standard family hatch) that MINI is considering to develop from its 4meter long, five-door Crossover platform.

If approved, the GTI model would be a direct spin off of the Crossover with changes including a significantly lower ride height, more driver focused dynamics and a series of exterior cosmetic enhancements such as new front and rear bumpers, beefier alloy wheels in new designs and naturally, an aggressively styled bodykit.

Same goes for the 5-door hatchback’s interior that would certainly benefit from a sportier trim, unique seats and a proper three-spoke sport steering wheel.

The GTI’s range will probably include the most powerful turbocharged engines that MINI has to offer, which translates to the 172 horsepower 1.6-liter unit of the Cooper S and the 211 horsepower 1.6-liter unit of the John Cooper Works model. While the Crossover will also be available with an all-wheel drive system, the GTI model is said to stick with a front-wheel drive layout, though a future AWD model shouldn’t be ruled out.

Given that the Crossman isn’t due to hit showrooms before 2010, don’t expect to see the GTI model before the end of 2011 the earliest.

GENEVA: MINI claims Clubman name for its "Shooting Brake" model which goes on sale before the end

Since they’ve already unveiled a whole pack of concepts at every major car show the past two years (MINI Concept Frankfurt, MINI Concept Tokyo, MINI Concept Detroit & MINI Concept Geneva), it was about time we heard something about the production model. Dubbed Clubman and not Traveller as everybody thought, the extended-length MINI will have a design similar to the various concepts offering more versatility to potential MINI buyers. Expect the MINI Clubman to be offered with the same engine range as the hatch including tuned-up JCW versions. According to MINI, the Clubman will be available in Europe before the end of 2007 which means early 2008 for the States. 

PRESS RELEASE: New MINI Clubman

Today at the International Automobile Salon in Geneva, MINI has announced that the next derivative in its model range will be called MINI Clubman. Based on a concept first shown in Frankfurt in 2005, a ‘Shooting Brake’ body-styled car will be on sale in the UK before the end of 2007.

The new car promises to be distinctive, yet authentically embody the MINI character. Offering more versatility without compromising the revered chassis of current Hatch models, the production version of the car is further evidence of MINI’s aim to break boundaries in car design.

Historically, ‘Shooting Brake’ models are so-called due to a combination of premium two-door styling, with added interior flexibility for owners leading active lifestyles. The new car takes inspiration and styling cues from the Morris Mini Traveller, which experienced widespread success between 1960-69.

I’ll Be Pimped… A MINI Cooper Adorned With a Million Swarovski Crystals!

The characterization “bling-bling” is definitely an understatement for this Cooper. Dubbed “American Icon”, the glittering MINI is the work of CrystalArt and it’ll be on display at the upcoming National Stationery Show, May 20-23, at NY City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. It features over one-million Swarovski crystals in 50 different shades of color. Each crystal was scrupulously hand placed and it took four people 6 months to complete. The designs on the car portrays American scenery and symbols including The Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore etc. The total cost of the “American Icon”? A crystal and a dollar