The Mini Clubman estate is to get a mid-life refresh later this year, with its styling brought into line with the rest of the Mini range.
REVEALED: Mini Clubman facelift brings styling tweaks and trim changes
Given the timing of the spy shots, which show the car thinly disguised, an unveiling at the Paris motor show is expected, although not confirmed.
The Clubman is currently the oldest car in Mini's range, having been introduced in 2016 in its current generation. The hatchback and convertible have just been updated, while the new Mini Countryman was launched in 2017.
The facelifted Clubman will not get the hatchback’s divisive Union Jack tail-lights, but it will ditch its eye-like lights in favour of flatter units with sweeping indicators - a first for the Mini brand.
Under the bonnet, Mini’s new three-cylinder 1.5-litre petrol engine is expected to be offered, with 101bhp in the base-spec car, as per the hatchback. A 2.0-litre petrol with 228bhp is expected to be rolled out for the John Cooper Works model, given that the other JCW models already share the engine. A 1.5-litre diesel engine is also likely to be carried over from the hatchback.
A new dual-clutch gearbox will also be introduced in the Clubman, while the interior will benefit from an updated steering wheel, a 6.5in-screen infotainment system and option of personalised, 3D-printed trim items.
The Clubman isn't expected to get the plug-in hybrid system that premiered on the Countryman S E All4 last year, given that the Mini Clubman sits on the same platform as the hatchback, which isn't available with the plug-in powertrain.
The Mini Electric, which is due for release next year, will provide the only upcoming electrification for Mini’s non-SUV models for the foreseeable future.
Read more
Revamped Mini range launches with bolstered tech and new DCT gearbox
Mini Electric: first pictures of 'pivotal' zero-emission 2019 model
Join the debate
Add your comment
Nothing new under the sun...
The Ford Thunderbird had so-called sequential indicators in 1965.
I don't really get this thing
I don't really get this thing with sweeping indicators. Audi have said that it provides extra information on which way a vehicle is going to turn, but I can usually work this out from looking at which side of the vehicle the flashing light is on. And no-one seems to have got so excited about this feature on Daf lorries, which have had them for ages.