John Cooper Works Hardtop

Make
Mini
Segment
Hatchback

It's hard to imagine the Cooper name not attached to a Mini. But there was a time when Cooper was strictly a racing car company. Then the original Mini was launched, and John Cooper immediately saw it as an opportunity he couldn't pass up. He wanted to take that little hatch and turn it into something much more exciting. Thus in 1961 the very first Mini Cooper debuted. It became a huge hit off and on the track and was in production until the 70s.

It returned to market nearly 20 years later, and the final example was built in 2000. Then BMW bought Mini and the relationship with Cooper remained. And in 2007 BMW bought John Cooper Works outright. The guys at XCAR take us a for a spin on the latest and most potent JCW creation to date.