Mini Countryman S Debuts With Big Power, SUV Size

Mini makes sweeping changes to the Countryman, its biggest little car ever, for 2024. The lineup has been entirely revamped, and the base Countryman is now the S All4 model. In fact, all Countryman models now feature Mini’s All4 all-wheel drive system as standard. The S All4 model replaces the Countryman Cooper as the entry point to the lineup, which was previously front-driven as standard. Because the new baseline is now an S model, Mini has bumped power up to 241 hp from the car’s 2.0-liter turbocharged engine. Last year, the Countryman S All4 made 181 horses. It’s also worth noting this huge boost in power only benefits US buyers. The rest of the planet will have to make do with 218 horsepower.

The Countryman gets a bit of a stretch this year, too. Mini says that the car’s track width is wider and the wheelbase has increased. Now, the Mini is nearly as large as some BMW SUVs. Of course, more car means more money. Pricing has jumped significantly, and the lineup now starts at $39,985 MSRP (incl. Dest. and handling). The outgoing model was more than $6,000 cheaper, but as mentioned above, significantly less powerful.

If power is what you want, stepping up to the $47,895 John Cooper Works version is the move. This new, more powerful Mini now produces 312 hp from its 2.0-liter, up 11 horses from last year. Pricing is up too, by around $3,000.

Notably absent from Mini’s press materials was information on the new all-electric Countryman. This is set to arrive in the fall of 2024, and Mini will reveal more information on that soon. For now, Countryman S and JCW production is set to start in March next year, with deliveries arriving by May.

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