Mini Countryman: First look

Mini's new five-door, five-seater Countryman crossover will cost 'under £18,000' when it goes on sale this September, and is being targeted at both Ford Focus and VW Golf drivers as well as owners of other crossovers such as the Nissan Qashqai and Skoda Yeti. BMW believes that it will significantly widen the appeal of the Mini by providing the space to satisfy car family car buyers for the first time.

Autoblog can confirm first-hand that the Countryman has the space to be a practical family buy, having been given an exclusive preview of the car weeks before its unveiling at the Geneva motor show in March. The big surprise, literally, is that this is a much larger car than you might expect, being substantially longer, taller and wider than the standard hatch. So it's not very Mini-like size-wise, but absolutely recognisable in terms of its styling despite a nose that looks much squarer when viewed from the side, and the fact that it has four conventionally-hinged doors, something no Mini has offered before.