Quite possibly the most social media savvy / internet connected car ever made, the new MINI connects to an app on your iPhone and allows you to receive Facebook and Twitter updates on the dash display. Post your destinations, estimated arrival times and more to Twitter with preset tweets. You can even watch video podcasts uploaded to your iPhone right in-dash.
Driving Excitement Analyser
A feature I’ve never seen (or heard of) before gives drivers a points system that rates the their ability to pilot the MINI with a sporty yet steady hand. Praise is given to particularly sprightly sprints, precise gear changes, controlled braking, smooth cornering and U-turns executed at well-judged speeds. For example, the system awards maximum Experience Points for upshifts carried out within the ideal rev range and in less than 1.2 seconds. Super-slick gear changes prompt a “Perfect change up” message on the on-board monitor, while a “Breathtaking U-turn” and a masterful touch with the anchors (“Well-balanced braking”) are similarly recognised with top marks and positive, MINI-style feedback. At the opposite end of the scale, no points are given for potentially dangerous manoeuvres. Instead, excessively sharp braking and precarious or erratic cornering cause a warning to be displayed on the monitor.
Tunes
The MINI can now hook up to the Amazon Cloud music player, Deezer, Audible and TuneIn Radio so not a big choice of music then… only a couple million songs to play in between updating your Twitter feed while gunning it down the highway.
