The seats are handsome to look at. When it comes to sitting you might feel as if you are sort of perching on the standard seats. The sport seats are more receptive. If you prefer seats that you sit in rather than on, opt for the sports seats. Be your own judge; seats are personal.

To allow rear passengers into the back of the two-door car, the front seats slide and lift out of the way with a memory that returns them to position. That makes loading to capacity quick and easy.

Any notion that a car celebrating a popular icon of old has to be retro is dispelled forever by the with-it modernity of the Mini's interior. Materials and shapes are as cheery as sunshine and balloons and as now as a new magazine. The prominent circles are as much a design statement as a function, including the tach perched like an add-on immediately before the driver's eyes. Toggle switches reflect the older Mini while looking very today and feeling quite driverly. That large circle in the center of the dash, equally visible to anyone in the car, is the speedometer. The positioning was borrowed from the Mini of old and might seem a tad precious to those who don't smile in recollection.

However the press-briefing explanation that the speedometer is in the center to celebrate the rally tradition of the Mini (so that the co-driver can see it clearly) is balderdash. It was there because that central position made it cheaper to build cars with either right-hand or left-hand drive. The first 850cc Mini with its 10-inch wheelbarrow wheels was a response to a mid-east war and resulting oil crisis (sound familiar?), not anything else. The car's sporting future was not anticipated until John Cooper took a fancy to the tidy little machine, lent his magic and sent the Mini hurtling into history.