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Thousands of classic car enthusiasts from across the country will descend on Stafford this weekend for the annual British Mini Fair.

The iconic little car will take centre stage at the event, to be hosted by the Staffordshire County Showground on Sunday. A vast array of different models will be on display in Bingley Hall, at the Weston Road site. Organisers promise that the event, the country’s leading indoor Mini show, will be “bigger and better” than ever before.

Dave Hollis, British Mini Club events organiser, said the fair would include a collection of the best classic and modern Minis under one roof.

He said: “More than 7,000 visitors made the 2007 British Mini Fair a massive success. We are urging people to come along this weekend and be a part of this fantastic indoor show.

“The British Mini Fair 2008 is looking to be even bigger than last year and could be the club’s biggest indoor show to date.

The club runs a raffle at each of its shows, offering visitors the opportunity to win a Mini for just a £1 ticket.

The British Mini Club’s main stand will include one of the first modern Mini Clubman Cooper S cars in the country.

There will also be a wide range of trade stands selling spares and accessories – everything for classic Minis, from light bulbs to full shells.

Doors open to the public at 10am and the venue offers free parking, a 200-seater restaurant and a bar.

For further information about the fair, visit: www.britishminiclub.co.uk.

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The roots shared by the names MINI and John Cooper Works reach back almost 50 years. Now a new chapter of their success story has been opened. Under the roof of MINI the entire product range designed for the driver with a specifically sporting ambition will bear the John Cooper Works label. Consequently, John Cooper Works will in future become an integral part of the MINI brand and represent more than ever before the epitome of ultimate driving fun for all MINI enthusiasts.

A visible sign of this repositioning is the newly devised brand logo which will be seen on all future John Cooper Works products. It is the guarantee for exceptional racing know-how, for an avid aspiration to achieve peak efficiency as well as for a deep understanding of the unconventional character and the outstanding quality demands expected of MINI. All John Cooper Works performance components are perfectly adapted to suit the MINI and are developed and manufactured at the highest premium level. They fulfil the high BMW Group standards with regard to reliability, workmanship and authenticity and are therefore also subject to the warranty conditions applicable to MINI.

MINI and John Cooper Works – an alliance with tradition.

The new constellation strengthens the alliance between MINI brand values and racing tradition even further. It is based on the revised 2007 version of the trademark agreements between MINI and John Cooper Garages, which have been intensively involved in the tuning of MINI models since the re-launch of the MINI brand. Chief executive Mike Cooper will continue to operate as the connecting link between the two companies in order to guarantee the mutual transfer of racing passion and MINI feeling on a long term basis.

In doing this he is following in his father’s footsteps. The legendary Formula 1 design engineer John Cooper already introduced his first refined version of the Mini as early as 1961.The Mini Cooper had been born. Only two years previously a mini car created by Alec Issigonis had revolutionized everyday transportation. Now John Cooper had provided racing fans with a vehicle that was setting new standards in agility and driving fun. In the following decades the name Cooper became synonymous worldwide with the ultimate driving fun experienced in a Mini. The fact that it was this new kind of compact car that had inspired the two-time Formula 1 world champion to build outstanding sports cars was convincing proof of the Mini’s qualities. The unique driving experience that was associated with the Mini fascinated Cooper so much that he was prompted to refine it to perfection, a fact that excites every sports car fan to this day.

Performance at premium level: John Cooper Works accessories.

Today the brand John Cooper Works stands for optional equipment and accessories, vehicle concepts and small-lot production, providing MINI enthusiasts with the opportunity to live out their passion for motor sports. Fitted with the John Cooper Works Tuning Kit, the MINI Cooper S becomes a power machine that need not fear comparison with well reputed sports cars. The

tuning kit comprises a sports air filter, sports silencer and modified engine electronics, facilitates a boost in output to 141 kW/192 bhp and provides both a visual and acoustic differentiation.

The highlights of the John Cooper Works accessory range include the aerodynamics package, sports suspension with red lacquered springs, a wide choice of alloys and a high performance braking system with perforated brake discs. Moreover, a strut brace for the engine compartment, mirror caps in a carbon finish and side indicator surrounds – better known as side scuttles – featuring a sporty looking grid design are available. The list of features providing the interior with a racing car ambiance includes interior trims, handbrake lever and gear shift knob in a carbon decor. John Cooper Works sport seats, Alcantara/Carbon sports steering wheel and gear shift indicator, which signals the optimum time to change gear for maximum acceleration, are the perfect ingredients for an ultimate driving experience.

Ready for the racetrack: The John Cooper Works CHALLENGE.

The new racing car for the MINI CHALLENGE 2008 also bears the famous label. The MINI John Cooper Works CHALLENGE is a racing machine that is the result of decades of experience in building racing cars – an output of 154 kW/210 bhp (temporary values) and equipped with many components developed exclusively for the racetrack. Drivers of the MINI CHALLENGE can redefine the limits of their capabilities, bringing even more excitement to the already successful club sport series. All John Cooper Works products are designed to meet exceptionally high quality standards. Down to the smallest detail they must be able to cope not only with the extreme conditions prevailing on the racetrack, but also fulfill the extensive requirements of everyday traffic in terms of functionality, design, reliability and durability. The work of experienced engineers as well as the countless test kilometers on the racetrack and on the road ensures that these requirements are fulfilled. Consequently, the brands MINI and John Cooper Works stand for the promise of quality, the significance of which is unique in the MINI’s competitive environment.

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Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (Group) (SAIC) is scheduled to launch SW, a model in MG 3 Series, after the Chinese Spring Festival in February.

The model will be the first new product the Chinese auto giant releases after marrying Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corp. It indicates that the MG brand will grow rapidly since the marriage began.

SW has been in the spotlight after it debut at the Guangzhou auto show in November 2007. “We will bring out 1.4- and 1.8-liter products shortly after this Spring Festival,” a MG executive showed great confidence.

MG 3 Series, priced between CNY 80,000 and CNY 120,000, will be a major force in the MG family, related people disclosed at the show. The SW is predicted to reach the ceiling of the brand’s price range and compete head-to-head with medium- and high-grade small-sized two-compartment products as well as CrossPolo by Shanghai Volkswagen.

The SW, a two-compartment car with a British heritage, will cast its eye mainly to young drivers in cities. It features individuality and urbanized SUV functions.

1.4-liter SW will be equipped with the MG N Series all- aluminum engine and import 5-speed manual gearbox, whose power will reach 76 kilowatts, the highest of its kind.

1.8-liter CVT (continuously variable transmission) SW, with a wheelbase of 2.5 meters, will be installed with German’s ZF 6- speed automatic gearbox.

Besides, MG TF sports cars, whose debut was delayed in 2007, will hit the market within this year, and more products in MG 7 Series, including automatic transmission and longer manual transmission versions, will come out.

In fact, only a MG model hit the market in 2007. The upcoming array of MG products shows that SAIC has attached great importance to the MG brand and that the brand will stand at the high end in diversified car markets, said analysts.

The MG brand will extend its sales network to the UK and Europe when expanding rapidly domestically. The number of MG 4S (spare parts, sales, after-sales service and survey) stores totaled 70 in 2007, and the number will jump to 40 this year and further to 150 in 2009, excluding upgraded stores in the brand’s secondary networks.

In overseas markets, 58 MG 4S stores have signed related agreements.

Within the upcoming five to ten years, SAIC plans to raise the production and sales of MG cars to 300,000 units and those of the Roewe brand, another independent brand under its wing, to 500,000 to 600,000 units.

The auto giant, located in the eastern metropolis Shanghai, is set to inject CNY 8.5 billion into Nanjing Automobile in the following three years.

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“You are looking at the MC1; a British designed and built supercar that could be on sale by 2011,” says Autocar magazine’s website, referring to a photo of a car which uses a 600bhp, mid-mounted V10 engine.

The car has been designed by Motorcity, a German-based design studio owned by British designer David Hilton, which produced cars such as the most recent Ford Mustang and Ford S-Max.

It’s claimed that working prototypes of the MCI are already undergoing tests. Motorcity has reportedly teamed up with C2P Automotive, a Milton Keynes-based engineering company, which has agreed to manufacture the car, but Autocar admits that little else is yet known about the MC1.

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