For all practical purposes trunk space is inadequate, at least as far as convention goes, but nevertheless throughout my

While it offers enough room for daily driving, the MINI isn't a car you want to take to transport a new Ikea wall unit home or to pick up your relatives from the airport. (Photo: Justin Couture, Canadian Auto Press)

test week I found that the MINI's 150-liter (5.3 cu ft) trunk was large enough to pack seven decently-stuffed backpacks with a little bit of organization. This isn't a car you'd want to use for transporting a new Ikea wall unit home, of course, or to pick up your relatives from the airport, but it's got enough usable space for daily use. Fold the seatbacks down and the cargo area grows to a much more respectable size of 670-liters (14.3 cu ft), but of course the compromise is that the whole rear seatback folds and its now a two-seater. Deep side pockets and a reasonably roomy cooled glovebox also provide additional storage. If extra space is needed, however, you'll either have to opt for a roof-mounted rack (available from MINI's aftermarket catalog) or a larger car (available from BMW). Opening the hood is an awkward affair as you've got to reach over and tug on a lever in the passenger's side foot well - a slight detail that was forgotten in the transition to left hand drive from the Brits. Releasing the latch is a show of its own, mind you, as there aren't too many car's this day and age that feature a clamshell configuration. Both the headlights and grille are encompassed in the unit, lifting up and out of the way of the 1.6-liter SOHC 4-cylinder engine.

The Brazilian Tritec motor, which came as a result of an alliance between BMW and DaimlerChrysler, is the staple of all MINIs. It's either humble or powerful, depending on tuning, transforming the little subcompact from an adequate runabout in base trim into a bona fide

The MINI's 1.6-liter SOHC 4-cylinder engine can either be humble or powerful, depending on the trim level. (Photo: Justin Couture, Canadian Auto Press)

racer when an "S" joins the Cooper insignia. It was used instead of BMW's own 1.8-liter Valvetronic four as it could be mounted longitudinally, ideal in a front wheel drive car with a miniscule engine bay. In Cooper Classic trim it produces 115 horsepower and 110 lb-ft of torque, which is above the European-only MINI One's output of 90 horsepower, but it trails the 163 horsepower supercharged "S" by a significant 48 horsepower. BMW reckons that the Classic will do 100 km/h in 9.3 seconds, which is reasonable considering its 1,125 kilo (2,475 lb) curb weight. The car's top speed is electronically limited to 200 km/h. I've not had the chance to test that out, but in the passing lanes and on the 401 Express that runs through and beyond Toronto, it's plenty fast.