Just yesterday, we reported about Mini's plans to reveal a concept model for a light commercial application based on the Clubman, and today, the first official photos of the new Clubvan hit the interwebs ahead of its world premiere at the 82nd Geneva International Auto Salon in March.

There's nothing really innovative or interesting, for that matter, about the Clubvan as the conversion from passenger model to van is pretty straightforward with Mini simply eliminating the rear seat bench and boot floor to create a continuous loading area.

After the three-door hatchback, convertible, Clubman, Roadster and Coupe variants of the Mini, the BMW Group-owned British carmaker will preview yet another body style at next month's 2012 Geneva Motor Show via a thinly disguised concept model.

This one is called the Clubvan (though Breadvan may have been a more appropriate name in this case...) and as you probably have guessed by now, it's based on the Clubman. However, unlike the latter, the Clubvan study will do away with the rear seats and side windows offering a continuous loading bay stretching to the front passenger seats.

Abu Dhabi, home of all things extravagant such as the largest indoor and first Ferrari theme park, can now lay claim to having the world’s largest showroom for BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and BMW motorcycles.

BMW Group’s long-standing importer for the region, Abu Dhabi Motors, invested some AED 300 million (roughly €62 million or US$81 million) in the new 35,000-square-metre showroom over its three-year construction.

The facility features separate showrooms and sales areas for the BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce cars, and for BMW motorcycles, with more than 70 automobiles and 10 motorcycles on permanent display.

Leave it to Mini to present a special edition model every two weeks. After the "Baker Street" and "Bayswater" hatchbacks, it's the convertible model's turn to gain a new moniker.

This one is called is called "Highgate" and is offered with four engine variants including the 122HP Cooper, 184HP Cooper S, and for those markets that get diesel versions, the 112HP Cooper D and 143HP Cooper SD.

Mini has just released U.S. pricing for its new two-seater Roadster model that will be available in three flavors.

The Cooper Roadster is priced at $24,350 and is powered by a 121HP 1.6-liter inline four that allows it to hit 60mph in 8.7 seconds and top out at 124mph, while returning 30mpg combined.

Remember the Mini Rocketman Concept from last year's Geneva Motor Show? Over the past few months, there had been several reports saying that the BMW Group was planning to put the city-car sized Mini into production by 2016.

Today, Car is reporting that the Germans have shelved those plans for a smaller Mini model inspired by the Rocketman.

As an official sponsor of the London 2012 Olympic Games that kick off on July 27, the BMW Group is trying to squeeze every ounce of publicity it can from the event, including the launch of special edition models.

Today, it's Mini's turn to present a pair of bespoke editions, the Bayswater and Baker Street models, both of which are based on the three-door hatchback and will be offered worldwide this spring.

Despite not taking place in Africa anymore but in South America, the Dakar Rally remains a very tough race. To finish is in itself a unique experience but to win is a truly great achievement.

Imagine now how Stephane Peterhansel must have felt on January 15, after 38 hours, 44 minutes and 56 seconds and 4,000 competitive kilometers from Argentina’s Mar del Plata to Peru’s capital Lima.

Not only did he win what is probably the most demanding off-road endurance rally in the world but he also did it for a record 10th time, having won six times riding a motorbike and four driving a car.

The BMW Group announced a global recall of approximately 235,00 turbocharged Mini models because of an issue with the circuit board controlling the electric auxiliary water pump that cools the engine's turbocharger.

The company said that the circuit board might malfunction and overheat which could result in a vehicle fire adding, however, that there have been no reports of any injuries or accidents related to the glitch.

Watching today’s World Rally Championship cars sliding at insane speeds on tarmac, gravel and snow, you marvel at the driving skills of the drivers. And rightly so: Formula 1 may be the king of motorsports, but it’s a two-hour sprint, while rallying is more akin to a three-day marathon.

Even so, while mustering the today's beasts amid strong competition is quite a feat, it is a piece of cake compared to what rally drivers had to face three or four decades ago.

“We did one 36-hour section non-stop, leaving from Monte Carlo and back again”, tells Sympatico.ca Autos, one of the “Flying Finns” of the 1960s and 1970s, Rauno Aaltonen. “The 100 best competitors started the next day at around 5 or 6 p.m. on the Mountain Circuit.”

As usual, it didn't take long for AC Schnitzer to release a slew of upgrades for one of the BMW Group's most recent creations, the new MINI Coupé.

While the German tuning firm is still working on the engine mods, its current offerings include several performance upgrades such as a limited slip differential with locking up to 75 percent for the Cooper S Coupé and a sports rear silencer with chromed tailpipe trim for both the Cooper S and the John Cooper Works Coupé.

Some may call it a Holiday Special, all we know is that the wacky trio from Top Gear UK is returning to the small screen on December 28 for its annual special that will see Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May heading out to India.

After discovering that Britain does more business with Ireland than with the second most populous country in the world after China, the Top Gear crew set out on a mission to boost the trade between the two countries – or at least that's the excuse for the epic road trip.

November proved to be another successful month for the BMW Group as global sales of the BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands rose to 138,978 vehicles, an increase of 7.7% over the previous year (129,001). This was the German group's best November sales month ever.

From the beginning of the year, global sales of the BMW Group climbed to 1,510,862 units, 14.5% more than in the same period last year (1,319,808) and another new record for the company.

Car wrapping specialist CoverEFX has presented not one, but two more takes on the first new generation of the MINI John Cooper Works [JCW] sports hatch with the R53 designation. Both cars feature a special vinyl wrap along with a host of performance upgrades. Read more »

Our spy photographers have picked up a prototype of the new Mini hatchback Mk3 while it was out testing in Germany. This is the third generation of the Mini since the BMW Group resurrected the brand in 2001.

The Mk3 will sit on a brand new modular platform architecture named "ULK1" that has been designed for both front- and all-wheel drive applications, and will be used on a great variety of Mini and BMW models including a replacement for the recently launched 1-Series hatchback.

The three-door hatchback prototype spied in these photos will be the first ULK1-based Mini to arrive in the market in late 2013, followed by a raft of new body styles such as a convertible and replacements for the Coupe and Roadster among other models.

MINI's marketing team wants to bring an international flair to the new Coupe and Roadster models with its latest advertising campaigns.

Much like the first video of the helmet-roofed Coupe that was shown driving through various parts of Brazil, Iceland and Hong Kong, the Roadster's first action footage takes us on a trip to the streets of Turkey.

With its eyes set on conquering a slice of the convertible market from the popular Mazda MX-5, MINI has revealed the final production version of the Roadster.

The Roadster is the soft-top variant of the Coupe introduced earlier this summer, and is the sixth model to be added to MINI's line-up as well as the first open-top two-seater in the brand's history.

As is the case with the Coupe, the Roadster is based on the current Mini hatchback so it doesn't come to much of a surprise that its dimensions largely mirror those of the Mini Convertible at 3,734mm long, 1,683mm wide and 1,390mm tall.

Mac Audio, a manufacturer of amplifiers and loudspeakers, has tapped German tuning specialist Wimmer RS to create a showcar version of the Mini Clubman John Cooper Works [JCW].

And no, the highlight of the hot hatch is not the blonde model seen in the pictures but the extreme audio system found in the heavily modified interior, which was customized by Mac Audio's own Professional Installation Team headed by Nic König.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) announced that it has opened a preliminary investigation on the Mini Cooper S from the 2007-2008MY for engine fires.

In a posting on its website, the NHTSA said it received 12 complaints of engine compartment fire in the affected models.

The BMW Group's MINI brand is getting ready to add another important market to its belt as the Bavarian automaker announced on Monday that it will launch the firm's small premium models in India starting from 2012.

"I am pleased to announce that the Mini will be introduced in India in 2012," said BMW India President Andreas Schaaf. "We had developed a new Mini ten years ago from the scratch. India is the only country where Mini has not been introduced. So, I think, it will be as successful here as in other countries."