World Premier: The 2025 MINI Cooper 5 Door Combes Practicality with MINIness

DimON · June 11

The five door F65 2025 MINI Cooper is here! Petrol powered, redesigned and full of updated technology, it’s the latest model in MINI’s 4th generation. How does to compared with the just released F66 and even the J01 electric MINI Cooper? Read on.

What’s New on the 2025 MINI Cooper Five Door

The F65 takes all the updates and modifications from the F66 three door and applied on a five door body. Even though MINI made the decision to heavily revise the F55 rather than to create an entirely new car, there’s almost nothing that the designers left untouched. The exterior design is evolved to match the J01 MINI Cooper with the goal to make them look nearly identical to the casual observer. MINI’s hope is that a potential buyer would be choosing ICE versus EV without styling differences to muddy the waters. However it’s worth noting that MINI won’t technically have an equivalent to the F65 five door in EV form. Instead it will offer the J05 MINI Aceman which is roughly the same size but in crossover form.

2025 F65 MINI Cooper five door — The F65 seen here with the optional multi-tone roof

While the F65 is based on the previous generation F55 a lot has changed. There are no exterior parts (outside of glass and the roof) are shared between the two cars no matter how similar they look. The subtle changes are everywhere. One of the smallest yet most important are the lights. MINI has pushed the headlights forward and made them slightly more upright. It means that this car feels more upright and a little closer to the R50 and R56. It also marks this car out as different than the sleeker J01 MINI Cooper EV.

F65 MINI Cooper Five Door: Design

MINI designers have applied the minimal design language we’ve seen on the J01 MINI Cooper by eliminating all non-functional vents, scoops and design elements.

The result is that the F66 has a clean and minimal aesthetic that at first glance looks refreshing. But more on our first hands-on impressions later. This is a car that is subtly new in almost every way. MINI has gone beyond just revising the bumpers, wheels and lights and have a completely new hood (with no faux hood scoop) and a rear hatch that’s been reshaped requiring an all new rear fender shape. So extensive are the changes that the only exterior piece of the F66 that’s identical to the F56 are the doors.

As with the F55, the F65 is part of a three model strategy for the petrol MINI Cooper. However like last time, there will be no full JCW model.

F66 MINI Cooper (three door)	F65 MINI Cooper (five door)	F67 MINI Cooper Convertible
Cooper C 2-door hardtop (F66)	Cooper C 4-door hardtop (F65)	Cooper C Convertible (F67)
Cooper S 2-door hardtop (F66)	Cooper S 4-door hardtop (F65)	Cooper S Convertible (F67)
Cooper JCW 2-door hardtop (F66)	(n/a)	Cooper JCW Convertible (F67)

There’s also a revised name to go along with an entirely refreshed car; MINI Cooper C as well as the more familiar MINI Cooper S. What’s the “C” stand for? According to MINI it’s short for “Core”. The “C” and “S” model denotations will apply to all petrol powered MINIs while we’ll see “E” and “SE” on all electric models.

Performance Upgrades For The F66 MINI Cooper C & Cooper S

MINI has upped the ante in terms of power with both models. The F56 Cooper is getting a 14% power upgrade going from 134 hp to 156 hp in the F66 Cooper C. This change takes the C from 0-62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 7.7 seconds. The more powerful F66 Cooper S gets a less dramatic 7.4% horsepower boost from 189 to 204 hp but sees a significant torque increase to 221 lb-ft.

Model	F55 Cooper	F55 Cooper S	F65 Cooper C	F65 Cooper S
Power	134 hp	189 hp	156 hp	204 hp
Torque	162 lb-ft/1480 rpm	206 lb-ft/1350 rpm	170 lb-ft/1,480 rpm	221 lb-ft
Transmission	Manual/DCT	Manual/DCT	7 speed DCT	7 speed DCT

This gets the new F66 Cooper S to 62 mph in 6.6 seconds (60 in 6.3 seconds). And keep in mind these are both likely a conservative numbers knowing how BMW calculates figures.

F66vF56_interior.jpg?resize=798%2C532&ss

The Interior Of The F66 MINI Cooper

While the exterior changes on the F66 may be surprising given its F56 origins, the interior is downright shocking. MINI has turned the F56 into a completely new car with all the design language, materials and technology found in the J01 MINI Cooper. The biggest change is the minimal design and large, circular display that dominates the experience. We’ve details that display, its operating system and its many functions on MotoringFile for months now. In fact you can see our full demo of the new system below.

While the exterior changes on the F65 may be surprising given its F55 origins, the interior is downright shocking. MINI has turned the F55 five door into a completely new car with all the design language, materials and technology found in the J01 MINI Cooper.

The headline for many is that this new MINI is completely leather free. Why? There’s a big environmental impact due to the production of leather in the quantities that companies like MINI need. So much so that MINI has made the bold decision to eliminate leather from its coming starting with the all new J01 MINI Cooper electric.

What’s wrong with leather? There are some serious concerns around its production and amount of impact it has on the environment. Converting animal skin to leather demands vast energy and involves hazardous chemicals like mineral salts, formaldehyde, coal-tar derivatives, oils, dyes, some cyanide-based finishes. Suffice to say it’s not the most natural and environmentally safe process. It’s also not inline with MINI’s brand image of being environmentally conscious and animal friendly. But how do you replace something as iconic as leather seats?

BMW and MINI are so confident in products like Vescin (BMW’s version I called Sensafin – an improved version of Sensatec) they they’re already being used in several cars with MSRPs well over $100,000.

What’s it like in person? Having spent a lot of time with the U25, J01 and F66 MINIs, it’s clear that Vescin is a step-up from what we’ve known as Leatherette. Compared with the standard Chesterfield or Cross Punch leather seating, Vescin feels softer and more premium. It’s not on par with the feel and softness of MINI’s Lounge Leather but then again that was $2500 option on the Signature Trim last year.

The MINI Circular Display and MINI OS9

While the exterior changes on the F66 may be surprising given its F56 origins, the interior is downright shocking. MINI has turned the F56 into a completely new car with all the design language, materials and technology found in the J01 MINI Cooper. The biggest change is the minimal design and large, circular display that dominates the experience. We’ve details that display, its operating system and its many functions on MotoringFile for months now. In fact you can see our full demo of the new system below.

The new display and its software is a focal point for the entire driving experience housing almost all functionality save for a row of switches, buttons and toggles just below it.

U25_JCW__8636.jpg?resize=798%2C532&ssl=1

Stationary the new MINI OS9 interface had felt intuitive in our previous experiences. But in our time driving the new Countryman with an identical infotainment system we found a relatively learning curve before we felt fully acclimated with the new system. Within the first hour we had quickly become accustom to the new interaction language and overall placement of functionality.

But is this better than MINI’s previous system? In our experience with the same system in the new Countryman, absolutely. The augmented navigation (part of the Comfort Package and Comfort Max Package) in particular was a standout. Watch our full MINI OS9 demo to get a better view of this radical new infotainment system.

The new display and its software is a focal point for the entire driving experience housing almost all functionality save for a row of switches, buttons and toggles just below it.

Stationary the new MINI OS9 interface had felt intuitive in our previous experiences. But in our time driving the new Countryman with an identical infotainment system we found a relatively learning curve before we felt fully acclimated with the new system. Within the first hour we had quickly become accustom to the new interaction language and overall placement of functionality.

But is this better than MINI’s previous system? In our experience with the same system in the new Countryman, absolutely. The augmented navigation (part of the Comfort Package and Comfort Max Package) in particular was a standout. Watch our full MINI OS9 demo to get a better view of this radical new infotainment system.

The MINI Cooper Manual Is Eliminated

As the F56 production ended over 50% of JCW hardtops sold in the US were equipped with the manual transmission. So this change is a big one for some markets and certain models. But the economic realities of complying with European legislation have forced MINI’s hand which means the F66 will have only one transmission across the line-up. That transmission is the familiar dual clutch 7 speed with some small refinements based on our early testing.

The move to replace the manual is all about the costs associated with meeting European emissions standards. While North America doesn’t have the same requirements, the case couldn’t be made due to investment required vs the expected sales. Even with a 50% take rate on the JCW for instance, that quantity can’t pay of the costs associated with further developing and/or maintaining the option.

Making this change even more dramatic is MINI’s new dash mounted gear selector. Designers have replaced the center console mounted gear lever with a small dash mounted toggle. The rational is logical as the design simplifies the process of selecting park, reverse or drive while freeing up interior space for storage, screens or other functionality. More importantly MINI still offers wheel mounted paddles for manual control of the DCT. Read our first impressions of this new shift lever here.

The Hidden Exhaust Of The F66 MINI Cooper C & Cooper S

Like on the three door F66. MINI Designers have hidden one important functional aspect of the F65 that would have differentiated from the electric J01 – the exhaust outlet. We can confirm the exhaust on the Cooper us is a single pipe tucked under the left side of the rear bumper, bent down, ending flush so it’s impossible to see without looking underneath.

The idea of the MINI Cooper and Cooper S having hidden exhausts actually has some historical precedent. European automakers had a similar design solution years ago when they hid exhaust outlets on many of its V8 models in the late 90s and early 00s. It was a time that customers wanted performance models to have a more discrete look due to concerns of being too aggressive. The larger, most luxurious Audis, Mercedes and BMWs all did this at one point or another.

North America and European Differences

Like the F55, there will be three seats in the back of the F65 vs only two in North America versions. The reason – North American side impact safety standards and the narrow dimensions of the car dictate the change. Like the F66, the three cylinder engine won’t make it to the North America . Instead we’ll get an electronically detuned version of the four cylinder to make certification simpler. This could open the door to easy tuning of a Cooper C up to Cooper S levels.

2025 F65 MINI Cooper Five Door Product and Release Info

The F65 MINI Cooper Five door will begin production July 1st in both Cooper C and Cooper S variants. That means dealers in the UK and Europe will have cars on hands in mid to late July. In the US that should translate into early to mid August. Pricing for each market will be release shortly.