This 1-Of-500 2013 Mini Cooper GP Could Be Your Key To Autocross Glory

These days, you can probably find a used, V8-powered Dodge Challenger for sale nearby, no matter what kind of budget you're working with. But what if you're a little less interested in straight-line speed and more interested in cars that turn? Perhaps something that's better-suited for autocross? You've got plenty of options there, including the Miata, but what you really need is this 2013 Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP that's currently for sale on Cars & Bids. 

Mini only ever built 2,000 GPs from this generation, and only 500 of them were allotted for the U.S., so we aren't talking about your typical, run-of-the-mill Cooper S or even a regular John Cooper Works Mini. The second-generation GP is much more track-focused than either of those cars. The turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder makes a not-so-hot 211 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque, so you won't win many drag races against the Hemi Bros, but thanks to all the other upgrades over the JCW, you'll eat their lunch at autocross. 

To make the JCW GP the ultimate track Cooper, Mini stuck with a six-speed manual transmission sending power to the front wheels but got rid of the rear seat, added a track-tuned adjustable coil-over suspension, borrowed the brakes from a BMW 135i, fitted a new aero kit, and swapped in some Recaro sports seats up front. At the time, MotorTrend testing found the '13 JCW GP needed 5.9 seconds to hit 60 mph on its way to a 14.3-second quarter-mile at 99.9 mph.

That's fairly quick, but the real reason you buy the Mini JCW GP is because it only needed 109 feet to stop from 60 mph and averaged 0.98 g on the skidpad. It also managed the figure-eight test in 25.1 seconds. According to the test driver at the time, "Turn-in is authentically kart-esque — fast, reflexive, controllable — more so than in any other road-going Cooper." Something from the same era like the Ford Focus ST may make more power, but you probably won't have nearly as much fun in the corners as you would in the Mini.

Cars & Bids

If you're planning on some serious track mods, though, this may not be the car for you. The seller claims it's completely stock with just under 20,000 miles on the odometer, and combined with the JCW GP's rarity, it may be more cost-effective to go a different route. But if you're in the market for a small, light, practical track car that you can also (theoretically) use as a daily driver, go for the Mini. I'm sure the reliability can't be that bad.