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Thursday, June 25, 2009
Best known for its Jaguar and Land Rover conversions, German tuner Arden has now turned its focus on another British model, the MINI Cooper, with the release of a special edition model called Equipe. The Arden-prepped MINI that will be produced in a strictly limited run of only 40 units features both mechanical and styling upgrades.
On the outside, handmade stainless steel and chrome grille adorn the front and rear-end of Arden's smallest model to date while the new chromed tailpipes and the 18-inch lightweight (6.9kg or 15.2 lbs) Arden Gram aluminum wheels round off the styling changes.
Arden paid more attention to the MINI Cooper's cabin as the dashboard, seats, steering wheel and doors are enclosed in a two-tone leather scheme. Other touches include custom made foot pedals and specific floor mats.
Underneath the hood, the tuner of British hardware said that it has revised the engine electronics and added a new intercooler plus a complete stainless steel exhaust system with racing catalytic converters to give the MINI a performance gain of around 40 horsepower and 36.8-lb/ft or 50Nm of torque.
Arden somehow forgot to mention in its press release which MINI version it is talking about but we gather that the tuning firm is referring to the Cooper S that leaves the factory with a 1.6-liter turbocharged four producing 172HP.
The engine upgrades are complemented by a sport suspension that lowers the vehicle's height about 30mm or 1.2-in. and high-performance 6-piston brakes at the front axle. Arden did not release pricing.
