| Week at the Wheel | MINI Clubman John Cooper Works |

Inside & Out:

From certain angles the Clubman JCW is a picture of aesthetic excitement. From others it looks like a cut-and-shut Top Gear project. Close up, the 'club door' can look completely incongruous and slightly amateur in execution, while its mere presence makes the opposite, single door side seem overly long; the car makes more visual sense from a distance. The doors clang shut like a till drawer, too.

However, this MINI is nothing if not conspicuous, especially in JCW addenda; it's a real love it or loathe it car with one of the most distinguishable backsides in the business.

Inside, where the standard MINI is virtually useless from the front chairs back, this has useful virtues; adults will just fit in the back, and a week of shopping will squeeze into the false-floored boot.

The merits and drawbacks of the club door's offside placement have been debated much already. All we'll add is that most of our parking tends to be in car parks, in which case the 'opening onto the road' argument is redundant. In any event, the rear-hinged extra door makes loading a nipper in behind the driver easier, because the front seat doesn't need to be tilted forward.

Engine & Transmission:

The drivetrain of the JCW is based on the MINI Challenge racecar, and it's all a bit mental as it happens. It has 208bhp, which is a useful 33bhp hike over the Cooper S. Yet framed within a hot hatch genus that contains the 301bhp Focus RS, the 266bhp Golf R and the 247bhp Renaultsport Mégane, 208bhp seems a bit piffling. But, as Joe Swash once said to Pamela Anderson, it's not the size of the boat; it's the motion in the ocean.

That's true here since 208bhp never felt so mercurial. It's partly because it slightly overwhelms the chassis (which we'll deal with in the next section), but also because it's relentless anywhere in the rev range, with 192lb.ft of peak torque from 1,850rpm giving way to addictive power. And the twin-pipe exhaust, bespoke to the Clubman, spits out a sound that starts off gravelly before rising in a crescendo into a tormented bellow. There's a lovely lift-off turbo hiss and bang from the exit pipes too.

It's linked to a six-speed gearbox that, set against the drama of everything else, is notable for its slick handling anonymity. The ratios are spaced closely to keep the engine in the power band, though for us it could do with having a longer sixth gear - on the motorway it's usually pulling over 3,000rpm in top. Yet despite that, it's still capable of a remarkable 40.4mpg combined - almost identical to a 1.8-litre Ford Focus.

Ride & Handling:

Like a certain famous golfer, the JCW's performance makes it exceptional but its predilection for a rough ride is almost its undoing.

The problem is that the Clubman rides a little like a convertible; it feels fundamentally wobblier than the standard car. That's natural because the wheelbase is longer and the B-pillars aren't parallel, but when added to springs and dampers with very little give it's a blend that crashes into potholes and sends every surface variable rattling into the cabin.

You'll learn to live with it for the sake of the handling though. It torque steers like it's being pulled by giant magnets on the pavement, and has an unnerving habit of dancing around on less than smooth roads, but the feeling it transmits through the wheel is absolutely exquisite. It does, admittedly, tread a very fine line between 'character' and frustrating self-steering, but it does so like a tightrope walker: its body balance is so good, so adjustable even at the limit of grip, that you never feel out of control. Even when a pothole, small camber or full throttle burst has sent the front wheels veering off-centre.

What it lacks in finessed tractability, it makes up for in feel and fun. Press 'sport' and its characteristics are exaggerated even more, positive and negative. The throttle goes from analogue to digital - from progressive to simply on or off - and a temporary 'overboost' function dishes up more twist (from 177- to the full 192lb.ft). The steering assistance is loosened too, so what's left is a heavy-helmed, twitchy throttled lunatic with slightly too much for the front wheels. However, when it's all tamed, on the right road, in dry weather, few cars are as rewarding or plain fun.

Equipment, Economy & Value for Money:

This was nearly two stars. MINIs are expensive as it is, but make yours a Clubman with the JCW kit and you're looking at the thick end of £23,000 before you've even hovered your mouse over the online configurator's 'accessories' tab.

It gains a star back for economy though, which is pretty surprising for a car of this performance, and the fact it'll retain its value well. For our money, keep the options to a minimum - the standard spec includes 17-inch alloys, a JCW body kit, air conditioning, rear parking sensors, sports seats and the sort of bespoke, flagship feel that you just don't get in the Cooper S.

Overall:

The John Cooper Works version of the MINI Clubman is a torque steering, harsh-riding, expensive plaything with limited practicality and even more limited rear visibility. But we love it. It's one of a handful of new cars that has genuine individuality. The sum of its parts equals one of the most ludicrous cars you'll drive, and one that looks virtually unjustifiable. Yet, it's a car easy to fall in love with, and so engaging to fling about that its flaws become as relevant to the bigger picture as Cindy Crawford's mole. Fundamentally, it's smile inducing whether you're outside peering at it, stuck in traffic in it, or waging war with the steering wheel to stop it veering into a post-box. Hilarious. Ridiculous. Brilliant.