The new Mini is an impressive small car and now there's the option of greater space and versatility in the new Cooper Clubman model. This gives estate car like features in a compact package at the top end price-wise of the market. Michael Moroney reports on his Clubman experience with the new 1.6 litre diesel powered Mini Cooper Clubman.

There is a new addition to the Mini family, a more spacious looking Clubman model based on the original car of the same name from the 1960's Mini range. This new Clubman retains the Mini look from the front with all of the changes from the front seat to the rear.

The new Mini Cooper Clubman diesel is one of the cleanest cars on the market, delivering on style and economy but with a hefty price tag of €29,150 for what is a small car.

The Clubman concept increases the space in the car and makes it possible to give the car five-seat capacity, but only just about. The extra length with the Clubman estate look has given the rear passengers about 8cm more legroom, claim Mini, which is a bonus but hardly one big enough for a full compliment of adult passengers.

Access to these rear seats is through a new side door on the car's right hand side. This makes rear seat entry easier, but unfortunately it's on the wrong side for right hand drive cars, as passengers alight to the road-side rather than the footpath side.

The rear door opens only when the driver's door is open, which gives some level of control. This helps minimize the dangers but its still on the wrong side.

The extra Clubman length gives reasonable boot space. The boot has two rear doors, which open in a van-like way. Each has its own wiper to ensure that the glass can be kept clean, especially useful for a low vehicle like the Mini. And the rear seats fold down to double the storage capacity and give the Mini Cooper Clubman small van type load carrying capacity.

This new Mini Cooper Clubman is all about style. It looks brilliant and is an instant head turner on the road.

And it's a whole lot more. Mini now incorporates some impressive fuel saving technology that almost rivals the CO2 emissions performance of some of the hybrid petrol cars such as the Honda Civic Hybrid. I had the 1.6 litre diesel Clubman on test and it was impressively frugal in terms of fuel usage.

This 1.6 litre turbo-diesel engine is a gem. It's a four-cylinder engine with common-rail fuel injection and variable turbine geometry. The engine delivers well in terms of driving smoothness, efficiency and response even at low speeds. It is fitted with a diesel particulate filter to virtually eliminate diesel exhaust emissions. With a CO2 emission rating of just 109g/km, the Mini Cooper Clubman D is one of the most environmentally friendly cars available.

In power terms the engine develops an output of 110bhp at 4000 rpm. The basic torque figure is also high at 240Nm. These combined allow the car to achieve a 0-100km/hr acceleration time of just 10.4 seconds, great for a small diesel.

And the Mini Cooper Clubman D impresses in terms of fuel economy too. The car can deliver an economy figure of 4.1 litres/100km (68.9mpg) in the combined driving cycle, which impressive for its performance and size.

Part of the economy story for the Mini is the use of new technology introduced in August last year, to lower fuel consumption. The technology includes Brake Energy Regeneration, Auto Start-Stop function and a Gearshift Point Indicator.