New Mini SUV to be called the Crossman

Come 2010 and there will be yet another Crossover/SUV on the market but this time it will be a Mini, well, actually a Mini Crossman. The CEO of Mini, Kay Segler has told Auto Motor und Sport that Crossman will be the new name for the upcoming rough and rugged Mini.

Referred to internally as the ‘Colorado’ the new Crossman is expected to gain some ride height over the Mini on which it is based as well as an AWD drivetrain. It’s hard to think of the Mini, even one with AWD and decent ground clearance, as being even remotely an off-road proposition but apparently that is the intention.

Mini are hoping to inject a good dose of masculinity into Crossman in an effort to attract more young male buyers to the brand. I would have thought an AWD Cooper S with the wick wound up, a lowered ride height and some classy alloys would have done that trick, but Mini are taking the rugged route, no-doubt hoping that the current popularity of SUV style vehicles doesn’t wane over the next couple of years.

The Crossman will be the first Mini to be built outside of the U.K., with Austrian manufacturer Magna Steyr getting the job of bolting the Crossmans together. Mini’s U.K. facilities are already at close to capacity building the current Mini range.

At this stage it is expected that the Crossman will go on sale in 2010.