ECO-CLOTHING and the iPhone may be the latest fads but if you want to be really hip, there is perhaps no trendier accessory than a fashionable car. For now, the new Mini Clubman could be it.

Like the Mini after it was re-invented by the BMW Group more than six years ago, the Clubman has striking styling. As a miniature estate, it looks exceedingly cool.

While the three-door Mini hatchback has cute yet slightly aggressive proportions, the Clubman looks a bit more adult. Its body and wheelbase have been lengthened, by 240 mm and 80 mm respectively. This means that while an average-sized adult would struggle to fit into the back seat of the Mini hatch, he or she - plus two pals - will be able to sit in relative comfort in the rear of the Clubman. They also get to carry some real luggage in the boot.

But it is the Clubman's styling details that have to be the variant's greatest coup. While the Mini hatch has three doors, the Clubman has five though they are hardly where you would expect them to be. One of them is on the right side behind the driver's door. This rear-hinged 'suicide door' is called a Clubdoor and allows for easier access to the rear bench.

Also quirky is the fact that because of cost issues, this asymmetric door is also on the right side of the car in left-hand-drive markets. But its location seems to work out fine here because Singapore drivers don't have to get out before their rear seat passengers can get in.

The last two doors are found at the back. Instead of a regular hatch, there are two side-hinged doors with cut-out sections to accommodate the tail lamps. The contrasting colour of the C pillars is also part of this funky combo that makes the rear end so distinctive.

Like the Mini three-door, the Clubman is powered by either a normally aspirated or twin-scroll turbocharged 1.6-litre engine.

The latter is called the Mini Cooper S Clubman and it still has the same big lungs as the shorter Cooper S. But its bigger bodyshell adds 85 kg to the kerb weight, so on paper, the Clubman S's zero to 100 kmh sprint is down by half a second to 7.6 seconds.

In the real world, though, the extra weight doesn't seem to matter when going forward. However, the longer body does blunt the Clubman's cornering prowess. Compared with the hatch, the Clubman has something the Mini never exhibited - body roll. The go-kart-like handling and superglue grip are still there, but the response is slightly less than razor sharp.

On the other hand, the ride comfort has improved, thanks to the longer wheelbase. That, and the extra cargo space, make the Clubman feel more grown-up. It may be pricey, but no one can say this fashion accessory doesn't have both style and substance.

Mini Cooper S Clubman
Engine: 1,598cc turbocharged
Gearbox: 6-speed automatic transmission
Max power: 175 hp @ 5,500 rpm
Max torque: 240 Nm @ 1,600-5,000 rpm (260 Nm with Overboost)
0-100 kmh: 7.6 secs
Top speed: 224 kmh
Price: $139,800 (with COE)
Distributor: Trans Eurokars, tel: 6473-3777

This article was first published in The Business Times on Feb 23 2008.