MINI's stunning new Speedster might hit the roads soon

Feast your eyes on the fastest and most desirable MINI ever. This is the Speedster - a head-turning two-seater drop-top that will combine dramatic looks with sizzling performance. Arriving hot on the heels of the Crossman - the firm's first 4x4 - the stunning roadster will take the famous brand further into uncharted territory.

The Speedster will use the same platform as the MINI Convertible. This allows maximum flexibility for component sharing with the current range, and will help to minimise development costs.

But to give the Speedster its own unique identity and sports car looks, the standard Convertible's impractical rear seats have been ditched. By making it a strict two-seater, engineers have created more boot space, too.

Distinctive roll hoops, a lower and wider stance and oversized wheelarches make up the car's classic roadster proportions. But the split front grille, familiar bonnet scoop and chrome-rimmed tail-lights, as well as the twin central exhausts, ensure its unmistakably a MINI.

An electric folding soft-top - similar to that on the standard Convertible - stows away in the boot when the driver wants to be exposed to the elements. The fabric hood isn't as complex as a folding hard-top design, and doesn't weigh as much, either. Plus, it gives designers more scope to create a sportier silhouette to match the steeply raked windscreen. A removable hard-top that fits snugly over the canvas hood will also be offered.

Not only will it provide better protection from the elements and reduce wind noise on long journeys, but by arcing smoothly from the top of the windscreen to the vehicle's rear - behind the roll hoop extensions - it will create a coupé-like profile. So, buyers effectively get two cars in one.

The MINI's unique styling will be developed in-house, but there is a chance that the finished bodyshell will be built by a third party. The shells will be cut down, modified and stiffened before they are then returned to MINI to have their running gear fitted.