Far be it from us to suggest there is some confusion over at the BMW group over the Mini brand, but reports are that a new Mini citycar concept will be revealed at the Detroit auto show as Mini goes back to its small car roots. According to Automotive News, Mini is working on a model that will become the BMW group’s smallest vehicle, with brand head Wolfgang Armbrecht saying that “the next spectacular idea from the Mini brand” will be presented in coming months.

He says: “We have always been motivated by the idea to build a small spacious car,” which makes perfect sense in terms of the Mini brand. Autocar has interpreted this as Mini creating a concept similar in size to the original Mini, which would compete with models such as the Toyota iQ. While the Mini Countryman was looking like a success, taking Mini into a new and larger niche, according to some reports, internally there is concern that the Mini brand will lose its uniqueness by going big.

A new Mini small citycar probably makes a lot of sense, although a premium price tag may have to be reconsidered if it is to be a success. But these kinds of urban models are increasingly popular in Europe and while a Mini is already quite small, it’s not really a citycar scale. There is no real comment either, as to how this new Mini concept might fit with the BMW Megacity project and that new brand under development.

Continue reading: Mini going bigger or smaller? New BMW 1 Series and Mini citycar concept

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