Mini has performed a mid-life refresh on the four-year old Clubman, rival to the Volkswagen Golf and Ford Focus. 

Most of the changes are aesthetic, but there are improvements in lighting and some fresh colour and alloy wheel choices. There’s also a new sports suspension option, which lowers the car’s ride height by 10mm, while adaptive dampers remain an option.

The line-up remains unchanged, save for the deletion this coming July of the Clubman City, an entry-level model aimed at fleets that will be dropped. Its absence and an across-the-board price increase of £900 means that the range will start at £21,200 rather than £19,995.

The refresh is most obvious from the front, where the black bar bisecting the grille has been removed to tidy the Clubman’s nose, while the black grille of the Cooper S features a slender horizontal décor strip. A chrome grille finish can also be specified.