Mini John Cooper Works Clubman digs in with all-wheel-drive

The iconic Mini Cooper underwent many changes throughout the decades. In its current incarnation, BMW owns the brand and has been modernizing the model offerings and increasing their size, while maintaining their look.

The Clubman is a longer version of the Mini Cooper with historic roots. At present, the Clubman sports six doors, if you count the double rear doors as two.

The John Cooper Works badge denotes a high-performance Mini, a treatment that Mini has been giving to its entire model lineup.

The John Cooper Works Clubman, along with other John Cooper Works Mini models, gets a 228 horsepower turbocharged 2-liter engine.

As a unique twist for the 2017 model year, the John Cooper Works Clubman comes standard with Mini's All4 all-wheel-drive system, adding twist to the rear wheels as well as the fronts.

An adaptive suspension is also available for $500, a worthwhile option at the price.

Because of its larger size than previous generations, the Clubman will seat five.

A six-speed manual transmission comes standard, but the John Cooper Works Clubman can also be had with an eight-speed automatic. Although the manual is more engaging, the automatic does a good job of holding low gears during cornering.

The John Cooper Works Clubman is the top trim in the Clubman line, but you will still pay extra for navigation and other features.

The John Cooper Works Clubman is pricey, with a starting cost of around $35,000. Options will push that price over $40,000 easily.

Click through to see more of the 2017 Mini John Cooper Works Clubman.