How many Minis is too many? Called the Paceman, it’s essentially a Countryman minus a couple of doors. It’s set to be unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show in January as a concept car, but could very well make it to production as well. Taking a page out of its parent company’s BMW’s playbook, Mini calls the Paceman a “Sports Activity Coupe” (sort of like the BMW X6) and insists it’s the first of its kind in the small premium segment. A “first” is pretty easy to achieve when you define the category yourself, but to our eyes the Paceman, with its sloping white roof, looks set to take on the likes of the three-door Range Rover Evoque, only smaller. Under the hood, Mini’s fitted the JCW turbo four with 211 horsepower, mated to the same ALL4 all-wheel drive system used in the Countryman. More details are available in the press release after the jump, along with the initial images in the gallery below. We’ll be on hand at Cobo Hall to bring you live impressions from NAIAS, so stay tuned. –AB @funkmasterflex

With the launch of the MP4-12C, longtime on-track rival McLaren is getting serious about its automotive division and through that they are creating a racing program! We’ve seen reports and spy shots of a competition-spec MP4, but this is the first official confirmation to come straight out of Woking. Rather than develop the MP4-12C racer in-house, McLaren has teamed up with CRS Racing. And while the famous McLaren F1 GTR may have competed in the top tiers of sportscar racing – even beating the prototypes for outright victory at Le Mans – with the MP4, the British outfit has confined its competition (for now, at least) to the GT3 category. Only a limited number of cars will be fielded through privateer entries in the 2012 European FIA GT3 Series before McLaren takes on other championships, so if you run a team interested in getting on board, follow the link to register your intent.-AB @funkmasterflex

Chrysler is looking at a diesel version of the Jeep Compass, or its replacement due in 2013 for the States, according to company officials. The newly refreshed Jeep Compass, which goes on sale in early 2011 in the U.S., Europe and other markets, will be offered in some places with a Mercedes-Benz 122kW/320Nm 2.2-liter turbo-diesel (164 horsepower/236 pound-feet) that has a claimed average of 6.6 liters/100km (around 43 mpg). The diesel for the U.S., though would be a Fiat engine, according to officials who spoke to us on background. If the company decided to do it, it would likely show up in the Compass/Patriot replacement, due two years from now, built off a modified engineering platform derived from the Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Despite the fact that diesel prices can run higher in the U.S. than regular gas, a reverse of the situation in Europe, there is a dedicated and slowly growing base of enthusiasts for clean diesel in America. The price of a diesel Compass would be close to $28,000, including the upmarket all-wheel drive package.-AB @funkmasterflex

The Hennessey Venom GT is a beastly two-seater that produces as much power as a small sun! @funkmasterflex

John McElroy is the host of the tv show “Autoline Detroit.” Check out his review of the pros and cons of owning an electric car. “Test driving an electric car at an automaker’s media event is one thing. Taking one home and living with it is a completely different experience. Nissan just loaned me a Leaf for several days and I came away with a new appreciation for the potential pitfalls and rewards of owning an EV.” Read more after the jump… @funkmasterflex