As the brand’s first series-production electric
vehicle, the new Mini Cooper SE is one of the highlights you’ll find at their
Frankfurt Motor Show stand this year. The zero-emissions variant of the
Mini hatch is powered by a 181 HP electric motor and a 32.6 kWh
lithium-ion battery pack, giving it a driving range between 235 to 270 km.
Thanks to the electric powertrain’s instant
response, straight-line performance is quite swift according to Mini, which
says that 0-60 km/h comes in 3.9 seconds and 0-100 km/h is a
matter of 7.3 seconds.
The chassis hosts the battery in its floor, as we’ve
learned to expect from EVs these days, for a lower center of gravity while the
suspension is model-specific to tackle the increased weight and still offer
“remarkable handling agility and cornering dynamics”.
Mini also says that having a battery in its floor
means that the new Mini Cooper SE offers the exact same room for passengers and
their luggage with a ICE-engined Mini three-door hatch. Standard equipment is
rather generous and includes LED headlights, a new digital instrument cluster,
two-zone automatic air conditioning, a heating system with heat pump
technology, auxiliary heating and stationary air conditioning functions, plus
Connected Navigation.
Mini will also offer the new Cooper SE with four
equipment packages from launch, ensuring that the company’s customers will be
able to tailor their new EV at their preferred spec. Production of the
battery-electric Mini Cooper SE is set to begin this November at the brand’s
factory in Oxford.
Mini has reportedly received more than 45,000
expressions of interest for its first series-production battery-electric model,
which is priced from € 32,500 in Germany and from £ 27,900 in the UK, before
incentives. The first deliveries are expected to take place in early 2020.
