Fresh from the announcement that Mini will become an EV-only brand is what looks to be the next-generation Mini Cooper Electric, snapped here by our intrepid winter spies. Although the “Electric Test Vehicle” lettering on the side gives the game away, we don’t expect the new Mini to adopt the EV-only policy just yet, with ICE and possibly even hybrid versions on the horizon.
Mini has only just introduced their Mini
Cooper SE to the world, although it’s already won a number of fans across the
world. However, the new interpretation of the Mini will continue to run
internal combustion engines, and is expected to launch in 2023. The last ICE
Mini will launch in 2025, with a full-on switchover to electrified power at the
end of the decade.
The heavily-disguised prototype is
evidently still in its early stages of testing. We’d ignore most visual cues,
such as the tacked-on front and rear headlights and rather pointless-looking
hood scoop. There are further changes to the rear end, with a more rounded approach
taken, noticeable when you compare the boot lid’s edge with where it meets the
bumper.
Inside we can see what looks to be a
departure from the circle-style interiors and dashboard, with the Mini mule
sporting what appears to be BMW-esque widescreen screens.
