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With battery-powered vehicles coming at us left, right and centre, it’s a little odd that BMW has taken so long to bring us the MINI Electric – particularly as BMW has been experimenting with electric versions of its iconic little MINI for over a decade.

RRP £30,900 as tested (includes Plug-in Car Grant of £3,0001)

MINI Electric range from £24,9001 (‘Level 1’).

With battery-powered vehicles coming at us left, right and centre, it’s a little odd that BMW has taken so long to bring us the MINI Electric (Cooper SE in other markets) – particularly as BMW has been experimenting with electric versions of its iconic little MINI for over a decade when a handful of electric MINI prototypes were first let out to play in the late Noughties.

Anyway, BMW decided that the i3 was to be their first Group all-electric vehicle and released it in 2014. MINI, meanwhile, had to make do with the larger Countryman plug-in hybrid as their first (at least part-) electric model.

Larger electric car rivals are plentiful these days, but the MINI Electric is one of a new crop of smaller electric cars like the Peugeot e-208, Vauxhall Corsa-e, the imminent Fiat 500 EV and the aforementioned BMW i3. One of the MINI’s most important rivals will be the Honda e – a totally new model which offers similar range but focuses much more on being a high-tech and unique buying prospect compared to the contemporary MINI Electric.

A few days before our world turned upside down by an undercooked bat, I popped up to MINI UK HQ in Farnborough to spend a few hours with ‘LRO’, a Level 3 MINI Electric presented in ‘Enigmatic Black’. Here’s what I thought…

The MINI Electric is based on the familiar three-door hatchback and is distinguished by embossed logos on the side sills, unique wheel design to look like a plug, tailgate and front radiator grille. The latter is closed off as you’d expect from a ‘motor’ that requires no cooling.

At the rear, the bumper is smoother and free of any exhaust pipes. The car’s black plastic wheel arches have been slightly reshaped too, as the MINI Electric sits a little higher than the standard petrol and diesel models. Regular cars offer between 15 and 18-inch alloy wheel options, while only 16s and 17s are available for the electric MINI. The charger is located behind the regular fuel filler cap.

I think the yellow accents on the test car are quite well balanced and not too over-the-top. However, these can be removed, as can those retro-styled ‘Corona Spoke 2-Tone’ alloy wheels if they’re not your thing.

Again, familiarity is buzzword inside the MINI Electric as much of the interior is carried over from the rest of the range. It’s just as classy as you’d expect from a MINI and feels well-built, with lots of soft-touch materials and retro design features.

One feature that’s unique to the Electric is the 5.5 digital display in place of conventional dials behind the steering wheel. This provides the usual necessary information such as speed as well as details on the battery’s charge levels and range remaining. It doesn't look as sharp as similar systems deployed by rivals, but at least it's not overloaded with information.

While there’s plenty of space in the front, things aren’t quite so good in the back. As mentioned, the MINI Electric is only available as a three-door, meaning passengers will have to clamber into the rear seats. And once they're there, it's all quite gloomy. The rear seats really are for kids or occasional adult or light luggage use only.

The MINI Electric’s boot is unchanged in capacity over the regular three-door MINI, so you get 211 litres, which is around 100 litres less than both a Peugeot e-208 and Renault Zoe.

As such, you really can’t fit much inside, and although there’s a false floor that helps eliminate any loading lip, some of the space beneath is taken up by the car’s charging cables.

All told, you’ll be able to squeeze a single large suitcase or a couple of carry-on cases inside. However, fitting a set of golf clubs or a large pushchair isn’t possible without first folding down the 60:40 split rear seats, when 731 litres becomes available.

Selecting which MINI Electric is best for you is as easy as 1, 2, 3 – literally. The line-up is made up of Level 1, 2 or 3 models – if you want more equipment or more luxury, you move up a trim. Simple.

Plenty of equipment comes as standard, including a 6.5-inch central touchscreen with navigation, along with MINI Online, Apple CarPlay, and Real Time Traffic Updates. Outside you get grey door mirrors (optionally yellow, along with the horizontal blade on the front radiator grille) and the choice of a body-finish roof, plus black or white. Full LED lights, auto lights and wipers, driving modes and dual-zone automatic air-conditioning are standard, equipped with a heater that uses 75% less energy than in the regular car.

Level 2 cars come with part leather-look, part fabric upholstery, keyless entry, parking sensors, rear view camera, heated seats, driving assistant pack and an interior lights pack, while the top of the line Level 3 (which received the most pre-orders) has park assist, a Harmon-Kardon sound system and a head-up display. You also get a panoramic roof, matrix LED headlights and an 8.8-inch infotainment screen in the most expensive model as part of the ‘navigation+’ pack.

There is just the one powertrain offered on the MINI Electric – a 32.6kWh battery pack paired to a 184hp electric motor and maximum torque of 270Nm. It’s the same powertrain offered in the BMW i3, but here it powers the front rather than rear wheels.

The official range is given as 141 miles, but a more realistic 120 miles should be expected, depending on the weather.

From rest, 62mph takes just 7.3 seconds, but as with all EVs, the maximum speed is restricted – in this case to just 93mph. The car’s centre of gravity is lower because more of the mass is concentrated further down. Weight distribution is quite different to a normal MINI hatch too, the battery's bulk dictating a 54/46 front-to-rear ratio rather than the usual 60:40-split.

To get the most from the electric motor's torque, you'll need to master the various driving modes - 'Normal', 'Green' and 'Sport'. The digital dashboard provides information on the current flow of energy and the range, as well as offering ways of increasing range by deactivating comfort functions or boosting energy regeneration.

On the navigation map, a circle that indicates the car's range can be shown. When the route guidance starts, it displays the fastest and shortest route and also suggests a GREEN route involving the lowest level of power consumption.

The MINI Electric’s charge port is where the fuel filler is on regular MINIs and using a domestic three-pin socket it'll take around 12 hours. If you have a wallbox fitted at home, the charging time falls to three hours and 12 minutes. Alternatively, a rapid public charger will do the job in just 36 minutes. All of these are charging from 0-80%, as the final 20% takes a bit longer.

MINI has partnered with energy provider Ovo to offer buyers 5,000 free miles when they opt in to the company's ‘EV Everywhere’ home energy package. Energy provided is 100% renewable and the free miles come from charging at home. Also included is a free Polar Plus membership, giving access to over 7,000 public charging locations.

If you want a wallbox at your house, you can get a MINI-specific one, or a BP Chargemaster option as the carmaker has partnered with them as well.

In true MINI fashion, the Electric feels nimble and quick, particularly around town. Like other EVs, there’s no waiting for the revs to build or the automatic gearbox to drop down – as soon as you hit the accelerator it surges forward with next to no noise. It’s huge fun and exactly as a MINI should be.

The steering is superb and the Electric’s low centre of gravity means it feels extremely agile. This is an electric car for people who enjoy driving. However, MINIs are generally on the firm side and the extra weight of the batteries means the Electric rides rather harsh on broken British roads. Potholes thump through the car, particularly with the 17-inch wheels of my test car.

Drivers can choose from two levels of regenerative braking. With this in the more extreme mode, it’ll slow down quite heavily as soon as you lift off the accelerator, pumping energy back into the battery and meaning you’ll barely have to use the brake pedal around town.

The MINI Electric has not been crash-tested by the safety boffins at Euro NCAP. The regular MINI hatch received four out of five stars when tested way back in 2014.

In terms of safety equipment, the MINI Electric boasts six airbags, ISOFIX child-seat mounts front and rear, a passenger airbag deactivation switch, a tyre-pressure-monitoring system and various electronic systems to improve stability and grip.

All MINIs come as standard with MINI Teleservices and MINI eCall, which can alert the emergency services if the car is involved in an accident.

The MINI Electric is a ‘happy feeling’ little EV. It delivers on pretty much everything we like about a standard MINI but has zero emissions. Okay, so the Electric’s practicality is somewhat impinged by it only being available as a three-door…and in true MINI fashion, it rides quite firmly and its driving range of 120 miles could be better. 

However, it has funky looks, is very easy to drive with a healthy dollop of enthusiasm. Plus, it’s quiet, has a high quality interior and a very simple trim line-up.

2019: July – MINI UK reveals the MINI Electric.

2020: March – First demo models and customer deliveries to MINI retail network.

Powertrain: 32.6kWh battery pack paired to an electric motor.

Transmission: Single-speed to front wheels.

Luggage capacity (row 2 seatbacks up/down): 211 / 731 litres.

The modern BMW-owned MINI hatch has grown exponentially since its introduction in late 2000. But, along with that growth has come increased maturity, to the extent that it now feels and drives like a sub-compact BMW.

Tested: MINI Cooper, 5-door, 1.5-litre in ‘Exclusive’ trim.

Prices: Test car £20,935 (BIK 28%). As driven: £22,360.

Options fitted to test car: Comfort pack (£900) and Midnight Black paint (£525).

MINI three-door Classic from £16,195. Five-door Classic from £16,895.

A major leap forward in its evolution was the adoption by the third-generation MINI of the BMW 1-Series chassis in 2014. Sure, it gave the MINI its biggest ever growth spurt in a ‘guess-who-ate-all-the-pies’ kind of way, but it transformed the character of the car in the way it drove and handled.

The new, longer chassis also paved the way for the introduction of the first five-door MINI in the marque’s then-55-year history.

The MINI 5-door Hatch is a full 16 centimetres longer than the 3-door and, with its two extra doors opens up greater practicality: five seats, noticeably more legroom in the back and 30% more luggage space.

In October 2018, the MINI line-up received a series of exterior and interior updates and the cars were no longer classified based on engine, but rather by three dedicated trim levels – Classic, Sport and Exclusive.

We spent last week with ‘FXJ’ – a five-door MINI Cooper 1.5 manual ‘Exclusive’, presented in Midnight Black…

2014: June - the first five-door MINIs go on sale.

2018: October - updated with restyled headlights and rear light clusters with union jack emblems, as well as revised infotainment and some extra personalisation options. Three dedicated trim grades introduced. Two diesel models discontinued.

The MINI’s rivals include similarly upmarket offerings like the Audi A1 and Volkswagen Polo, along with more conventional superminis like the SEAT Ibiza, Mazda 2, Ford Fiesta and Citroen C3. To some extent, the Fiat 500 and its more potent Abarth relatives also stand as retro-styled competition, but these are much smaller.

Inside, it’s standard MINI fare with loads of retro charm without too much compromise in usability. Control of the heating and ventilation is via intuitive dials and the standard 6.5-inch colour infotainment system is easy to get the hang of. A DAB radio, Bluetooth connectivity and a USB socket are all standard, along with a multi-function steering wheel.

However, navigation is not standard but is available via the Navigation pack (£900) or, if you can find an extra £1,100, the more feature-rich Navigation Plus pack, which – at £2,000 is silly expensive – but bestows the MINI with an infotainment and navigation system borrowed from more expensive BMW cars. Both systems have an easy-to-use rotary dial between the front seats that you twist to scroll through the menus and press down to make a selection.

However, the more advanced system comes with a larger 8.8-inch screen that doubles as a touchscreen, and you can even write post codes or search for contacts via a handy handwriting pad.

Navigation Plus also comes with wireless charging, more online connectivity and Apple CarPlay, but you can't have Android Auto.

The quality of materials used inside are of premium quality, with soft-touch plastics deployed in critical touch zones, while the buttons, switches and dials feel nicely damped. It looks great, too, with a cheerful design that’s made to feel special by touches that include extensive ambient lighting.

Being only 5ft 8in, I found the driving position spoilt a little by pedals that are offset to the right of the steering wheel, so had to sit at a slight angle most of the time. No matter how I set the seat up, I found depressing the clutch pedal all the way down to the floor to start the car to be a bit of a stretch.

Still, the seats are supportive and apart from limited forward movement, there’s plenty of adjustability to help set everything up as close to ‘good enough’ as you can.

The extra length of the five-door MINI over the three-door translates to an extra 3cm of leg room and 1cm of head room for the rear passengers. It might not sound like much but it is competitive for the class.

Getting into the back isn’t as easy as it is in most five-door rivals because the door openings are rather narrow and you have to step over a hefty sill. Still, it’s better than wedging past one of the front seats to get back there.

At just 278 litres, the boot isn’t as big as that in an Ibiza, a Ford Fiesta or Skoda Fabia, but it’s still large enough for a big weekly shop and I managed to fit five full ALDI bags in.

However, there’s a substantial lip at the entrance to the boot which you have to lift things over. However, the optional storage pack (included in the £900 Comfort pack) gets around this issue by adding a height-adjustable floor that can be set to lie flush with the entrance of the boot. In its upper position, it also takes out any step in the extended load area when you fold down the rear 60:40-split seats (to reveal 941 litres). 

With the updates to the MINI range in 2018, came a more simplified model line-up. Classic, Sport and Exclusive were introduced, each offering increased standard specification and a shortcut to a distinctive interior and exterior character of their choice.

The range-entry Classic gets a 6.5-inch colour infotainment screen, intelligent emergency call, DAB digital radio and Bluetooth connectivity is standard on all models. In addition, there’s ambient lighting, exterior MINI puddle-lamp logo projection and automatic headlights with rain sensor.

Sport models receive many John Cooper Works cosmetic additions including an aerodynamic kit and rear spoiler, alloy wheels, sports suspension, bucket seats, steering wheel and anthracite interior headliner. Sport models are available with 1.5-litre Cooper or 2.0-litre Cooper S engines.

The Exclusive model as tested builds on the Classic model specification with upgraded 17-inch alloy wheels, chrome line exterior finish, leather upholstery, leather steering wheel, interior trim and interior chrome line finish. Exclusive models are also available with 1.5-litre Cooper or 2.0-litre Cooper S engines.

When ordering a new MINI, you typically pick from one of three petrol variants – One, Cooper and Cooper S – followed by a trim level; Classic, Sport or Exclusive.

From 2018, the range-entry petrol MINI One is powered by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine (it used to be a 1.2-litre) with 102hp. Move to the Cooper, which accounts for the majority of sales and you get a punchier 136bhp variant of the same three-cylinder engine.

Topping the standard range is the four-cylinder, 2.0-litre petrol Cooper S. This offers significantly improved performance as it packs 192hp, which aids it in sprinting from 0-62mph in 6.8 seconds. A special 60 Years Edition of the Cooper S is also available, which features additional kit and bespoke cosmetic tweaks.

MINI introduced a dual-clutch DCT seven-speed automatic gearbox in 2018 to replace the older six-speed automatic, and the new gearbox is more in keeping with the MINI's sporty nature, providing smooth yet rapid gear changes – it’s just a shame there are no shift paddles behind the steering wheel.

Prior to 2018, the MINI was available with Cooper D and Cooper DS diesel versions, but these were removed from the line-up after the 2018 updates.

‘Handles like a go-kart’, ‘drives like it’s on rails’, ‘sticks to the road like it’s glued’…these are terms you’ll come across in MINI reviews – and they’re all true!

A MINI wouldn’t be a MINI if it wasn’t bursting with character or good fun to drive: fortunately, the MINI 5-door has both of these qualities in abundance. It’s slightly heavier than the three-door model, but its light, accurate steering ensures the nose goes exactly where you point it. The ride is on the firm side but settles down comfortably at motorway speeds and there’s very little lean in corners.

The relative lack of wind and road noise makes it feel like a very grown-up small car. Factor in strong acceleration and this is a surprisingly relaxing long-distance cruiser.

Of all the engines it’s the 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol Cooper as tested that shines brightest, because it’s quick and keen to be revved – but not so powerful that it races to unnecessary or unmanageable speeds. It really suits the character of the car – and has that sonorous 3-pot burble that sounds great.

Over the course my week with the MINI, I drove a total of 328 miles over a variety of M, A and B roads at an average speed of 31.1mph.  The average fuel consumption was recorded at 42.3mpg, which is 94.4% of the official 44.8mpg (combined WLTP data).

While the MINI five-door hasn’t been crash-tested by Euro NCAP, the three-door MINI on which it’s based scored a respectable – rather than exceptional – four out of five stars in 2014.

Its 79% adult occupant and 73% child occupant ratings were good, but it was let down by the lack of safety assistance technology on offer and only scored 66% for the protection it offered to pedestrians in the event of a crash.

The car certainly has a full range of airbags (six, to be precise), as well as three ISOFIX child-seat mounting points, plus traction control and anti-lock brakes. The optional adaptive cruise control features a collision-mitigation function, too. This attempts to prevent front-end crashes by automatically applying the brakes if it detects an imminent impact. Meanwhile, the model’s new longer and higher nose protects pedestrians more effectively than before.

I found the gearbox a bit notchy and while still enormous fun, the extra weight of the five-door is noticeable and for me negated some of its renowned driving thrills. A degree of sportiness has been traded for comfort, which some may appreciate.

The rear door apertures are rather narrow and some may not find this five-door as practical as they had hoped it would be.

At a little shy of £21,000 the MINI Cooper is a tad pricey when compared to most of its rivals and, while the car comes with the basics, you do have to delve into the expensive optional pack list for kit that is standard on many of its rivals.

Size has always mattered and the extra inches on the five-door means it’s a more practical model if parking a MINI on your driveway is a must. You get a comfortable, well-built and appointed car that is practical enough to suit your work/life balance and offers relaxed cruising for those occasional intercity runs.

The mid-range Cooper is recommended over the One and Cooper S. It’s the 1.5-litre turbocharged three-pot that really is the sweet spot of the range. 

Go easy on the option packs (Comfort and Navigation is recommended) as, before you know it, you’ve added thousands to the value of the car which you may not see a return on when it comes time to shoot it through for something else.

Because you’re here and you have been, thanks for reading - WG.

Fast Facts: MINI Cooper 5dr 1.5-litre ‘Exclusive’

Engine: 1.5-litre, turbocharged 134hp 3-cylinder petrol (BMW B38).

Max output: 134hp @4,500-6,500rpm / 220Nm of torque from 1,480-4,100rpm.

Transmission: Via six-speed manual gearbox to front axle.

Emissions: 122g CO₂/km (NEDC combined).

Fuel tank capacity: 40 litres (8.8 gallons).

Warranty: 3 years. Servicing: Every 18,000 miles

Tag: mini

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Tag: mini

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