Zero emissions MINI coming to UK

Despite some well-documented problems of late, MINI is on the march forward - boosted by the addition of the all-electric MINI E to its UK lineup.

The E is powered by a lithium-ion battery pack that can be charged in just 2.5 hours from a special 'wallbox' that comes as standard with the car. On full charge the E has a range of around 150 miles, and it can hit 62mph from standstill in a silent 8.5 seconds.

Customer testing of 500 specially supplied cars began in America late last year, but now MINI claims it is working “flat out” to bring the MINI E to the UK. Andy Hearn, MINI UK's general manager, said: “I've never been so excited about driving a car in my life as I have been about the MINI E.

“We're at the early stage of evaluating how we can get MINI E going in the UK but we hope to make progress over the next six months." The issue is that at present no UK city has the necessary infrastructure to facilitate proper testing of the E, though that looks set to change. In the meantime, the MINI Crossover has been signed off for production in both two-and four-wheel drive forms, and should hit showrooms at the end of 2010.

Mark Nichol