Hard charging MINI E

Expert Rating:

Introduction

In many ways this new MINI E is what the MINI brand should be about: pushing boundaries like the original car did. Outwardly, to the casual observer, it's just like any other MINI, but take a closer look and there are a few subtle changes. There's no exhaust pipe for example, and under the fuel filler cap there's a plug socket.

What is it?

That socket (and in fairness the big 'E' livery on the test cars) gives the game away that this is an electric MINI. So instead of conventional petrol or diesel engines powering the front wheels there's an electric motor. Inside you lose the back seats and all but a tiny portion of the boot to the batteries, making this MINI a strict two-seater and even less practical than usual. It's currently an experiment with only 500 MINI Es being built for customer testing. The bulk of that will be in the USA, but MINI has hinted that a handful will make it to the UK.

'Owners' get to lease the car from MINI for $850 a month for a year and MINI gets to gather lots of information as to how owners drive their electric cars. That will enable the company to better understand customer demand for range and charging times. Each MINI E owner will have a 48-amp charging station installed in their home, allowing the MINI E to be recharged fully in just two hours. If you're away from home you can plug the MINI E into a conventional socket, though charging the lithium-ion batteries will take significantly longer this way.

How does it drive?

MINI has concentrated on ensuring that you don't pay for your environmentalism with a dull drive. Quite the contrary in fact; the MINI E offers fantastic performance. It's initially unnerving when the E pulls away silently, but push the accelerator to the floor and you're rewarded with quite, ahem, electrifying performance. The MINI E's electric motor delivers 204bhp and 162lb.ft of torque - all of that twisting force available instantly. It gives the MINI E the ability to sprint to 62mph in just 8.5 seconds, though the initial acceleration is so brisk you'd swear it was quicker than that. It's all so easy too; just pop the automatic gear selector on the single speed gearbox into drive and prod the right-most pedal.

That accelerator is pretty much the only pedal you need to use thanks to the strong regenerative braking effect you get when you take your foot off it. Such is the MINI's desire to scavenge back power when you back off it feels like it's braking hard by conventional measures. This is so pronounced at some speeds that the brake lights glow to warn cars behind of your rapid slowing. It's an odd sensation at first, but you very quickly learn to measure its intervention and can judge perfectly when to take your foot off the accelerator to slow and stop within set distances. What's most enjoyable though is the performance on offer. The electric motor spins up to 12,500rpm and its instant response means that the MINI feels fast everywhere. There's some tug at the steering as a result of all the electric motor's torque but rather than an annoyance it's an enjoyable reminder of the MINI E's potency. With all those batteries it is heavy though, the MINI E not feeling quite as agile in the bends as its conventionally powered relatives.

Planet hugger or planet mugger?

This one's a hugger, and not just because it's got all the cute styling of the regular MINIs. Plug it in and MINI claim it'll do up to 150-miles on a charge. That's unlikely; figure on a realistic range of half that - and less if you really indulge in its performance. With no tailpipe emissions you can do so with a clear conscience though, but to be truly green you need to ensure that the electricity that powers it is generated environmentally; otherwise all you're doing is pushing your CO₂ output further up the supply chain. Every kilowatt hour of energy should power the MINI E 5.4-miles, that energy costing around 15 pence in the UK depending upon your electricity supplier.

Verdict

MINI's electric E demonstrates that going green need not necessarily mean losing driving pleasure. Indeed, the MINI E is as, if not more enjoyable than its conventionally powered relatives. There are compromises though, chiefly the 150-mile range, charging times and the space limitations caused by that battery pack, but these will be finessed as MINI prepares an eventual production model. When that might be is still open to debate, but BMW and MINI's people hint that there will be plug-in model on sale in its showrooms within the next five years. If it's as much fun as the MINI E, we'd be tempted to put down a deposit today.

Kyle Fortune

Thursday January 22