MINI unveils its first EV, the Cooper SE

The new MINI Cooper SE was officially unveiled this week. This new purely electric vehicle will have a range of up to 270 km.

The manufacturer had promised it for its 60^th birthday, and it is now done! MINI has just unveiled the very first production EV in its history, the MINI Cooper SE. The three-door version is expected in spring 2020 in Canada.

This MINI Cooper SE looks a bit different than its counterparts, the front grille, in particular, adopts an exclusive design, just like the asymmetrical wheels, not to mention all these yellow-painted exterior parts. Also note the presence of a small hatch for the charging cable on the right and, unsurprisingly, the lack of a muffler.

Under the hood, the gasoline engine is swapped for an electric motor that generates 135 kW (or 184 horses if you prefer). The maximum torque of the Cooper SE is 199 lb-ft. To deliver all the power to the front-wheel drive, MINI relies on a single-gearbox that is teamed with an advanced stability control system, whose mission is to limit the spinning sessions associated with torque-rich electric vehicles.

Equipped with a lithium-ion battery pack with a capacity of 32.6 kWh, the MINI Cooper SE can travel a distance of 270 km, according to the WLTP cycle. In other words, this distance should slightly vary when the model will arrive on our roads.

The manufacturer also promises the same agility that is part of the DNA of each MINI vehicle since the return of the brand in the early 2000s. MINI is already talking about 0-100 km/h in 7.3 seconds, with a top speed of 150 km/h. Clearly, the mission of this city car is not to break acceleration records or even to run at high speed on the highway. Nevertheless, these statistics are in the industry average.

145 kg heavier, the MINI Cooper SE would nevertheless be very agile thanks to the lower center of gravity, the battery pack housed in the floor that is responsible for it. The presence of this battery, however, has an impact on the height of the body which is 18 mm higher than usual.

For now, MINI Canada has confirmed the arrival of this first electric car for the brand but remains silent on other details specific to the model for the local market. We should learn more over the coming months.

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MINI Cooper SE Photo Gallery