Small note on the folding mirrors, you just need to press and hold the lock button on the key for 2 seconds when exiting the car to wind up the windows and fold in the mirrors.
Great review 👍 As we got a (fully specced except glass roof) 2021 SE for my wife 2 weeks ago, i'd like to add some thoughts. Having also a 2018 JCW 8AT, i can assure the 0-100kmh numbers are typically BMW, so worst case and lower in reality. Easily below 7 sec in all situations except very low battery, a tad slower than the 6 sec of the JCW, but in real life in/around town, it's as fast and nippy as the JCW. We got ours with Hankook Ventus S1 Evo3 tires on nicely matching 17" Tentacle spoke wheels, which offer amazing grip&traction. Torque steering is not a topic in the slightest (except when going 0 compromise full throttle on bad/damaged/uneven roads), plus traction control is outright brilliant. Which makes the SE the only relevant EV for us: lightweight (for beeing an EV, and ofcourse w/o glass roof which forbids itself in any car due to body stability, weight and high center of gravity), performance, handling&suspension, general quality of materials and making, design in general, frameless windows and an iconic shape, plus one of the best infotainment systems (regardless of car size) - and the perfect range for distances, where the JCW's or my diesel's engine won't even warm up properly to begin with (and the use of ICE's really is wrong, from an environmental AND technical pov).... Additionally, we don't want a dull, oddly designed or outright ugly EV, filled with cheap plastics and uninspiring tones of mouse grey, lackluster engines, missing quality and design likewise, too much battery overweight and outright awfull handling, horrific steering made for beginners/untrained drivers, for a tiny bit more range and bigger but still unusefull space for beeing a true 5 seater, because still a small car - which essentially sums up all other EVs that size except the Honda e which is at least on par with the Mini in design, materials and quality (and of course price).... Needless to say, the EV kind of lorry like 2500kg+ road monsters with consumption exceeding 25kwh/100km, touchpanels (in a moving car...probably the most intelligence freed invention since vacuum robots) the size of TV sets and similar, forbid itself too for us. If going ridicolous and "i dont care", there a certainly better (and more classy and fun) ways to do so with a decent I6 or V8... So the Mini may be the "oldest" or "most less advanced" car currently, but truly is the only option for a car enthusiast looking for a well rounded package and a perfect mix in regard to beeing a quality, real life usable and true drivers car - that offers driving pleasure similar to cars worth double or more. And it has a heat pump....something not too common in this car size. Alongside certain Jag, RR, Morgan, TVR and Mc Laren models, the Mini truly is UK's best 👍 For going 700 miles on the Autobahn in one trip without stopping, cruising totally relaxed at an average 100-120mph (which is really not fast in regard to Autobahn): i take my BMW diesel, austrian made engine, Euro 6d rating. Cat, DPF and Adblue/NOx converter make it exhaust air similar to that taken in - so 0 regrets... It will take EV/battery technology some more years (if ever) to reach that kind of practicality or appliance - but essentially doesn't need to anyway, as already now it's "perfect as is" for the right appliances. So basically 95% of average people's daily mobitlity needs (where diesel/petrol, wholeheartedly, even made little sense in the past). And if i only have the SE available, and the need for a longer trip: the SE certainly has (alongside the i3) a truly excellent battery management, plenty of spare battery capacity (4kwh) and electronics to accompany - so it's real life capability to charge at/near the 50kw maximum basically from 0 to 80 makes recharging a quick breeze, and a lot faster/more practical than a lot of other EVs. Beeing a petrol head, admitting to be really content with the SE in any regard....i guess that alone tells it all.
Thanks for all that detail! We agree with you on most of them. The charging at 50kW was good - we did this on an IONITY so the charger was not a bottleneck. Great car, definitely still worth considering for the driving dynamics alone.
I bought this to replace my Saab 9-3X. Main usage is around town, sometimes to summer cottage which is 160km from home. Took one for a test drive and fell in love, lovely to drive, compact enough and good tech. Sadly my car wont have HK speakers.
@@WhichEV Definitely and we stop to a supermarket midway which has 3 22-30kwh chargers. We usually spend 30 minutes doing shopping so it should be all good. We have 45kg Cane Corso which fits actually pretty well into the trunk (using the back seat latches). Will be saving around 100-250 euros a month driving the Mini. Not bad. Great car to have if you dont have family.
Very good fair and balanced review, you represented the features and values extremely well. It’s the same with any new car choice, it’s designed for.a select group not everyman. The Mini has similar characteristics as a McLaren, only room for two full size adults, but fun to drive. It’s a good second car for Mum to take the kids to school, it’s an ideal starter car for a young driver, it’s a really great car for a couple with the back seats folded down it’s a good load carrier. It’s not a family car, or is it a long distance e commute vehicle. As for the range, it is a compromise, light weight good maneuverability and faster charging, replace long distance hauler. If like us the majority of your trips are short and, if when you’re doing long distance you have time to plan stops and wait for it to charge it’s not at all intimidating to take on a long journey.
Great little car. However, we've seen quite a few British TV shows where newcomers to EVs are given a Mini Electric and then fall foul of the UK charging problems. It's setting them up to fail.
Great review. Informative, short and got all the real life driving info I needed not just dry facts. We currently have Audi Etron and want a small EV for short distance city driving. Although the range isn’t great (so does in our Etron) , I do like all the options in level 3. I’m seriously considering getting one in black shadow version :)
@@WhichEV my other option is fiat 500 electric but I just can’t imagine me in that car if wife takes etron :D Last time I was in fiat 500 was a hire car few years back in Italy. Interior was super cheap scratchy plastic and pretty much non existent rear seats and booth. Mini might have 90 miles real range but at least two smaller people can sit at back and there is a little bit of booth space. I need to take both for a test drive and see. What I like about fiat is better range, faster charging and its actually 1k cheaper in the best spec.
@@DominikZalewski85 The 500 is a deal and despite looking the same as the non-EV version actually a pure BEV platform. But the Mini is the much better drive, and a bit more practical in size, if not range.
Great review. I’m looking to get a Mini electric when I retire, not long. I live in Addlestone and, just as a benchmark, Brighton is 57 miles away via motorways. Be interesting to see if I could make it there and back without a charge, bringing into consideration the different driving modes.
You might be able to, but you'd need to drive at 60mph on those motorways. Brighton is full of chargers - I'd just bung it on one for a bit while you're there. No worries.
It seems to be based on the BMW 94ah i3, which BTW I have driven up and down the motorways on. I can do East Yorkshire to London in 3 short charge stops... Not an issue for me, as it has a flat charging curve and doesn't rapidgate.. unlike another EV I can think of ... Would I take the mini EV on the motorway.... sure I would, but I'd keep the speed at bang on 70 mph the whole way ... You just have to have some faith in the decent chargers like Instavolt and just grow a pair and do it .... I have often seen 24kwh and 30kwh Leafs doing the same journey and they have less range than this mini.....
Who’d of thought a Mini would have a small boot? Horses for courses some people don’t want 4 doors, single people and couples, it’s getting harder to find 2/3 door cars, for some of us the bigger front door opening is much more important than the rear door missing, thanks goodness Mini still make one. The 60/40 means you have a choice of larger or smaller 3rd seat when carrying ‘one’ passenger and luggage. Some pretty basic misconceptions in this review, cars are not all the same for a reason!
Getting a level 3 company car thus have no choice as they are going full electric, the rest on my list are either French or Vauxhall and bit of Korean but chose the Mini due to quality and drivability (wife has a petrol Cooper) but yes I will fear the awful range with my lead foot...plus it's made in the UK. Btw, how much does it actually cost to fully charge this car in the real world? I had read it was about £4-£5 but digging a bit deeper it appears to be closer to £12 @35p kWh unless I'm completely mistaken? If this is the case then it isn't that much cheaper to run than a petrol version based on like for like mileage.
It would be half that if you charged it at home. The real savings are from home charging, particularly if your supplier has a really cheap night rate. Public charging is much more pricey.
@@WhichEV so the way EV's are being marketed is bit of a con when it comes to savings over ICE cars, within the finer detail the savings aren't that much unless you only charge at home.
Agree...Too expensive for the range, cheap screen display on the stearing without sun protection, no active AdAs, and in 2021 still not connected to android auto, for that price, another time, unacceptable.
Totally agreed. But it's really fun to drive. Around British A-roads it's a hoot. That's its saving grace, if there is one. Although the BMW i3s is even better...
A couple of things to note. Firstly the range is a lot more than quoted. I've had one for about 8 months and it will easily get 150 miles unless you drive overly aggressively. Secondly, never and I mean NEVER trust the GOM (Guess O Meter). It is probably the worst GOM of any car I have ever driven. Last time I charged, the GOM said 155km range (really?). As I was going through 155km, I still had 37% battery left. That is how bad it is. If you worry about range, the GOM will compound it. Car Wow drove something like 30 miles after the GOM had got to 0. Thirdly, the price - it is without doubt the EV closest to the Petrol in price of any car. With the UK grant, it is cheaper than the equivalent petrol car. Without the grant is is a few hundred pounds more. The Kona, for example is 10s of thousands more for the EV. Fourth(ly) You have to spend a lot more money to get an EV that is as fun, let alone more fun to drive. I am talking Taycan sort of money - well for a Taycan :)
@@js-hl5hv But where are you driving? If you're only in a city, it could be. But we literally drove one with 100% charge for 95 miles and it would not have made it if we hadn't charged it on the way. You lose a lot of range at motorway speeds. It's very typical of many EVs.
@@WhichEV About 40% on the freeway (80-100kph) and 60% suburban (50-70kph). On a long trip, on 110kph highway, we got 220km (about 135 miles). But that was boring, green mode, cruise control driving. If I am only in town, no highway, no racing from lights, boring follow the car in front, I can get 270km (about 167 miles). You need to look at the battery percent, not the range. So, for example, when I got home this evening, I had 175km (108 miles) on the trip meter with 25% battery remaining. I had been in sports mode the entire time and was "enjoying" the drive (ie. lots of full throttle acceleration). Now I had been going on freeways a bit more this time (80-100kph), maybe 50% of the journey. 175/0.75 = 233km full (till empty) range. The GOM said 155km when I removed the charging cable. 233km is pretty much bang spot on WLTP. If I drove more sedately, and fewer highways, then 250 is easily achieved. Car Wow achieved 154 miles on the motorway in the MINI, so it can be done - not only by me :)
@@js-hl5hv Ah, there you go. This was mostly UK motorways where most traffic is 120kph plus. I was in Green+ mode too. No idea how Car Wow managed 154 miles - bet they were going well below the speed limit. Where's the fun in that? In a Tesla Model 3 Performance you can do 200+ miles while driving at "reasonable motorway speeds". This is not a dealbreaker for the Mini. I just would not buy on for any long journeys. At all.
I am hype and may do a deposit tomorrow. My mom pointed to a Mini two day ago and says that she like it. So i may get to order a new car without being selfish and add points to be a good son at the same time. Probably just lease though.
Dude. Have u seen the hilarious video comparing different brand’s auto stop. The Hyundai and Kia would just run over anyone haha. I don’t think that they are ahead in any ways.
