Behind the wheel: Mini E

We recently had a chance to drive the all-electric Mini E at a local press event. The car is not for sale yet, but in what amounts to an extended market test, a selected group of customers in the Los Angeles and New York City areas will pay $850 per month to lease one for a year. (See our Mini E preview.)

The Mini E is a two-seater with a large, 35-kwh lithium-ion battery pack occupying the space where the back seats would be. The electric motor running off that battery produces the equivalent of 204 hp and 162 lb.-ft of torque. To put that in perspective, a gasoline-powered Mini Cooper S produces 172 hp and 177 lb.-ft. So this electric Mini has oodles of power. The claimed range of the E is 150 miles. A full recharge is said to take about four and a half hours if you have access to a 240-volt power source, but almost 24 hours if you have to use standard 110-volt power. (See our Mini Cooper ratings and reviews, available to online subscribers.)

We took turns driving the electric Mini around a hilly, curving, five-mile loop in Bear Mountain State Park, along the Hudson River north of New York City. Driving it was a hoot. With the electric powertrain’s instant torque, it’s easy to light up the front wheels at launch or even while accelerating out of corners. The motor pulls strongly, eagerly, quietly, and effortlessly. Power delivery to the wheels is similar to a Cooper S—right down to the torque steer. Handling is similar, too, with go-kart like agility. The regenerative braking system, which recaptures braking energy to recharge the battery, lets you descend hills without touching the brakes. It’s a pretty aggressive system that we think a lot of people will find strange at first. The only noise from the powertrain is a muted electric whine. That’s too bad in a way, since the regular Mini’s exhaust note is quite exhilarating.

Similar in appearance to its gasoline-fueled brethren, the Mini E adapts subtly to the electric format. For instance, the instrument cluster does away with a tachometer, substituting a gauge that shows the state of the battery’s charge. Open the fuel flap and you find an electric receptacle instead of a gas cap. One thing that can’t be hidden is the lack of luggage space. Behind the battery is room for a carry-on bag, but not much else.

After a group of heavy-footed journalists had taken turns pushing the Mini E hard around the park’s hilly terrain for a few hours, it became clear that the car wasn’t going to achieve anything close to its 150-mile range in these extreme usage conditions. The point was freely conceded by the BMW/Mini representatives on hand, and it came as a surprise to no one.

The Mini E may still need some work, such as less intrusive regenerative braking, but it proves that green and fun-to-drive are not mutually exclusive. It also shows both the advances in battery technology and the need for those batteries to get a lot smaller. At this point, electric mobility still demands tradeoffs: You can get high performance, good range, and adequate interior space. But you get to pick only two.

—Gabe Shenhar

Learn about driving green in the Consumer Reports special fuel economy section.

Comments

[Cale]

Sounds like fun. Shockingly little extra space though! :-)

[Nick Zart]

Great article on a car that holds an electrifying promise. However, we question why you would want a "less intrusive regenerative braking"? We got used to regenerative braking very quickly and like how it recharges the battery when slowing to a stop or going downhill, while almost never using the brakes, only to come to a full stop.

The Electricnick.com team.

[UH2L]

You might want less intrusive regenerative braking for coasting purposes. This would save charge because the energy taken up by the braking might exceed the kinetic energy maintained by allowing the vehicle's momentum to let you coast. Cases where this would come in handy include slowly decelerating coming up to a stop light or off of a long highway ramp.

The same principles apply to IC engines and manual transmissions. Sometimes you want to keep it in gear to get zero-fuel engine braking, but sometimes you want to put it in neutral to get the most out of the vehicle's momentum.

UH2L

[Chioke]

Interesting commentary on the MINI E. I wish I lived in one of the regions selected to market-test it. One note on the distinct lack of engine and exhaust noise. The few electric-drivetrain cars I've driven have all obviously lacked much in the way of what traditional petrol heads would call thrilling sounds from up-front or out-back but I think they are replaced with something equally exciting. The high-pitched motor whine and rush of acceleration makes me feel as though I'm at the helm of the Starship Enterprise or some other futuristic craft, which is just as good, but entirely different from evoking 'Corvette' or 'Porsche'.

[Diego Matter]

"After a group of heavy-footed journalists had taken turns pushing the Mini E hard around the park’s hilly terrain for a few hours, it became clear that the car wasn’t going to achieve anything close to its 150-mile range in these extreme usage conditions."

Yout put it right: "under these extrem conditions". For everyday driving (Americans average 40 miles a day) it is still plenty. And it would save the world with a PV-system on the roof. But I'm still not able to buy one at the car dealership.

The battery is so big in the trunk because they did't design the car for electric like GM does in the Volt. The Mini E is only a conversion for testing.