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Car and Driver
6 hours ago
- Automotive
- Car and Driver
Tested: 2025 Mini Countryman EV Doesn't Give a Reason to Go Electric
Mini started selling electric versions of its small hatchbacks quite a while ago, but the latest Cooper Electric is in limbo due to global trade issues, as it's built in China. But that doesn't mean Mini is without an EV entirely. The larger Countryman SUV has entered the crowded electric-utility space with a new-for-2025 model that uses the same SE name that was previously applied to the Countryman's plug-in hybrid variant in its prior generation. The new Countryman SE ALL4 shares its modern-looking design with the third-gen gas model, and it's mechanically similar to the BMW iX1, an electric variant of Bimmer's smallest SUV that isn't sold in the U.S. We only get one version of the SE, and it's a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive setup with 308 horsepower. That puts it right in line with the gas-powered Countryman's JCW performance variant, which has 312 horsepower and all-wheel drive. The two are also priced similarly, with the EV starting at $46,375 and the JCW at $48,075. (The base 241-hp Countryman S gas model starts at $40,075.) View Exterior Photos Andi Hedrick | Car and Driver Of course, as is typical with EVs, the Countryman's 65-kWh battery pack means it's quite a bit heavier than its gas counterpart. The SE weighs in at 4606 pounds, versus 3792 for the Countryman JCW we tested. That means the electric version doesn't perform as well despite its similar power output. We got it to 60 mph in a respectable 4.8 seconds, while the gas model did it in 4.6. Within the Mini's competitive set of other electrics, the similarly priced Volvo EX30 is the speed demon, getting to 60 mph in a scant 3.3 seconds in our testing. HIGHS: Cute interior design, pleasant driving demeanor, reasonably priced compared with gas model. Though the Countryman SE feels nimble and quick for a small crossover, it doesn't give the impression of being an overtly sporting machine. The ride is firm, the steering is direct, and the powertrain is responsive, but it's a bit too big and heavy to change direction eagerly enough to live up to the promise of the sporty and boldly named Go Kart driving mode. Around the skidpad, our test car managed a so-so 0.85 g of grip, riding on 19-inch Continental ProContact GX all-season tires. The gas-powered JCW's more aggressive summer rubber helped it earn an 0.95-g result, and it also beat the SE's 70-mph stopping distance by a significant margin, at 158 feet to 171 feet. View Interior Photos Andi Hedrick | Car and Driver Mini's typical kitsch is on full display inside the Countryman SE, as its dashboard incorporates a mix of textiles, ambient lighting, and other flourishes to create a fun atmosphere. Those who like this sort of thing will get enjoyment out of details like the quirky air vents and the fabric strap replacing one of the traditional steering-wheel spokes. The circular central infotainment screen is nice to look at, though it doesn't quite use its full real estate effectively for smartphone mirroring. We also felt that some of the menu structures were too complicated, as you have to dive into various settings to adjust things like the regenerative braking level. A button would have been easier. LOWS: Limited driving range, doesn't accelerate as quickly as the JCW model, quirky styling isn't for everyone. With the regen level at its highest setting and the transmission in B mode, the Countryman SE is capable of one-pedal driving. We enjoyed driving in this mode in the city, and the gas pedal has a long enough travel to make it easy to modulate your speed. But the Countryman SE's other EV specs aren't so impressive. The EPA estimates a driving range of just over 200 miles on a charge, with the version on 18-inch wheels earning a rating of 212 miles and the version with 19-inch wheels rated at 204 miles. Our test car and its 19-inchers achieved a real-world 75-mph highway range of only 180 miles. View Interior Photos Andi Hedrick | Car and Driver Though that isn't too far off the EPA estimate, it's simply not very much range. Yes, the aforementioned Volvo EX30 fared even worse in this test, achieving just 160 miles, but the less expensive Hyundai Kona Electric managed 230 miles in this same test. At least the Mini's fast-charging capabilities are competitive, with a peak charging rate of 129 kilowatts in our fast-charging test and an average of 84 kilowatts overall. VERDICT: The electric Countryman doesn't give up much to its gas siblings, but it doesn't gain much either. The problem with the Countryman SE is that it simply doesn't offer any particular characteristics to entice buyers away from the gas models. It costs about the same as the JCW but doesn't perform as well, and its relatively small battery pack means it can't go far on a charge. If EV buyers are forced to make sacrifices like this, they should at least benefit from extra features, better acceleration, or increased versatility via a front cargo area. The Countryman SE doesn't have any of these upsides, and as a result it fails to make a compelling argument for itself. View Interior Photos Andi Hedrick | Car and Driver Specifications Specifications 2025 Mini Countryman SE ALL4 Vehicle Type: front- and rear-motor, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door wagon PRICE Base/As Tested: $46,375/$51,325 Options: Iconic trim (Harman/Kardon audio system, interior camera, power fronts seats, privacy glass), $3200; Comfort Package Max (auto-dimming mirrors, augmented-reality navigation, adaptive cruise control, Parking Assistant Plus, active driving assistant), $900; trailer hitch, $600; Parking Assistant Professional, $250; Favored Style (Anthracite headliner, John Cooper Works sport seats, silver roof and mirror caps, 19-inch Kaleido Spoke two-tone wheels, $0 POWERTRAIN Front Motor: current-excited synchronous AC, 188 hp, 182 lb-ft Rear Motor: current-excited synchronous AC, 188 hp, 182 lb-ft Combined Power: 308 hp Combined Torque: 364 lb-ft Battery Pack: liquid-cooled lithium-ion, 65 kWh Onboard Charger: 9.6 kW Peak DC Fast-Charge Rate: 130 kW Transmissions, F/R: direct-drive CHASSIS Suspension, F/R: struts/multilink Tires: Continental ProContact GX 245/45R-19 102H M+S ★ DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 106.0 in Length: 175.0 in Width: 72.6 in Height: 64.6 in Passenger Volume, F/R: 53/42 ft3 Cargo Volume, Behind F/R: 56/25 ft3 Curb Weight: 4606 lb C/D TEST RESULTS 60 mph: 4.8 sec 100 mph: 13.1 sec 1/4-Mile: 13.6 sec @ 101 mph Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.3 sec. Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 5.0 sec Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 2.2 sec Top Gear, 50–70 mph: 3.5 sec Top Speed (gov ltd): 112 mph Braking, 70–0 mph: 171 ft Braking, 100–0 mph: 343 ft Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 0.85 g C/D FUEL ECONOMY AND CHARGING Observed: 75 MPGe 75-mph Highway Range: 180 mi Average DC Fast-Charge Rate, 10–90%: 84 kW DC Fast-Charge Time, 10–90%: 39 min EPA FUEL ECONOMY Combined/City/Highway: 91/94/88 MPGe Range: 204 mi C/D TESTING EXPLAINED Reviewed by Joey Capparella Deputy Editor, Rankings Content Despite being raised on a steady diet of base-model Hondas and Toyotas—or perhaps because of it—Joey Capparella nonetheless cultivated an obsession for the automotive industry throughout his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee. He found a way to write about cars for the school newspaper during his college years at Rice University, which eventually led him to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for his first professional auto-writing gig at Automobile Magazine. He has been part of the Car and Driver team since 2016 and now lives in New York City. Read full bio
TimesLIVE
14 hours ago
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
How does a MINI Countryman SE All4 handle a 465km round trip?
Long-distance touring with an electric vehicle can be daunting. Not only is there the prospect of 'range anxiety' to deal with, there is also the notion of 'charger anxiety', as a seasoned consultant on the subject explained to me. The fear is that even though you might have enough juice to get from one point to the next, your intended charging destination could be occupied or offline. Load-shedding is usually the cause for the latter. Luckily, GridCars, which operates most of the charging facilities in South Africa, has app functionality which informs users what the status of their chosen facility is. Last weekend myself and our long-term MINI Countryman SE embarked on our first-ever cross-province drive: from Joburg to Wolmaransstad and back — the furthest I had ever travelled in an electric vehicle, ever. Happily I can report that neither of the earlier-mentioned 'anxieties' wracked my brain. The whole journey was as smooth as one could hope for, popping my long-distance electric trip cherry. I hear you asking, why Wolmaransstad? And where is that anyway? The tiny town lies about 100km outside Potchefstroom in North West province. It's an agricultural stronghold, but it's also a strategic location for an off-grid solar charging facility on the N12 national route. There is space for six vehicles to charge, and it can handle commercial EVs up to eight tons. Operated by the firm Zero Carbon Charge, the Wolmaransstad facility is the first in a planned network of 120 stations, built within 150km of each other. The idea is to enable stress-free, cross-country mobility for electric car drivers. Getting registered to use the Zero Carbon Charge platform proved simple: download an app, link a card for payment, then scan a QR code at the charging infrastructure to get going. My day began at 6.30am. The MINI had been fully-charged using our office AC plug point and the vehicle indicated a range of about 380km. The biggest range I have yet seen on the MINI is 406km, after using a 30kW DC outlet. The range claimed by the manufacturer is 433km. MINI states the average consumption of the Countryman SE as 17kWh/100km. I met up with two other industry colleagues in their electric cars at a spot on Jan Smuts Avenue 7km away. From there, it was a 229km stretch to Wolmaransstad, using the N2 and N12. 'Stretch' might be overselling it though, because with the indicated range of the MINI Countryman, the experience turned out to be a doddle. As a precautionary measure we decided to stop in Potchefstroom (halfway to Wolmaransstad), should anyone require a charge at the GridCars facility at the Mooirivier Mall. By the time we arrived there, my battery life was at 70%, with electricity consumption around 14kWh/100km. It would have been even better, but at some point during the journey I decided to crank up my heater and heated steering wheel. It was a frosty morning. Nobody needed to charge up n Potchefstroom, so onward we trekked. Crucial to mention is that my driving style was not overly conservative. All I did was stick to the speed limits and modulate the accelerator gently on take-offs. No over-the-top hyper-miling techniques were deployed: just a real-world driving style, keeping with the ebb and flow of traffic. The vehicle was kept in the dedicated Green setting, adopting a mapping profile that prioritises range over performance. If you drive the car in the most extreme mode of conservation, it caps permitted speed to 90km/h. By the time we arrived at the solar set-up in Wolmaransstad, the Countryman's battery life was 43%, with consumption in the region of 15kWh/100km. My next move was to plug one of the fast-chargers into the 'tank' of the MINI and initiate the job. The peak output of the charger fluctuated between 30kW to a peak of 75kW, which enabled a juice-up from 43% to 100% in about 90 minutes. We passed the time in the on-site Farm Flair restaurant, stocked with everything from biltong to koeksisters. In all, the vehicle's battery took 37.38kWh to achieve fully-charged status (the total battery size is 66.5kWh); costing R342.03, which works out to R9.15 per kWh. A full battery from empty would cost about R608. The total trip distance from Johannesburg to Wolmaransstad and back was 465km, so in effect I paid R1.35 per km. How does the electric Countryman compare to a petrol-powered one in terms of cost versus range? The current inland price per litre for 95 unleaded is R21.40 and the 2.0l Countryman S has a 54l tank size, working out to about R1,155. With a claimed consumption of 6.5l/100km you could expect a range in the region of 608km — roughly R1.89 per km. The savings in fuel bills represented by the electric model would translate into savings over the long-term, but the difference in initial outlay is also a factor that might influence your purchasing decision. The Countryman SE costs R1,086,000 while the regular S is R810,774. The next item on the agenda for our MINI? The customary Gerotek shakedown. LONG-TERM UPDATE 3 | MINI Countryman SE ALL4 ODOMETER ON DELIVERY: 4,621km PRAISES: Strong range on a full-charge makes lengthier journeys possible. GRIPES: Central armrest has no storage bin.
