Announced 15 years ago
The announcement that Mini made in 2008 that it would build an electric car was exciting, because the concepts of ‘electric’ and ‘driving pleasure’ were still strangers at the time. Could Mini change that? The first reports were encouraging, because the car in question, the experimental Mini E, produced no less than 204 horsepower at the front wheels, almost as much as the spectacular John Cooper Works, which had 211 to forgive.
Mini E was 350 pounds heavier than the John Cooper Works
A look at the scale tempered expectations somewhat, because at barely one and a half tons, the Mini E was about 350 kilos heavier than the John Cooper Works. Anyway, his 0-100 time of 8.5 seconds was there. Since the car was intended for the city, you don’t make a fuss about the modest top speed of 152 km / h. Much more important was the range of 150 to 200 kilometers and the fact that you also had to leave the car at a charging station for a while in the middle of all your daily worries. Normal now, but something new in 2008. Just like the car itself, that charging was an important part of the investigation. The Americans in California, New York and New Jersey who were the first to participate in the pilot project with the Mini E still had it easy here, because they received a wallbox in their garage, in which the Mini E had to be parked.
First charging station in Berlin
This requirement did not apply in Europe and in 2009 Berlin installed the city’s first charging station for the Mini practical test. A network arose. Other field tests followed in Munich and in the United Kingdom. Incidentally, the Mini E was not a regular production model; BMW built it in limited numbers in Munich and then it was made available as a lease car for a period of several months to a year. After use, they all returned for examination and the temporary owners had to report their findings. What turned out? It was fine to live with the car, only the luggage space had to be bigger. Not surprising, because the back seat of the Mini E had made way for a large battery pack. Only … not a word about the driving pleasure. It was still such a nice two-seater.
Mini E on the Nordschleife
Nevertheless, the Mini E was even allowed to take action on the Nordschleife. 09:51.45 minutes was the lap time set by DTM driver Thomas Jäger on the Nordschleife in 2010 with a modified Mini E. He reached a top speed of 187 km/h.
In the end, the first electric Mini Cooper SE, the current electric Mini, showed that it would be fine. Driving pleasure and electric driving can go together. And the next? It gets even more fun!
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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl