Converting classic Minis into EVs: many small companies are already doing it. Now Mini is working on the idea itself and gives the old people an electric heart with the Mini Recharged program. It is not known how much that conversion should cost.
The original Mini seems to be a favored candidate for electric conversions. For example, the company Swindon Powertrain has developed an electric powertrain for classic Minis and the start-up London Electric Cars (LEC) has already ventured into the original Mini. These parties are now facing competition from Mini itself. The brand is going to electrify classic Minis in Oxford under the banner ‘Mini Recharged’.
The electric heart that Mini uses has a maximum power of 122 hp and makes that the car can sprint to 100 km/h in about 9 seconds. The battery capacity is unknown, but you should be able to get around 160 kilometers on one battery charge. If that prediction is correct, that is not even much less than the current Mini Electric. Charging does take a bit more time, because faster charging than with 6.6 kW is not possible. In terms of appearance, Mini does not make many adjustments: at the charging opening on the left is the plug symbol that modern electric and hybrid Minis also have. Inside, the instruments now indicate the range instead of the fuel level.
The electric conversion of Mini itself is slightly more powerful than that of the above two companies. In addition, an advantage is that Mini numbers the combustion engines that it uses from the classics, links it to the copy in question and stores it somewhere, so that they can be put back at a later stage if desired. Every original Mini converted to EV also gets a unique number. Got interested? Unfortunately, Mini only builds electric classics for the British market for the time being. Mini does not mention the price, but the conversion process will most likely not be cheap.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl