The years when Mini was synonymous with a compact and affordable car are long behind us. The modern Mini took a different path and is now on the eve of the next exciting chapter. One in which electric driving predominates. In addition, Mini is exploring a new segment.
If you look at the current model range, you will see that it has been a while since Mini came up with a completely new model. The seven-year-old three-door and five-door Mini and Mini Cabrio were given another facelift this year. The fresher Countryman received a refresher in 2020 and in the same year the first fully electrically powered Mini hatchback appeared on the market.
Behind the scenes, however, a lot of work is being done on the successors. Not least because Mini wants to be a fully electric brand by 2030. The new Minis take an important step in that direction.
For starters, there’s an all-new three-door hatchback in the development rooms. It will have an electric powertrain, but is also available with petrol and diesel engines. The successor to the current three-door Mini and the Mini Electric. There will also be a new Convertible, undoubtedly on the same basis. The survival of the five-door Mini and the Clubman is uncertain.
Steady course
As far as the appearance is concerned, don’t expect too many surprises, as can be seen in the illustration above. In that respect, the British are following a familiar course. Mini says it will come up with new models from 2023 and the brand will probably start off with the new three-door. However, a new Countryman has already been spotted who can also make his debut that year. Despite a well-known interplay of lines, it takes a bit more distance from its predecessor. The new Countryman shares its base with the next BMW X1 and is partly growing because of this. For the Countryman, there will soon be a choice of various powertrains, ranging from electric to petrol and diesel. Indeed, the same ‘power of choice’ approach as parent company BMW.
If the Countryman is perhaps a size too big for you, there is good news. Mini is working on two high-legged models: one in the compact segment and another in the ‘compact premium’ segment. The Countryman probably fills the latter role and that means a more modest brother is coming. It reportedly shares its basis developed together with BMW with the new three-door. This means that there will also be a fully electric version of that type. It is even possible that with this model it will only be an electric drive. That newcomer knows how to keep Mini well hidden until now.
Mini Urban car
MPV-like
Mini, on the other hand, does not hide the fact that it plays with the idea of ​​bringing an MPV-like on the market. With the Vision Urbanaut, the brand showed a year ago what such a model can look like. Literally ‘broadly speaking’, because the name ‘Mini’ does not really seem appropriate on that fairly large study model – with a length of no less than 4.46 meters. However, there is a good chance that it will not remain a finger exercise, because Mini indicates that in addition to the aforementioned models, it is working on a car for ‘those who want more interior space’. From this we can deduce that the Urbanaut will be continued in production. Feast your eyes on this page to get used to that idea.
In 2025, Mini will present its latest new model in which fuel engines are also available. That could be the ‘Urbanaut’, although it is even more likely that it is the more compact brother of the Countryman. The production Urbanaut could just be purely electrically powered. In any case, a lot is going to happen at Mini in the coming years.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl