(July 10, 2019) MUNICH, Germany —Pure electric drive can now be experienced in Mini style with the new Mini Cooper SE that combines sustainable mobility with the driving fun, expressive design and premium quality that are typical of Mini vehicles. Mini says that the spontaneous power delivery of its 135 kW/181-horsepower with 199 pound-feet of torque motor, the brand-specific front-wheel drive, and the innovative driving dynamics system with wheel slip limiting close to the actuator, give the new Mini Cooper SE a particularly intense and unmistakable agility, known as the go-kart feeling.

Acceleration from 0 to 60 mph is estimated at around 7 seconds.

Its model-specific lithium-ion battery enables an estimated range of 146 to 168 miles. Exact U.S. range has not yet been made available.

The high-voltage battery is situated deep in the vehicle floor, ensuring there are no limitations in terms of luggage compartment volume as compared to the conventionally powered Mini hatch.

With the new Mini Cooper SE, the British brand once again sets a pioneering impetus for urban mobility. Sixty years ago, the revolutionary design principle of the classic Mini established the basis for maximum interior space within a minimum surface area. The new Mini was launched in 2001 — a modern re-interpretation of creative space usage and unique riding fun that became the original in the premium segment of small cars.

The new Mini Cooper SE will be the first purely electric premium small car, paving the way to a sustainable yet at the same time highly emotional driving experience in urban traffic.

The electric Mini can be charged at a household 120 volt socket, wall mounted charger or public charging stations, fast direct-current charging possible at up to 50 kW.

The new Mini Cooper SE is the first model to combine electro mobility in an urban setting with the hallmark brand properties of the original in the premium segment of small cars. The first ever purely electric model of the British brand is a genuine Mini to the core.

Its vehicle concept is based on the Mini 2-door hardtop. The dimensions, design, space and interior ambience of the new Mini Cooper SE are clearly based on the conventionally powered vehicle, the development of which already took account of the expansion of the model range to include an electrically powered version.

The new Mini Cooper SE is produced in the brand’s home country. It comes off the production line at the Mini plant in Oxford, UK, along with the conventionally powered versions of the model. Its drive technology comes from the BMW Group competence centers for electro mobility in Dingolfing and Landshut.

Instead of a petrol or diesel engine, there is an electric motor under the bonnet of the new Mini Cooper SE. The compact unit with integrated power electronics and transmission is positioned in the front section of the support frame by means of a solid tube structure. The high-voltage battery with model-specific configuration is made up of lithium-ions cells subdivided into 12 modules. They form a T-shaped unit positioned in the vehicle floor, providing a gross energy content of 32.6 kWh.

The electric motor is not just smaller but also significantly lighter than a combustion engine, thereby contributing to the well balanced axle load distribution of the new Mini Cooper SE. Along with the lower center of gravity, this gives the electrically powered model agile handling, making it supreme and easy to control even when cornering at high speed.

The new Mini Cooper SE also offers extremely secure road-holding, not least due to the position of its high-voltage battery. It is placed deep in the vehicle floor between the front seats and below the rear seats. As a result of this arrangement there is no reduction in luggage compartment space as compared to the conventionally powered model versions.

As in the Mini 2 door hardtop with combustion engine, the luggage volume under the tailgate is 7.45 cubic feet, expanding to 25.8 cubic feet when the rear backrests are folded down. The only measurable difference — in order to ensure the relevant ground clearance for the high-voltage battery installed in the vehicle floor, the body of the new Mini Cooper SE is positioned some 18 millimeters (three-quarters of an inch) higher than in the conventionally powered model.

All components of the electric drive are protected by means of model-specific structural features and immediately switched off in the event of a collision. The safety concept for the new Mini Cooper SE is thus in line with the high standards of the BMW Group, which go well beyond legal requirements.

The power electronics are shielded by the reinforced bumper support and the motor support frame, while the high-voltage battery is protected by a solid base plate. With an unladen DIN weight of 3,009 pounds, the electric model is only some 319 pounds heavier than the Mini Cooper S 2 door hardtop with Steptronic transmission.