MINI Cooper E: A £35,000 Toy With a Range Problem

The looks

The modern MINI remains controversial, but BMW has held the brand long enough for its design language to feel established rather than imposed. The covered grille marks it out as electric, yet the proportions still recall the original: a small grille beneath the bonnet line, round lights and a proper bumper beneath. The LED halo surrounds the headlights rather than drawing angry eyebrows across them, which is exactly right.

The triangular rear lights incorporate the Union Jack, which is patriotic, playful and entirely unwilling to take itself too seriously. It works. So do the neatly tucked-in door handles, the traditional fuel-filler position for the charging cap and the small rear spoiler. My only real objection is that every version is called a Cooper, from base car to JCW. That does not quite follow, though neither do BMW’s engine badges, so perhaps consistency was never the point.

The interior

Inside, it is clean, simple and rather lovely. The large circular central screen does almost everything, works intuitively enough and supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The native navigation is good roughly 92% of the time; for the remaining 8%, use Waze on your iPhone.

The driver-mode switches retain that little fighter-jet startup ritual, and the fabric dashboard is gorgeous, though dog owners should prepare for a long and intimate relationship with a lint roller. There is also a decorative strap on the dash that made no sense to me whatsoever. I have decided to regard it as modern art.

What genuinely surprised me was the fit and finish. There are no cheap, hollow plastics, no creaks, no rattles and no vibration. Every touchpoint feels properly finished, and the cabin is quieter than quiet. In heavy London traffic, you can speak at a normal volume and the outside world simply ceases to exist. It turns the M25 from an ordeal into an unusually civilised listening room.

The drive

The Cooper E has 184hp, which is a very good number in a car of this size. It is quick away from a standstill, brisk to 70mph and beyond, and the power delivery has been tuned for engagement rather than outright violence. Even with cold tyres, it feels composed and approachable. You could let a learner drive it without terror, then take the wheel yourself and still have fun.

It is heavier and wider than the MINIs of old, but it has not lost the charm. It still invites you to take the small gaps, thread the impossible spaces and enjoy the lanes. City, traffic, A-roads, motorway or Cotswolds back road: it is a genuinely joyful all-rounder. I would have liked a little more power, but MINI sells a version with more punch for exactly that reason.

Even the driver aids are unusually well judged. The warnings are soft and stop after three polite bongs, lane assistance is gentle rather than jerky, and the automatic braking gives a light nudge in traffic. Auto Hold works beautifully, though it switches itself off every time you leave the car, which is mildly infuriating in an otherwise thoughtful cabin.

The range problem

Here is the difficulty. This was a nearly new car with under 200 miles on the clock, so battery age and degradation were not factors. The official WLTP figure is 179 to 186 miles, which is, frankly, complete nonsense.

Driven sensibly, expect around 130 miles. Allow for the fact that nobody runs a battery to zero, and the usable figure is closer to 110 miles. Drive it with any enthusiasm and that disappears rather quickly.

Over 24 hours, I covered around 200 miles from Wiltshire to Bristol, then through country lanes, A-roads, motorway driving, city driving and finally up to the Cotswolds. We charged three times and spent £40 on public charging for less than 170 miles. That is more than it would cost to fuel a 911 GT3 RS. Pure insanity.

The Cooper E makes sense if you live in London, Bristol or Birmingham, can charge at home and treat it as a second car for commutes under 80 miles. It will cost pennies to run, avoid ULEZ charges and make the daily grind genuinely enjoyable. But it is not a country car, and winter can reportedly reduce the range by around 20%. Owners also report that the SE and JCW do not necessarily solve the problem, with the extra power apparently taking its toll on range.

Vivian’s verdict

The MINI Cooper E is a fantastic little car: beautifully built, quietly luxurious, genuinely fun and equipped with one of the best sound systems at this price. But it is also a £35,000 toy with limited range, and the range is the one thing an electric car really ought to have.

If you have a charger at home, a sensible commute and another car for the long journeys, it is a delightful purchase. If you need one car to do everything, I would want either more range or a V12 and rather more drama.

Approved as a toy. Not recommended as your only car.