Skip advert
Advertisement

All-new Mini undergoes cold weather tests – bespoke EV set for 2023 launch

Mini’s plans have been laid out with an all-new electric 3dr Mini and bespoke compact crossover on their way

Big change is coming to the Mini range, and sooner than you may think, as the brand begins its transition to become fully EV-focused in 2023. This transformation will begin with an all-new electric Mini 3dr in 2023, designed from the ground-up as the centre of the new range. A few months since its announcement, BMW has released images of the model undergoing cold weather tests in Sweden ahead of its reveal next year.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Its final design is still under wraps, but the images we've seen so far reveal a familiar collection of retro-inspired design elements like the round headlights, floating roof and frameless glass, confirming a few of the seismic changes to come.

> The Mini Remastered Oselli Edition is a £100,000 restomod

First is the new Mini’s proportions, which look to be smaller than those of the current model. The front overhang, while not as compact as the original 2001 R50, is much shorter than the goofy-looking Mini of today. The same is true of the rear overhang, giving the all-new model a set of wheel-at-each-corner proportions that are much more in keeping with the original car. 

Look past the oversized headlights and you’ll also spot a totally new front-end panel layout, with the iconic clamshell having been replaced by a more traditional bonnet. Whether this space will offer added storage or package some of the powertrain components remains to be seen, but it will shift the fake bonnet scoop (which has been fake since the 2008 R56-generation Cooper S, mind) further up the bonnet. 

The windscreen has also now been given more rake than previous models – a decision made to help motorway-speed aerodynamics – and BMW’s new flush handles that replace the iconic chrome grabs. We don’t know much about the interior’s evolution, but expect a slick integration of new digital interfaces within the retro Mini forms that have been established over the past 20 years. 

Advertisement - Article continues below
Skip advert
Advertisement
Advertisement - Article continues below

And there’s more good news, as Mini is also developing John Cooper Works derivatives, which should combine more powerful electric motors with a sharper chassis setup. It’s this model we hope will most closely recreate the classic Mini’s agile handling characteristics. 

Joining the Mini 3dr will be another all-new all-electric model, this time a compact premium crossover thought to be around the size of an Audi Q2. It will essentially replace the current 5-door Mini and sit underneath the larger Countryman. Both of these new EV models will also be built in Mini’s Oxford plant, maintaining consistent UK production.

A new Countryman will arrive in 2023, sharing its underpinnings with BMW’s new X1 compact SUV that’s coming next year and being built in BMW’s Leipzig manufacturing facility. The current combustion 3dr and 5dr Minis will also soldier on for the foreseeable future with their combustion powertrains. Mini has confirmed its final combustion-powered model will launch in 2025.

So while it might not appear at first glance to be a case of good news for Mini, the notion of a bespoke electric model makes far more sense in light of legislation that’s coming down the line. It’s fair to say we’ve given the current Mini range a certain amount of criticism over the last few years, with the core Mini Cooper hatch leaving us underwhelmed when it left behind its bespoke underpinnings in favour of a collection of inherited components shared with the BMW 1-series. It was this homogenisation within the BMW Group that led the bloated current generation car so a new electric platform coming to write some of those wrongs should be a good thing. 

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

​Volkswagen ID.3 review: a more subtle, more expensive Cupra Born
Volkswagen ID.3 – front
Reviews

​Volkswagen ID.3 review: a more subtle, more expensive Cupra Born

The ID.3 has been updated to address some of its key weak points, but better-value rivals have caught up
26 Mar 2024
2025 Audi e-tron GT to get 1000bhp RS model
2025 Audi e-tron GT
News

2025 Audi e-tron GT to get 1000bhp RS model

The all-electric Audi e-tron GT will benefit from the upgrades its Porsche Taycan relative has just received, including a 1000bhp RS model
22 Mar 2024
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N 2024 review – the most engaging EV yet
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
Reviews

Hyundai Ioniq 5 N 2024 review – the most engaging EV yet

Hyundai has used every trick in the book – and written a few new ones – to make the Ioniq 5 N fun to drive. The results are truly impressive
20 Mar 2024
Kia EV9 2024 review – a Range Rover on a budget?
Kia EV9 – front
Reviews

Kia EV9 2024 review – a Range Rover on a budget?

Need an electric seven-seater with a 300+ mile range? Right now, the answer is Kia's EV9.
20 Mar 2024
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

The new Toyota GR Yaris costs £44,250 – too much for a hot supermini?
Toyota GR Yaris Gen 2 – front
News

The new Toyota GR Yaris costs £44,250 – too much for a hot supermini?

Our early impressions of the Gen 2 GR Yaris suggest that it’s an improvement in every area that counts, but can it be worth £18k more than an i20 N?
27 Mar 2024
The new Mercedes-AMG G63 has arrived, and it still has a V8
Mercedes-AMG G63
News

The new Mercedes-AMG G63 has arrived, and it still has a V8

Some of Affalterbach’s range-toppers are swapping eight cylinders for four, but the AMG G-class retains its V8 for 2024
26 Mar 2024
Land Rover Defender OCTA: twin-turbo V8 and McLaren-style suspension tech for hot off-roader
Land Rover Defender OCTA – front
News

Land Rover Defender OCTA: twin-turbo V8 and McLaren-style suspension tech for hot off-roader

The OCTA promises to be the fastest, toughest and most capable Defender yet when it launches later this year
26 Mar 2024