Mini's all-electric car brings a new charge to an old classic
Mini is making big moves in the electric car world and is introducing a fully-electric concept vehicle sporting the automaker's signature look with a few next-gen flourishes.
The new EV design, which is called the Mini Electric Concept (at least for the time being), was unveiled at the IAA Cars 2017 event in Munich. The small car is designed for short city drives, according to the copmany, and is meant to offer a new zero-emissions option for urban dwellers.
Mini's parent company BMW Group aims to put the Concept design on the road in 2019, joining industry rivals like Tesla and GM with more accessible EV options for the driving public. The new design is the first truly all-electric car from Mini meant for mass production, although the automaker does offer electrified versions of a few of its current models.
Mini didn't share many specs about the design or pricing, leaving important figures like battery size and estimated range out of the launch materials and focusing instead on the car's aesthetic flourishes.
The Concept will use the BMW i3's electric drivetrain, however, so performance will likely be comparable. The i3's latest iteration offers a top-end range of about 114-miles per charge.
The Concept is the first fully-electric car MINI will mass produce for the market, but it's not the first true EV the brand has ever made.
The automaker created the Mini E back in 2008, a limited-run test vehicle used to explore the possibilities of electric cars for BMW. Around 600 customers drove the cars for a year before sending them back to the company for assessment. The data and insights collected through the trial contributed to the creation of the i3, so the project is now coming full circle with a fully realized Mini EV.
As more automakers embrace EVs, electric-only updates to familiar classics like the MINI could become a popular theme in the industry. Volkswagen just announced that it will put its electric I.D. Buzz Microbus concept into production after overwhelmingly positive feedback — but it won't be available until 2022.
For now, you'll just have to wait on the new school updates to old school cars. Both 2019 and 2022 aren't that far away — so just keep an eye on all the EV development to bide your time.
Topics Electric Vehicles
Brett Williams is a Tech Reporter at Mashable. He writes about tech news, trends and other tangentially related topics with a particular interest in wearables and exercise tech. Prior to Mashable, he wrote for Inked Magazine and Thrillist. Brett's work has also appeared on Fusion and AskMen, to name a few. You can follow Brett on Twitter @bdwilliams910.
