Mini Cooper S E Countryman won’t get you far, but it will be fun
2018 Mini Cooper S E Countryman All4: When the weather outside is frightful ...
Price: $41,000 as tested. ($36,800 for the trim level, plus $500 for silver paint, $1,000 for panoramic sunroof, $750 for heads-up display and $300 for Sirius XM. More options outlined below.)
Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes the “neatly packaged hybrid bits, vastly improved interior versus the previous Countryman’s,” but not “only 12 miles of electric range, wonky brake-pedal feel, not as dynamically rewarding as other Minis.”
Marketer’s pitch: “Introducing the biggest, most adventurous Mini yet.” Reality: ... let’s test something
delightful.
Awakening: Occasionally, it comes to all of us — that feeling that we’re sleepwalking through life. Nothing excites us.
But when you’re bored by the new cars delivered to your door every week, well, you feel like an ungrateful jerk. (A Lexus? How boring. Another BMW? If I must.)
Maxi fun: I only needed to venture out of my neighborhood to
start grinning. The Countryman zipped along the country road, winding around the turns, tossing me ever so gently in the seat, and reawakening the butterflies that have gone to sleep since the drag racing episode in the Dodge Demon last fall.
Up to speed: This was no ordinary off-the-rack Countryman — the Countryman S E comes with an electric motor in addition to the gasoline engine. It’s an unusual setup, with a 134-horsepower, three-cylinder turbo mated to an 87-horsepower electric motor. Its 12 miles of range is less a fuel-savings than a way to keep performance up without Mr. Driver’s Seat writing about what a piggy it is.
Obviously, 60 mph came more quickly than I expected — 6.7 seconds, Mini says. That only shaves 0.3 seconds from the time of the standard Countryman S All4, but almost three seconds off the standard Countryman All4.
Driver’s Seat: The leather-covered seats ($300 for the Cooper S Sport Seats) feel sporty and well bolstered. But $41K for a car without power seats? That seems a corner not to be cut. Those seats also came heated, but cooling remains unavailable.
On the road: The Countryman knows country roads. Minis are designed for tossing unsuspecting passengers to and fro, and sure enough, members of the Sturgis family were bandied about like passengers on the SS Minnow.
Snow time: I wouldn’t try those maneuvers in rough weather. The all-wheel drive performance was adequate, but the Mini was not as surefooted as most other allwheel drives I’ve put in the snow.
Shifty: Of course, a hybrid and a stickshift remain incompatible, so the S E comes with a six-speed automatic. It’s shiftable, though, and plenty of fun.
Play some tunes: The Countryman comes with the Mini’s large center dashboard circle with all the infotainment stuff within. It’s easy to read and navigate, using touchscreen or BMW’s dial.
Too close: The center circle is surrounded by a nice LED light, and — bonus! — it changes colors as a parking warning (if you pony up the $500 for the parking assist).
Friends and stuff: When one thinks “Mini,” one is braced for squeezed legs and ducked heads. The Countryman does better than the standard Mini, but it’s no Volkswagen Passat. Owners will enjoy 17.6 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat and 47.6 with the seat folded down.
Tiny tank: Just 225 miles on a tank of gasoline? Thank heavens for those 12 miles of electric power.
Night shift: The headlights provide the right glow for the road, and the cockpit lights add beautiful ambiance. Map lights don’t interfere, either.
Fuel economy: I averaged about 29 mpg in an allout assault on southeastern Pennsylvania roads. Feed the Mini premium, please.
Where it’s built: Born, Netherlands
How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts a 2 out of 5 for reliability for the 2018 model. The Countryman has garnered 2s and 3s in past years.
In the end: It’s not the swiftest idea in the world, adding an electric motor that pretty much has the range of a long extension cord. And the prospects of everything functioning through last payment are dim. But you’ll have maximum fun skidding into the Mini repair shop.
Scott Sturgis, a freelance auto writer, can be reached at mrdriversseat@gmail.com.