Fourth-generation Cooper gets overhaul, new underpinnings
Mini’s heartland supermini has been taken “back to its roots”, said boss Stefanie Wurst, with a fresh look and ‘new’ name, being now officially called the Cooper, rather than the Hatch.
A wider track, shorter front overhang, larger wheels and longer wheelbase give it a more purposeful stance than the current Mini Hatch, while still matching its 3.8m bumperto-bumper length.
New disc-shaped daytimerunning lights – shared with the larger Aceman – surround bulbous headlights to give the smallest Mini a fresh face that’s more recognisably descended from BMW’S first Mini, launched in 2000.
The car maker will again offer the Cooper with both electric and combustion powertrains, told apart only by the exhaust pipes or lack thereof, but only in petrolpowered form will it be sold with five doors or as a droptop – neither yet previewed. However, a limited-edition convertible version of the current-gen Mini Electric is tipped to preview a future series-production successor.
“We are bringing the iconic hatch back to its roots,” said Wurst. “This is a car for Mini lovers. This will be a very iconic car.”
Produced in China and sitting on the all-new Spotlight EV platform created with jointventure partner Great Wall Motors, the electric Cooper will take on the Fiat 500 EV with a pair of competitively sized battery choices: 40kwh in the entry-level E car and 54kwh in the range-topping SE. Range will start at 240 miles (up 90 miles), confirmed Wurst, with powertrain improvements allowing “double what is offered with the same battery sizes now”. She added that prices will push past £30,000. The current model is available from £29,000.
As with today’s car, the
standard electric Cooper will have 181bhp, with the warmed-up SE raising that figure to 215bhp. Only twowheel drive will be offered.
Mini has developed a soundtrack to accompany the car’s acceleration, but Wurst said it “will not be Hans Zimmer”, referencing the famous composer who devised aural effects for the EVS of parent company BMW. This sound will also change depending on drive mode.
A hot JCW version, using the same 54kwh battery as the SE, will arrive in mid-2025 – around a year after the standard cars – with a focus on power over range, which implies that upgraded motors will be fitted. Expect an output of around 250bhp and performance stats to match those of the recently revealed Abarth 500e and upcoming Alpine R5.
The electric car’s handling is said to have been improved courtesy of a newly developed traction control system. As reported by Autocar following an early prototype ride last year, it uses a new motor controller with the traction control system essentially built in, which allows much faster reaction times under hard acceleration.
Combustion-powered Coopers, built in Oxford, will get a choice of petrol powerplants with varying outputs – most likely along with a hot JCW version at some point – although details remain under wraps at this early stage.
The combustion-powered line-up is expected to exclusively use a seven-speed automatic transmission. The car maker confirmed to Autocar it is “99% sure” it will not offer manual options on future products.
The Cooper’s interior – which will be all but mirrored across the rest of the range – harks back to BMW Minis of old, with a focus on physical buttons extending to an actual ignition key (which will feature in the EV too). A circular screen with an edge-to-edge OLED display, meanwhile, replaces the trademark mid-mounted speedo. Notably, there will be no instrument display behind the steering wheel.
Elsewhere, ‘funky’ projections on the dashboard will display information for passengers, including time and speed, for example.
Personalisation options will continue to be a hallmark for the firm, which will offer the classic Union Jack roof, as well as other ‘local’ customisations such as ‘year of the Rabbit’ decals for the Chinese market.