Sections: MINI E | Reviews Nov 25th, 2009 12 Comments Recently Michael from BimmerFile had a chance to spend some extended time with the new MINI E. Since neither Todd, DB or myself has had an opportunity to get behind the wheel, Michael was kind enough to take a break from his BF editor duties and write a full review – Gabe
Background
With greenhouse gas emissions on the rise and society as a whole looking for ways to combat that seemingly endless trend, lawmakers will be introducing more stringent emissions standards within the next few years. This will greatly impact auto manufacturers and the beloved internal combustion engine. We have already seen the first phases of the BMW Group’s Efficient Dynamics program, which is designed to combat emissions with the introduction of newer technologies such as direct/forced induction and Advanced Diesels. The next phase, hybrids, are coming with the recently released X6 and soon to launch 7 Series. BMWNA president Jim O’Donnell has openly stated to us that they are currently exploring turbo charged four cylinder options for BMW in the US, (6 cylinders have been the smallest BMW engines here since 1999) but that the BMW Group will not sacrifice dynamics or performance while striving to improve emissions. With that said; the basic idea is that a BMW Group product must drive well, offer performance all while being efficient.
Where does the MINI-E fit into all of this? For the past few years, BMW has been diligently working on a mega-city vehicle program under the code-name: Project-I. The goal of this program is to create a vehicle or vehicles that are designed for the urban environment and with limited emissions. The first vehicle produced as part of this program is the MINI- E.
The MINI-E is not a mass produced vehicle that is available for sale. It is currently the focus of a field trial in which approximately 450 people in NY, NJ and CA have signed up to lease the vehicle for $850 a month for one year. During the lease period the drivers are to provide feedback to BMW on certain parameters that they are keeping data on. Fifty participants in this field trial also volunteered to be members of a more in-depth study being conducted by UC Davis in collaboration with BMW on electric vehicles.
While no results have been formally released by the BMW Group in regards to the MINI-E (and we do not expect them) for the most part they report customers are pleased, minus a few initial hiccups. The program had a bumpy start secondary to the proprietary nature of the charging equipment and the fact that different communities have different electrical code/laws, while others do not even have codes written for such devices.
The MINI-E body is assembled along with the interior, as a typical MINI would be, in Oxford. It is then shipped to Munich, Germany where it receives the Frankenstein treatment. The electrification of the body with an AC Propulsion electric motor and lithium-ion battery is completed in Germany.
Design
From first glance an on-looker will know that this is not your typical MINI Cooper. The bright yellow accents, serial number and plug decals strewn across the car make that undeniable. If it was not for these design cues and the lack of the sweet sound of an internal combustion engine there are few exterior differences between the MINI-E and its brethren.
Driving
Most of you are not reading this review for tidbits about how and why this vehicle was created or the specs. You are reading it to learn about how it drives since you can’t go to your local MINI dealer and take one for a quick test spin. So, let me get to the point.
The first thing one must do with the MINI-E is throw out the notion that it is a MINI and all that you perceive that to mean. While it is a MINI in theory, it is not. A Cooper was used to package an electric drive-train and nothing more. When you add over 500 pounds to any small vehicle in one area (battery where the rear seats were), the performance and overall characteristics will dramatically change.
With that out of the way one can begin to look at this vehicle in terms of drive. The MINI-E has a range of 100-120 miles on a charge, so a driver must always look at the battery meter and think about where they will be headed before venturing out since there is no refueling. I was only heading out for a 10 mile trip and the battery was full so I was all set.
Pushing the start button yields no revving engine, no sound, nothing but a few lights on the center stack mounted speedo. Right foot down and I was off with a whirl of elctric powered propulsion- not bad at all! A Stop sign is approaching. I Let off the accelerator- Whoa! What the H…. talk about regeneration, it felt like I had engaged a Jake brake on an 18-wheeler. The regeneration on this vehicle is aggressive, very aggressive. So aggressive in fact, I never used the normal brakes during my journey. You truly must rethink driving because as soon as you let off the accelerator it goes into braking mode and it will move you in the seat if you go from acceleration to letting up rapidly.
Once you are at a stop it is a wise decision to ease into the accelerator pedal, not only to conserve you battery power but to limit the amount of torque steer you have to battle. Keeping two hands on the wheel when accelerating is a good call with this machine as it can pull you from here to there quite rapidly. The power and torque is there almost instantly, both are also ample for the size and heft of the MINI platform.
Getting used to these new driving characteristics takes a few minutes but once you know the quirks, it is relatively straight forward. The car drives like any ordinary car once cruising. It is just not as nimble as one would expect from something sporting a MINI badge.
That gets us back to my prior statement about throwing all notions of a MINI out and starting from a clean slate, this car does not drive like a MINI and should not be expected to and it’s primarily due to the weight but also by the affects the drivetrain has on handling and braking.
Conclusion
The BMW Group needed a small developed platform to be the test bed for future battery powered vehicles and the MINI fit the bill. The MINI-E is a beta project for BMWs foray into the battery powered electric vehicle market and it is a great first step for Project-i.
The vehicle provides a safe reliable means of transportation and that is all it really needs to be. It does not need to have “go kart” handling, be fun to drive or even set records, it just needs to get people from A to B. It does this well and once you master the art of driving it. It does this well and once you master the art of electric driving, it is not all that bad and can be quite engaging. However, the MINI E should never be compared to a fully developed MINI in terms of driving
The greatest thing I took away from my time in the MINI-E is that we are at a crossroads in terms of mobility and that if we as a society go the electric route, it will take some time for us to get used to. The lack of a beautiful internal combustion soundtrack will also definitely be missed.
Gerarddm> Nov 25th, 2009 Link
Your comments are dead on why this MINI-E idea is for development only. Too many compromises to the MINI concept are required for a really workable electric vehicle. BMW would be well served to develop an electric car spec from chassis up rather than trying to shoehorn e-ness ( is that a phrase? ) into a MINI shell.
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KPH Nov 25th, 2009 Link
I expect one bit of useful feed back will come this winter. Regeneration on icy roads equals MINI in the ditch or worse. (10-4 on the Jake brake Michael, it’s not used on ice either for just that reason).
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Rocketboy Nov 26th, 2009 Link
So, for the whole 10 minute drive, you hardly had to touch the brake pedal? You’re lucky you were not rear-ended.
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DUDE! Nov 26th, 2009 Link
My experiences with the driving part of the E were quite different.
First off the car seemed quite nicely built. I had read a few reviews here about this or that being rather poor in construction but I didn’t see that.
I did 4 separate reviews, covering 3 separate day, for my blog with 4 different E lessors, 2 of which allowed me to drive the car. I did donuts, freeways and ran a very twisty road that one lessor runs every AM on his way to work. I found an amazing amount of torque steer, amazing acceleration and would agree that the “regen” is something to contend with but by my 2nd drive it was not a problem.
Total time in car driving 30 minutes.
My experiences led me to feel that the car handled quite well. Weight shifting was quite nominal as we drove a short twisty road with the lessor telling me to “run it harder” in one section, I did and felt it was only a few ticks off my “S”. I will say it was a very short twisty section and that if one had to make too many switch backs in a row the weight would probably catch up with you and front plowing would probably be aggressive.
One down side for me was the heavy almost flat tire feel of the steering. The lessor not being a MINI owner nor enthusiast didn’t quite understand that observation as his other car is a suv. Not saying it didn’t respond well just felt heavy when you did a severe lane change as I did a few times to get a feel.
Hard freeway acceleration has you minding the wheel as torque steer was severe. I own a 2004 S and that isn’t a problem unlike the JCW I drove at the Rose Bowl during MTTS which seemed on the same level as the E.
I can’t compare the E to lets say a Tesla or a Prius but since I do own a drive a ‘04 MCS I can compare it to that and my experiences were favorable, I liked what I saw and felt, would I buy one… nope.
RB
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Michael Nov 26th, 2009 Link
Rocketboy- Not sure what you mean by not getting rear ended- under regeneration the brake lights are activated. I thought MF readers have been read into all the small details of this vehicle.
DUDE!- I have to respectfully disagree with your statement that it drives one click below and “S”. In terms of torque and hp output, yes but that is about it. I pushed the car extensively for about a solid mile and there is no way one can compare them. The weight is an issue and like you said if you are transitioning from corner to corner it snowballs. The other issue is that when you get off the gas regen kicks in then when you are back on it the torque steer is there, (no way to feather the torque in as it is instant) lots of weight going in different direction on small tire contact patches. This car was not designed to handle or be performance oriented but it drives better than one would expect (it is better than say a Toyota) but not close to an “S”. I was in the “E” for 15 minutes on very twisty roads, closed roads and highway. I wish I could have had more time but it is not a vehicle one can demo easily. Also worth noting is that each vehicle may have different software and other production variables so they may not all drive the same (part of the research portion of this).
Your comment about the steering is spot on along with the invasiveness of the regen. It is something to get used to and overtime would become a new normal.
It is a pleasant vehicle and is well built, just not a MINI and part of the reason the BMW Group will be creating a new brand for Electric vehicles.
All the best,
-Michael
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DUDE! Nov 26th, 2009 Link
@Michael…
As I suggested the twisty portion of my ride was short and I did suggest I felt it would snowball if pushed through more than the 10 turns I drove thru. But I still feel for that short test is was just “a few clicks” off my S. As far as getting off the regen in corners it was a bit unsettling but my second drive in the car I didn’t really have a problem with it. I just used a shortened de-acceleration and used the regen instead of the brake and found that was a bit like heal and toeing it. Torque steer under hard acceleration in the exit of a corner a bit tough in both tests.
Our test drives were definitely a bit different and the same.
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Rocketboy Nov 26th, 2009 Link
Sorry Michael, not everyone has the time or desire to learn every single feature of everything MINI does.
Of course though, I’m just such a Johnny-come-lately to this whole MINI thing, having purchased a S just a scant few months after they were released in the states, and being a reader (and commenter) on MotoringFile back when it was still at the Bridger.US site, but hey, OF COURSE I should have known that the second you take your foot of the gas pedal, the car behaves in such a manner that it causes the brake lights to come on, just like ever other car I’ve driven.
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Michael Nov 28th, 2009 Link
Rocketboy- sorry you read into my comment a little too much. I have been on this site since 03 myself and have noticed that readers tend to do that more and more and that is a shame. All I meant was that I did not go into all the details of the car b/c I knew Gabe had posted all that before ( I read it here myself). I apologize for the way you took that. In the future I will make sure my comments are clearer but at the same time I went out of my way to contribute here (as well as a lot of info you don’t realize) so I guess maybe the sarcasm was a bit much.
-M
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Veggivet Nov 29th, 2009 Link
Michael, it wouldn’t be a true MF comment section without the sarcastic comments that have recently become par for the course. Thank you for taking the time to give us your impressions of the MINI E.
Reply[...] As we mentioned during Woofcast 315, Todd and I joined Gabe and Michael from the Bimmercast where we got to hear first hand from Michael about his time with the MINI E. You can read his full review here. [...]
DUDE! Dec 1st, 2009 Link
A comment about aggressive, acrid commenting here on Bridger.us… oops I mean MotoringFile…
It’s been this way for as long as I can remember. Don’t see much change. Back when it was Bridger.us when I posted as RB, MinjaDude, Ballardini and a few other names we had some nasty dustups between commenters, so much so Gabe had to send us to our rooms to cool off. I can remember some quite heated commenting between someone commenting here and myself, even his blog was quite acidic, if I remember correctly.
I myself made many a nasty comment and was guilty big time of causing many dustups. So not sure why some feel things have gotten worse.. It hasn’t. Maybe us longtime posters have been too long at the bar. I actually feel it’s gotten a little less acidic.
RB
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