MINI E Creators Interviewed

MINI senior vice president brand management Dr. Wolfgang Armbrecht and technical director Ulrich Kranz were interviewed by MINI Space (a MINI blog tied to MINI International Magazine) about the new MINI E. It’s a great read for those interested in the story behind the car and the technical aspects around the powerplant. Here’s an excerpt:
MINIInternational: Will the MINI E retain that typical MINI agility, the renowned go-kart feeling?
Dr Wolfgang Armbrecht: Yes, for sure. The go-kart feeling is one of the core values of MINI, which is why the engineers have tailored the chassis to suit this new set of parameters. The MINI E has sensational acceleration and the driving experience behind the wheel really is a lot of fun. Plus, the car is extremely quiet, which gives you the feeling of gliding through the countryside.
MINIInternational: And how far can you “glide” on a single battery charge?
Ulrich Kranz: 240 kilometres if you drive at a moderate pace or 200 kilometres using the motor’s full output. Incidentally, the driver can also do his bit to push the car’s range up even further. Energy recovery is the key here. With this technology, 75 percent of deceleration in city traffic can be achieved without using the brakes.
MINIInternational: You’re going to have to explain that…
Ulrich Kranz: As soon as the driver takes his foot off the accelerator, the electric motor assumes the role of a generator. This creates braking force, and the power recovered from the kinetic energy is fed into the battery. The intensive use of this technology allows the car’s range to be extended by up to 20 percent. Added to which, you can actually see it increasing. Where you would normally find the rev counter, the MINI E has a charge display which tells the driver how much energy has been recovered and how full or empty the battery is. You can therefore influence the range of the MINI E through your driving style.
MINIInternational: Sooner or later even the best battery will run out. How do I recharge the MINI E?
Ulrich Kranz: The fastest way of charging the battery fully is using a wallbox supplied to all 500 MINI E drivers. The wallbox is installed in the driver’s garage and enables a higher amperage, which ensures extremely short charging times. Indeed, the wallbox takes no more than two and a half hours to charge up the battery.
MINIInternational: Why are only 500 units of the MINI E being produced and why will they only be given to customers in the US?
Dr Wolfgang Armbrecht: The MINI E is being run as a pilot project. Over the next 12 months we will develop a clear idea of the potential of electrically powered mobility – in the everyday lives of everyday customers. Our aim is to build up a representative picture of the market potential of “electromobility”. What types of people will be our prospective customers? What requirements and expectations will they have? What share of the current market can be reached with electric vehicles? What kind of driving cycles and user profiles are we seeing in everyday conditions? We take our customers very seriously, so this feedback is extremely important to us.
Ok it’s a little odd to read someone from MINI interviewing someone else from MINI but it’s definitely worth a click.
+ MINI E Creators Interviewed / MINI International
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11 Comments
I really think this is a great way forward and would love to be part of the pilot program in NYC, but living in a building will make it impossible.
Which brings up the question of how would apartment dwellers in dense urban areas would ever be able to own an electric car? Charging one unnatended or open to the “elements” doesn’t seem very probable.
Would love to hear the thoughts on this from MINI.
With wireless electricity the cars would always be charged.
I don’t know. I love the electric car and all, but the plug graphics on the car seem silly and patronizing to me. I suppose its for the trial and hope they would not be compelled to sell their elec cars with graphics like that.
I’d be “shocked” to see those graphics live on much past this pilot project except by choice. I’m sure the E is not MINI’s (or BMW’s) final word on this matter, but it is an interesting step in the right direction.
The MINI E will be at THE LA AUTO SHOW starting Friday for all 12 days and DB and I will be checkin’ it out!
Come see us in Kentia Hall and bring your favorite DIECAST to go racing!! Yes, THE DRAGS ARE IN OUR BOOTH!!
Hope to see you all there!
Still singing the blues that I won’t be able to participate in this trials. Can’t wait from those that do however, would love to see the Mini E get released to the full US market along with the Mini D. I tend to think that this would give Mini drivers a wide variety of choosing a more efficient car.
I think it’s absolutely fabulous- definitely a cool idea, and I hope to see BMW and MINI work together to bring this project to a broader customer base in the future.
I would like to know if all these cars will be tested in warmer climates. It would be interesting to know if the performance would suffer in areas where temperatures drop below freezing for extended periods of time. Regular batteries lose a lot of power as the temperature falls, I wonder if the same applies to LiIon baatteries.
I’m am holding my breath for the full announcement details from MINI about this baby.
And I too would love to hear MINI’s thoughts on Aurel’s comments. I fit all of the criteria for the pilot except that my parking area isn’t covered. (It is however locked and has electric.)
My current lease runs out soon, and if the price is good, and they clarify the “like garages” part, I’d love for the MINI E to be my next MINI.
How about Energizer bunny graphics?
I’d love to see this pilot across several countries not just the USA. Each market has unique selling point and requirements so the data would vary and be invaluable to Mini.
A selection of testers with different jouneys need to be used not just city based owners as the Mini E would be purchased by commuters not those already in cities.
I’d be up for testing one in Leicester, England if BMW wanted!