Worldwide MINI sales were down 1.7% for January but internally MINI is looking is ahead. While sales are flat, there’s a sense of optimism given the the new products expected in the next 12 months. The MINI Countryman Cooper SE hybrid grew its sales almost 26% year over year and sources point to an upgrade for July production. MINI will be giving the PHEV a increase in battery size from 7.6 kWh to 10.7 kWh increasing eletric only range from 16 miles to over 20 miles on a full charge. Granted MINI doesn’t want you to even worry about electric only range as it was intended to be used as a true hybrid.
The full electric MINI is the one many of us have been waiting for and it will hit showrooms late in the year. Availablilty will be limited initially but production should ramp up considerably in early 2020.
But first up will be the revised JCW Countryman and Clubman packing 302 hp. Rumored for years, this will be MINI’s first foray into a true high performance product. Production should begin in July.
Finally there’s the GP which was recently confirmed as having 302 hp and all the looks of the original 2017 concept. While the production run of 3000 won’t move the needle in overall sales, it will become the fastest MINI of all time and a great brand halo.
For now the key sales drivers will continue to be the revised hatch and fact that (even before these upgrades) this is the best MINI lineup ever offered – especially in terms of quality.