MINI’s Last Internal Combustion Engines to Be Mild Hybrid
MINI has made great fanfare that it’s last new petrol engine will debut in 2025 as the brand transitions to all electric. It’s safe to say that that engine (or family of engines) will be the last MINI ever produces extending likely into the early 2030s. But what is this last engine range and is it something to be excited about? We have a few answers.
While we don’t have a full view of MINI’s plans we do know that there is a major revision to the current range coming in the form of mild hybrids. Based on what we’ve gleaned from product plans this may well MINI’s internal combustion swan-song
By adding the 48 Volt system and making other revisions we expect to see more power and torque along with necessary efficiency increases. Sources tell us to expect the B36/8 equipped MINIs to move up to 155 hp and the B46/8 (Cooper S) to see an increase to 200 hp. There’s no word on the JCW powerplant at this time.
What is a mild hybrid what would that do to MINIs? The system BMW and MINI are looking to use is known as mild because it is comprised only of a 48v electrical system, a dedicated battery and a starter generator specific to this system. The system relies on brake energy recuperation, which is stored in that dedicated battery. That powers the starter generator and ultimately the car in certain scenarios.
What that means in the real world is much smoother auto stop-start transitions and more efficient coasting (BMW with a similar system do this up to 99 mph). But perhaps most interesting to many of us is the additional performance. BMW’s just released mild hybrid system can produce an extra 11 hp for short periods of time.
The other obvious benefit is economy with this set-up intended offer a reduction in CO2 and improved MPG.
Given the enormous costs associated with transitioning the brand to electric BMW is looking to reduce spend in every way possible while maintaining the product we know and love. Because of that it’s a safe assumption that these revisions to the current range will indeed be the last “new” internal combustion engines MINI ever produces.
We’ll detail what this does to the manual transmission in future MINIs in an upcoming story.
I had a loaner hybrid Jetta wagon late last year for a few weeks. Looking up the specs it had a 33 horsepower, 220-volt electric engine mated to a 150 hp 1.4 litre tubocharged 4 cylinder engine.
What I can tell you about my experience with it: the claimed 45 mpg combined fuel consumption is LUDICROUS. Try 31 under normal, non-spirited driving conditions.
Performance around town was unexceptional, even sluggish. You couldn’t go into hybrid mode until you’d driven at least 10 minutes because it took it that long to re-charge the battery from braking etc. So for around-town errands (when you would most want to run using primarily electricity for fuel economy) it was useless.
The only time the electric motor increased performance was on the freeway. It was quite impressive accelerating from 70 mph to 90 mph because you would get the full horsepower of the gasoline engine and the electric engine at the same time. (Not that I ever took it up to 90 mph on public roads :-|).
The mechanic who loaned it to me was apparently a much more, um, spirited driver than me, so the average fuel economy was around 21 mpg when I took the car from him for a couple of weeks. I took some kind of weird pleasure in trying to improve that number through economical driving at times and perhaps got that number up to 27 mpg by the time I returned the car.
In any case that car, with a considerably more powerful electric component to the engine, left me thoroughly unimpressed with the possibilities for a hybrid engine as either performance vehicles or as environmentally-friendly vehicles when not built single-mindedly for that latter purpose (as the Prius is).
The obvious question with a hybrid MINI is how much weight will the electrical motor and battery add to the car, and will the added horsepower even begin to offset that weight? From my experience with the Jetta the answer is likely to be a resounding NO but here’s hoping.
By the way, they quit selling the hybrid Jetta after a few years because nobody wanted them. No surprise there.
You’re right, mild hybrid provides no additional performance, only lower fuel consumption at start-up and in traffic jams
AFAIK the 48V systems add almost no weight to the vehicle and allow for more efficient operation of all on-board systems, like heated seats, due to their higher voltage. There will be no 12V battery on-board with a 48V mild hybrid system, so, there is a weight offset there.
Nice to see good-looking, classy MINI’s for a change.
HK disappeared from the UK configurator beginning of June 2021
Dang, this is terrible news for me. I’m hoping to order a Cooper SE soon, but the HK stereo is one of my must-haves.
Think you will have to wait till the end of the year Charles before we see it return.
Yeah I’m not feeling too optimistic. I’ve been looking up some aftermarket options in the event I can’t order it.
I would probably wait; HK will return hopefully soon.
My 18 Countryman S all4 is my first MINI and all the attributes stated above made me buy it. at nearly 50k miles in just under 4 years. I
love the car as a daily and weekend club rally car (even though I now also have an R53 to spit duty with) It is the best small crossover that few people buy. <a href="https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7be4063c78816f2ed287ca77cab54a982b3d8bfdab4ee31f0050c739d3439a42.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc">https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7be4063c78816f2ed287ca77cab54a982b3d8bfdab4ee31f0050c739d3439a42.jpg</a>
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