The J01 2025 MINI Cooper Electric (2024 in some markets) is a watershed product for the brand. It introduces a new design language for the brand and is the first ground-up electric MINI. How does it look? Having been hands-on and gotten to know the car, we’ve grown to really like it. But for many of you, feelings are still mixed. So we wanted to empty our folders of photos for you to give you the best look at the new 2025 MINI Cooper Electric possible.
Over the last few months we have accumulated an enormous amount of photos, some of which have not been seen widely. For instance the following nine photos are a few from MINI that are not from a studio but taken in the wild. What they show is shadow and depth that’s more real-world than what we’ve seen in the first official press photos. One of the things you notice right away is just how saturated the new Blazing Blue color is.
At first glance the Blazing Blue MINI Cooper SE looked evolutionary until the proportions start to register and you notice the details. Once you give it a few seconds you begin to notice the stark simplicity of the front. Gone are the faux vents, scoops and creases. In fact there’s really not a single design element that doesn’t have purpose functionally. That in itself is a massive departure from most modern MINIs save the original R50. With the J01 we have something that feels honed and evolved with a less is more philosophy.
You’ll also notice how sculpted the side of the new J01 is. This is a big change from MINI and the first time we’ve seen anything like it on the Cooper.
This next collection taken in London are the first real-world shots we’ve seen from MINI not heavily retouched. These shots give you a great look at how the J01’s sculpted sides look in daylight with real shadows. I’m sure it’s controversial but to us its photos like this that make the rear taillights make more sense. In person they feel proportional and seem to flow with the voluptuous rear fenders well.
Now let’s take a look at some studio shots that we haven’t seen much of either. This set is in studio but uses various props to create a different shadow and depth than we typically see. What’s interesting about this set is how the Blazing Blue really changes character in different light. And like then previous set you can immediately see the sculpted sides and other curves that aren’t obvious at first.
The overall design pays off what the Head of MINI Design Oliver Heimler has been hinting towards for years; minimalism and simplicity that is inspired by the original Mini. MINI’s name for this new approach is known internally as “Charismatic Simplicity.” with this new approach, there’s almost a stark minimalism compared to what we’ve seen over the last decade.
Here’s a direct comparison to the F56 – the most recent MINI Cooper which we recently wrote about. There are many interesting and subtle changes between the two but the one that surprised us was the size. The new J01 electric MINI Cooper is 1 cm longer and 2 cm taller than the F56. But why does it appear to be smaller from some angles? With a clean-sheet to work with, MINI massaged the proportions of the J01 to better fit with the MINI design ethos. Key to that is the 3 cm longer wheelbase and larger wheels/tire set-up. The combination allows the overhangs to shrink and helps overall with the proportions of the car.
R56 MINI Cooper | F56 ICE MINI Cooper | J01 2025 Electric MINI Cooper | |
Length | 3698 mm / 145.6 in | 3850 mm / 151.57 in | 3860 mm / 151.91 in |
Height | 1407 mm / 55.4 in | 1414 mm / 55.67 in | 1435 mm / 56.49 in |
Wheelbase | 2467 mm / 97.1 in | 2495 mm / 98.23 in | 2525 mm / 99.40 |
What about all of the MINI generations? We’ve got that too with a full look at how each generation has grown and evolved the MINI design DNA.
Then there’s the sketches and design process itself. These are a great window into the process that the MINI Design team used to create the first ground-up electric MINI. It’s also a fascinating look at some of the processes and methods used to create a car from a clean sheet of paper.
Finally let’s look at the initial launch gallery. This is that Blazing Blue Cooper SE with the favored trim we’ve all seen a lot recently. It’s an exhaustive look at the car inside and out with plenty of great detail shots.
Now we want to hear what you think of the all new MINI Cooper and its completely new design language. Hit the comments below…
For more coverage of the new generation MINI, check out the following articles and videos.
MINI Cooper EV: Premier | MINI Cooper EV: Hands-On Review | MINI Cooper EV: Video Review
MINI Countryman EV: Premier | MINI Countryman EV: Hands-On Review | MINI Countryman EV: Video Review
New MINI Family: 1st Look Video | MINI Circular Display & MINI OS9 Hands-On Review
Beautiful photos. Thanks Gabe. I like the sculpted exterior, saturated color, and minimalist design. I’m even ok with the tail lights. I’d just like to see the other interior trims as I’m not fond of the houndstooth pattern. I wish the J01 had a solid interior, like the U25. The pixel-like transition of that vehicle’s interior from an orangish-tan to a pacific blue is really nice.
I really like the exterior styling. It’s the interior that I can’t warm up to so far. The fabric is interesting, but I have concerns about it staining or wearing particularly on the doors. I like the look of the seats, but power seats seem heavy and slow in videos I’ve seen. And that tacked on arm res, I’ve already seen videos showing being creaky and shaky. At least it won’t get in the way of the shifter! The little storage box is cute, useless but cute, and same for the cupholders (not that MINI’s have ever had good cupholders). I want to love MINI’s and can forgive a lot but the J01 seems a bridge too far from what I’ve seen so far.
I keep revisiting this hoping it will grow on me overtime. I want to like it so badly, but I absolutely hate this.
I’m glad I got my 2023 Mini when I did
Good luck to Mini at this point