Will the MINI Aceman Ever Come to the US?
MINI is putting a lot of energy into the Aceman launch. But what are the plans to bring it to the US? And if it does come to the US, when could we see it at dealers? We posed these questions to a few of our sources and got some interesting answers.
Based on what we hear, MINI believes that the Aceman has a chance to be the biggest seller in the range within a few years. But there’s a chance that it may never be offered in the US due to everything from tariffs to changing buying patters. Given the market sales trends in the US, it’s not clear that a smaller, all electric crossover would be a sales hit. Especially when the larger Countryman is available.
Why the MINI Aceman is Available in the US at Launch
To fully explain why the Aceman is launching in the US, let’s go back a bit to when the it was originally planned. The original intent was that his would be a fully global electric MINI offered in all markets. Unfortunately costs and then global politics got in the way.
Designing and engineering cars for global markets is incredibly expensive – especially for a small brand like MINI. Now add to this an entire range of combustion Coopers and a few Countryman, and it becomes outright cost prohibitive.
To solve this BMW had to get creative in how it accomplished both. This is how Spotlight Motors was created. A joint venture between MINI and Great Wall Motors from China, Spotlight was designed to help BMW leverage the scale of GWM along with their expertise in building electric cars. Given the fact that China is now the definitive world leader in volume for EVs, it seemed like a safe and smart move.
With economies of scale solved with the collaboration and production set for China, BMW was left to engineer and design the new MINI Cooper and Aceman in Germany. If that sounds too good to be true, it was. A global trade war kicked off just as BMW signed on with GWM, and suddenly countries like the US slapped 25-30% tariffs on Chinese cars (among other goods).
This all makes importing the MINI Aceman to the US and other countries particularly difficult from a profit standpoint. While MINI intended to eventually produce its new electric models in other parts of the world, the global trade ward accelerated those plans and both cars will now be produced in Oxford from 2026 onward.
The J05 Aceman being produced in the UK will serve Europe and likely the North American markets. This could allow for US imports to begin by 2026 – only two years away. The key word is “could” as sources tell us final decisions on where the Aceman will be sold are still being made. But things look promising according to our sources.
Any opportunity to use the tariff rebate option like Volvo is doing? They export enough cars manufactured in the US they are able to get tariff credits to use against the EX30 they will be importing from China and selling for $35k.
Volvo is Geely…
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The whole brand identity is smaller vehicles that make efficient use of space. If they’re concerned about the Aceman not selling well in the US when the larger Countryman is available, that cannot bode well for the future of the brand as a whole in this country; they’d be throwing in the towel on the basic concept of a MINI appealing to this market.
Is it the case the US doesn’t get the new electric mini hatch, until it’s manufactured in the U.K. following the expansion and remodelling of Oxford? My new Mini SE JCW has arrived I am scheduled to pick it up just after the U.K. launch in May.
Yeah, we’re screwed until 2027 at the earliest unless you want a “mini” SUV. Even when the new Cooper SE, and possibly the Aceman, come to US shores they’ll still be at a disadvantage because they don’t qualify for the $7,500 tax credit, unless you lease them. I guess that works though, because you can buy out the lease. It just depends on the residual value at the end of the lease that would determine whether it was worth it or not.