MINI electric cars

A British small-car marque owned by BMW Group, an early (2020) AU electric-hatch entrant now repositioning its EV range upmarket after axing its cheaper Cooper E/Aceman E grades.

The original Mini launched in 1959, designed by Alec Issigonis for the British Motor Corporation. BMW acquired the Rover Group (which then owned Mini) in 1994 and retained Mini as a standalone marque when it divested the rest of Rover in 2000. Mini's current-generation electric models (launched 2024) are engineered through a joint venture with Great Wall Motors and built in China at the Spotlight Automotive plant in Zhangjiagang — a shift from the brand's traditional Oxford, England manufacturing base.

BMW Group officially launched the first all-electric Mini — the Mini Electric/Cooper SE hatch (32.6kWh battery, 233km WLTP range, 135kW motor) — in Australia from August 2020. A new-generation Cooper E/Cooper SE (built in China via the Great Wall Motors joint venture) launched in 2024, priced from $53,990 (Cooper E) and $58,990 (Cooper SE) before on-road costs. In a January 2025 strategy shift, MINI Australia discontinued the entry-level Cooper E and Aceman E from March 2025 — offering steep clearance discounts (up to 23%) — repositioning the pricier Cooper SE and Aceman SE as the new entry point (from $58,990 and $60,990 respectively), citing weak demand for the cheaper grades, MINI's absence from the US market, tariff-driven cost pressure, and softening broader EV demand.

premium-leaning niche small-car/EV specialist

Battery-electric: Cooper SE hatch and Aceman SE crossover (the entry grades since the cheaper Cooper E/Aceman E were discontinued from March 2025); John Cooper Works (JCW) performance EV variants also offered.