Mini Countryman Electric First Drive Review

Mini’s biggest child in the family has officially entered the electric age and done it in a style that only Mini is capable of carrying off. It looks like the Countryman is as big as the ICE Countryman but has an electric heart underneath. Up front you get the signature Mini face but in a modern avatar, where the rounded shapes have made way for more rectangular(ish) elements.

The profile is the signature Countryman, thanks to the combination of a short front overhang and large rear overhang, a defining element of the range since its inception in the 1960s. The rear looks surprisingly tall thanks to its ‘larger than the rest of the car’ proportions. It has a distinctive element in the form of its tail lamps that display the Union Jack every time the lights are switched on or the brakes are pressed.

The cabin of this Mini Countryman electric is a mix of funky and conventional elements in a surprisingly good proportion. Up front, you get a cloth-covered dash, which is unconventional but, surprisingly enough, suits the overall vibe of the car.

The cloth dash is dominated by the signature Mini circular ‘dial’, which is actually the interactive screen for the car. You do get a HUD, but in staying true to the original Mini design, it’s a one-stop shop for all information about the car and is crammed full of functions. This is nice, as it’s a central point to look at if you need anything but, that’s also its problem. The philosophy of cramming every function into the display means you are browsing and hunting for a lot of functions despite the presence of a series of physical buttons and steering-mounted controls. The nature of phone mirroring means you can have Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, or the OEM interface, which would not be a bad thing if you didn’t have to go back and forth to access a larger chunk of the car controls. “Too much in the screen” aside, you do get some nice touches like a whole host of dial faces, including one that’s based on the original Mini’s central clock and looks really nice if that’s your preferred vibe.

The front seats themselves are very large and comfortable with more than enough support in most departments except for under-thigh, which is a given as this is an EV. The seats are covered in a tan leatherette and add a nice contrast to the rather plain Jane appearance of the cloth dashboard. Finally, the visibility from the front and sides is pretty good, but the rear is not great due to a middle rear headrest. The rear space is actually pretty good for two occupants, with more than enough shoulder room and legroom. Finally, the rear seat backs fold down for additional boot space, which is wide and quite practical but lacking depth.

The feature list is pretty good and does most of the segment-standard stuff, but it is nothing over the top. What you are paying for is the brand and quirkiness of owning what is basically the largest Mini on offer. You can also look at it as a BMW iX1 but sans the Teutonic need for convention.

This Countryman Electric is offered with a 66.45kWh battery pack and an FWD-mounted motor producing 201bhp and 250Nm. The claimed range is 462km and you have a 0-100kmph time of 8.6 seconds. Despite the numbers being nothing spectacular and the Countryman being quite heavy for a Mini, it is actually good fun to drive.

The proportions are easy to judge and you will quickly be able to pick up the art of placing the car where you need it using the instant nature of the electric powertrain. The steering is lifeless but quite accurate and really helps in the bit about being able to place the car quickly and on point, especially if you are driving in heavy traffic. It is likely that Mini has dialled back the intensity of the response on the steering in a bid to make the car more user-friendly on public roads. The ride is on the softer side despite the large battery pack underneath, and that’s something you should be wary of especially when going over sharp-edged speed breakers or potholes.

One of the fun bits that Mini has kept with the car is the various drive modes on offer, and particularly good fun is the Go-Kart mode. It makes full use of the power and torque to give you a nice boost when you lay the pedal to the metal. If that wasn’t enough drama, it also makes this space-age accelerating sound that really ties well into the zippy nature of the car. As we said earlier, these are those little extra bits that only Mini could pull off that would otherwise look fully out of place in a car like the BMW iX1.

Mini says that when the car is plugged into a 130kW DC fast charger, it can go from 10-80 per cent in just 29 minutes. The home charger is a 22kW unit that can do a zero-to-100 per cent charge in 3.45 hours, while the last option is an 11kW charger that does a zero-to-100 per cent in 6.15 hours.

Let’s be honest, this Mini Countryman Electric is an acquired taste. It’s priced on the higher side, has a quirky package, but is good fun to drive and is surprisingly practical in terms of space and usability. The electric powertrain is not over the top but gets the job done and will put a smile on your face every time you want to have fun driving. Given its relative rarity, it is also something that would stand out in a crowd, especially among the EV crowd.

On the flip side, the feature list is just about segment standard, but packaged in a way that only a Mini would be able to carry off. Lastly, it is an EV, which means that even if you have fast charge times, you are still restricted by the charging infrastructure currently offered in the country. At the time of writing this review, this Mini Countryman Electric E was priced at Rs. 58.15 lakh (on-road Delhi).

Photography: Kaustubh Gandhi