More information has been revealed about the new MINI Cooper EV, this time outlining the car’s all-new infotainment system following the reveal of the car’s cabin design. MINI says the new three-door-only Cooper Hatch boasts a new Operating System 9 software set-up that handles infotainment and other elements of the driving experience through the ultra-slim 9.4-inch round OLED display that dominates the car’s dashboard.
The new tech has been developed in-house by the brand, with the system based on Android software, opening up a new world of personalisation potential and feature availability to owners.
First up is MINI’s Experience Modes set-up, which the brand says delivers an “immersive driving experience”. Basically, these driving modes tune the use of LED light throughout the cabin – including projections on the fabric dash top if the light projector is specified – to alter the feel of the cabin based on the mode selected. This is teamed with new sound signatures that enhance the experience, according to MINI.
Core is the default mode and is linked to new driving sounds that can be heard both inside and outside the new car, the latter helping to warn pedestrians.
Think of Go-Kart mode like Sport in some of MINI’s competitors. This not only tweaks the car’s dynamic response, but also changes the interior LED lighting to anthracite and red, giving a sportier feel. The central display – called the MINI Interaction Unit – shows a racier-looking speedo readout, while there’s a different projection on the dash top.The sound signature for this setting is marked by a “pronounced pitch and fall”, MINI says, to mark the more agile and dynamic behaviour of the car.
Next up is Green, which focuses on efficiency, dulling the car’s accelerator response, changing the ambient LED lighting to the colour you’d expect and showing animal animations on the screen to highlight the level of driving efficiency achieved.
MINI says the Balanced mode and soundscape “is based on the noises heard in a forest at different times of the day and night – from the rippling of a stream and the chirping of crickets to the rustling of the wind in the treetops.” Yes, really.
Timeless mode gives a depiction of a classic Mini speedo on the screen and serves up a sound that blends the aural signature of the original car’s A-Series engine and the exhaust note of cars such as the MINI GP with the basic sound of the Core mode.
MINI says Vivid mode focuses on the presentation of media content, such as the cover artwork of music being played, while there’s also a Personal setting where users can upload a background photo of their choice; the system will then detect the main colour from the picture and extend this across the screen to better integrate the image.
There’s also a new intelligent personal assistant, which can be activated by saying “Hey MINI”, either taking the form of a stylised version of a MINI, or Spike, a dog-like character. Occupants can ask the car what the weather is like at a certain destination or tell the car they’re hungry or want a coffee. The new OS9 tech will then call up recommendations for food and drink the area.
More importantly maybe, the system can also show charging stations along a given route if asked. The sat-nav system will also focus on charge-optimised routing in electric MINIs, drawing on live data of charging stations along the chosen route to help maximise energy and time efficiency.
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The sat-nav map can also be displayed in the centre of the screen, while the edges of the Apple CarPlay projection are sampled to extend the view across the entire area of the round screen for iOS users. Android Auto capability is also included, but due to technical factors, this only displays in a rectangular box on the circular screen. MINI tells us that there will also be some ‘Easter eggs’ dotted around the infotainment system, with these surprise and delight features being key to the way every MINI feels.
There’s a 3D head-up display mounted in front of the driver, as well as a new multi-function steering wheel, which is similar to that used in some BMWs when it comes to the shape and button layout, while drawing on other tech from its sibling brand the new Cooper will also offer digital key capability on compatible Apple, Google or Samsung smartphones.
Returning to the new car’s steering wheel, it’s ostensibly a two-spoke wheel that features a third spoke made a tensioned fabric, adding a little more design flair. One of the buttons mounted on the wheel is for MINI’s new voice control system, although this can also be activated with a voice prompt and used to control many of the car’s new features.
Auto Express sat in the new car at a preview event in Germany. The driving position is sporty, as you’d expect from a MINI and despite the battery mounted in the electric version’s floor. The trademark ‘panoramic’ view forwards framed by the upright windscreen’s A-pillars remains, and visibility is good.
With the MINI Cooper moving to a three-door-only line-up, access to the rear is not the easiest and once you’re sitting back there legroom is compact, but headroom is fine. Given that the MINI EV has been designed with one eye on use in urban areas, at least it helps keep the footprint small.
New MINI Cooper exterior design
We’ve seen the new electric MINI Cooper testing multiple times but now it’s the turn of the hot petrol Cooper S model.
The exterior will follow the design of the electric Cooper SE version, although there are a few small differences that mark this out as having a petrol engine. The front end features more cooling ducts, including an open grille – although one key factor missing is the traditional bonnet vent.
To the side there’s some camouflage covering the emblem on the front wing that’s typically used to denote the hot Cooper S. We usually see the Cooper S utilise a contrasting roof colour, twin strips on the bonnet and black mirror caps to go with a more aggressive widebody and the new car should be no exception.
While we’ve become accustomed to seeing a twin central exhaust system, at the rear of this car there’s a new central, single-exit exhaust. There’s also a rear spoiler to further emphasise the sportiness of the Cooper S.
MINI Cooper Electric
The next generation electric MINI Cooper has also been caught in its full production trim during a filming session in Los Angeles. Sitting on a bespoke EV platform, the new car will sport an equally fresh design that channels the MINI’s iconic design cues into a new look.
Pictured in hot Cooper SE trim, the retro supermini looks much cleaner than prior generations, thanks largely to a removal of the plastic wheel arch cladding that has defined the modern MINI’s aesthetic since its debut back in 2000. The original ‘new MINI’, designed by Frank Stephenson, has become a modern icon in its own right over the years, making any reinvention a tough job to execute well.
This same emphasis on clean design is found in its lighting, grille and other exterior detailing, yet the body itself is actually far more complex with new creases and lines creating unusual highlights and reflections. This is then contrasted against a familiar silhouette and upper body design to that of existing MINIs, with blacked-out pillars and a floating roof that in this case is painted in a contrasting white finish. The rear design has also had an update, with the application of fresh new rear lights joined by a glossy black panel.
Powertrains and hot JCW versions
The Cooper name has long been synonymous with sportier versions of the MINI, but starting from the new generation it’ll be a model name in its own right. The electric MINI Cooper will be built in China on a platform that was jointly developed between BMW and Chinese SUV maker Great Wall.
Petrol-powered MINIs will live on, with a substantial update on the existing model due to arrive in the next 12 months, with production continuing in BMW’s Oxford plant. Despite the different technologies used for ICE and EV versions, the two will continue to share a similar design theme.
Entry-level electric Cooper Electric models will utilise a 40kWh battery, with higher-specification SE versions upping this to 54kWh. Both will offer considerable increases in range over the current MINI Electric, with the E potentially reaching 200 miles and the SE getting close to 250 miles.
MINI has hinted that a high performance John Cooper Works (JCW) version of the new EV is in development, likely going fully electric. Bernd Körber (MINI’s boss in 2019, succeeded by Stefanie Wurst) previously suggested: “We have to go and define JCW in an electrified context and era. But that’s possible, there’s no problem, no contradiction.”
MINI Cooper models will come before the next Countryman and Countryman Electric, with a debut for the electric cars expected in the next two months. Oxford-built petrol models – still using the familiar 1.5-litre engine are due a few months later.
We should expect the petrol Cooper S to come with a bump up in power over the old model’s 176bhp 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine.
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