MINI has debuted the fully electric Cooper SE Convertible – the world’s first emission-free premium convertible in the small car segment – for the European market with 999 units available. Since the fully electric MINI Cooper SE launched three years ago, one in five sold is a fully electric MINI.
In distinguishing itself, the convertible’s door handles and trims on the front fenders are finished in Resolute Bronze while the logos and lettering are in Piano Black. The door sills and front fender trims also come with a 1 of 999 lettering to denote the model’s exclusivity. As for boot space, it’s identical to the petrol-powered MINI convertible at 160 litres.
Also distinct to the convertible are the 17″ Electric Power Spoke cast alloy wheels, which are made of 100% secondary aluminium. The folding soft top with a Union Jack design takes 18 seconds to open or close and can be operated at speeds of up to 30 km/h.
The cabin is home to items like the MINI head-up display, MINI Yours Leather Lounge sports seats with heating function and a Nappa leather-wrapped steering wheel with model-specific badging.
‘Under the hood’, the electric MINI Cooper SE convertible is driven by a front-mounted electric motor, with 184 hp and 270 Nm. MINI did not reveal battery specifications but based on the quoted electric range of 201 km, it should be the same 32.6 kWh battery that powers the hard top model (with a 230 km range).
The lower 201 km electric range could be due to the aerodynamic disadvantages of the convertible design. The convertible’s 0-100 km/h time is 8.2 seconds, while the hard top does 7.3 seconds. The MINI Cooper SE Convertible is priced from £52,500 (approx. RM279,767) and judging by the success of the hard-top in Malaysia, wouldn’t you like to see the convertible here?
GALLERY
