2025 Mini Cooper SE review VIDEO: International first drive

The transition to electric cars, or the rush to them more specifically, has the potential to hurt two segments of the motoring enthusiast crowd more than any other. Those who like to explore the world off-road, and those who love light, nimble, engaging hot hatches and sports cars. Weight has a way of dulling the sensations we associate with the best of the latter.

Was the original Mini Cooper the world’s first hot-hatch before the term was minted? Maybe. Whether you buy into that argument or not, the Mini Cooper was, and always has been, a few things. A marvel of modern design, clever packaging, front-engine, front-wheel-drive practicality, and a diminutive car that delivered driving engagement and fun beyond its tiny proportions. 

That’s why the opportunity to test the 2025 Mini Cooper Electric ahead of its local launch is something we’ve been looking forward to for some time. For the moment too, forget everything you know about the petrol version; this electric Mini Cooper is an entirely different proposition. What we’re testing here rides on an all-new, electric-car-focused platform that has been co-developed by Mini and Chinese car giant GWM. 

It would appear – certainly in the early days of the EV move – that collaborations make more sense in the electric motoring realm than they ever did in the internal combustion world, and this electric Mini Cooper could be a very good example of the benefits. 

Two version of the new Mini Cooper Electric will be available in Australia initially, the Cooper E and Cooper SE – with two battery capacities, different performance levels, and a starting price of $53,990 before on-road costs for the entry-grade E, while the SE starts from $58,990 before on-road costs.

The headline point in regard to pricing locally is an $11,000 lower starting point to the entry price compared to the outgoing electric Mini, which means the Mini Cooper Electric is more affordable than it’s ever been. Check our pricing and specification story for all the details.

Cooper E makes 135kW and 290Nm, uses a 40.7kWh battery, scoots from 0–100km/h in 7.3 seconds and will cover a claimed 305km on the WLTP test cycle. Step up to Cooper SE and you get 160kW and 330Nm, a 54.2kW battery, 0–100km/h in 6.7 seconds and a claimed range of 402km WLTP. Both variants use a front-mounted electric motor and FWD. 

I’ve read some initial reports from overseas that refer to the driving range as ‘paltry’ or ‘skinny’ or claim it to be a negative. To those testers, I say you’ve probably missed the point. With 210 litres of boot storage space, a second row that is compact at best, and a focus on driving engagement, the Mini Cooper Electric is aimed fairly and squarely at city commuters who are attracted to the styling, need to zip around town, and want a hatch that is fun to drive. I don’t think too many buyers are looking for a hatch of this type to cross continents in. 

Further, with technology where it is at the moment anyway, increasing battery capacity increases weight as we know. And, with the Cooper E tipping the scales at 1540kg and SE at 1605kg, it looks like Mini has hit the balance between practicality and driving engagement neatly. Climb any closer to 2000kg, and you’ve got a lot more small car to control into corners and over poor surfaces. 

Exterior styling is the first and most obvious feature that you’ll notice, and in the two colours offered at launch that you can see in the photos and video, the electric Cooper looks fantastic.

It certainly looks like a Mini from the front, of course, different enough that you take a second look, though, but it’s the rear three-quarter view that will leave you in no doubt this is the all-new Mini Cooper. A retake on the Union Jack tail-light design looks the part at the rear corners of the hatch, too, and the electric Mini is as cute as it is recognisable. 

Get comfortable in the driver’s seat and it’s the steering wheel that first grabs your attention. Specifically because of how meaty it is. If you’ve driven a sporty BMW, you’ll know exactly what you’re dealing with. The extruded bumps at the 10 and two position mean you might have to adjust your hands at the wheel, but I reckon the chunky design suits the sporting intent. 

Flat-bottomed, the steering wheel also features one of the Mini’s new design signatures – a taut material strap at the bottom, rather than a traditional spoke. It’s certainly different, unnecessary maybe, but undeniably a clever way of adding detail to something that might otherwise be mundane. 

That strap within the steering wheel points to something we noticed immediately, which is something potential buyers will love. That is, design execution within the cabin. The choice of materials, the finishes and the design cues are genuinely clever. They look different, feel different, add a touch of class to the cabin, and provide another eye-catching feature to an otherwise utilitarian small hatch.

The woven material that covers the dash, with its oversized houndstooth pattern, for example, is a smart way of changing up what would otherwise be a swathe of black or grey plastic. 

The seat trim, the door coverings, all the touchpoints and switch gear have a contemporary look and feel to them, which buys into the ‘funky’ Mini vibe that buyers are sure to be attracted to. And still, despite those materials and design, it’s the 9.4-inch circular centre screen that is the most obvious element of the cabin to catch your eye. 

Most of us used to look at the circular screen and ask, why? Why put a round peg in a rectangular hole? Why adhere so strongly to history at the expense of modern infotainment smarts? All that has changed, though, thanks to the fact that the entirety of the OLED screen has been used to display vital information. The screen actually looks like one of those high-end, frameless TV screens you see in a display home or gallery display space. Sitting high and proud in the centre of the dash, it’s both beautiful and practical. 

We didn’t test the smartphone connectivity at launch, but the onboard satellite navigation was snappy and responsive, and the screen responded quickly to touch inputs and commands. The design of the information it displays is attractive, too, and it changes appearance to match the seven driving modes you can choose between. Activate ‘Timeless’, for example, and you get a washed-out sepia look to the display, with old-school dials and font as an homage to the original Mini. It’s a small detail, but a good one. 

The lighting theme throughout the dashboard and the rest of the cabin provides a subtle ambience as well. There are LEDs in the door cards and integrated into the headlining. On the subject of the headlining, the fixed panoramic roof means head room isn’t too tight, even in the back seat. Although, foot and leg room in the second row mean it is for occasional use only for adults. We found the two front seats to be comfortable even after a few hours on the move. 

On the road, once you clear the city and find a winding road, the electric Cooper is a hoot. And that sense of fun really isn’t diluted even in the more efficient driving modes. We only tested the more powerful variant at launch, but it feels sharper and more responsive, especially off the line, than the weight might indicate. 

You could spend hours testing the different driving modes and settings, and we’ll look further into them when we have more time with the new Mini, but most of you will go straight to ‘Go Kart’, and understandably so. The engineering team have added a clever sound that is part snarl, part bark, part crackle, but all quite hilarious.

It’s one of the few synthesised sounds I’ve enjoyed on any electric car, and the hard to describe crackle that emanates when you lift off the throttle really does leave you reminiscing about the quirks of an old petrol engine with a finicky carburettor providing the fuel. 

The interesting fact for me is that despite the theatre and sense of fun, the ride quality and comfort levels are more mature than they have ever been. The new electric Mini might not have grown up entirely, but it’s definitely a little older and wiser.

It really is fun to drive, on any road. The smoother the surface, the better, of course, but it can deal with ruts, bumps, coarse surfaces and cobblestones with ease, and the steering turns in sharply enough, never feeling like you’re operating a joystick in a simulator. Even after a long drive on some less perfect road surfaces, we were still impressed with the ride quality and insulation. Like my favourite boxing referee Joe Cortez, it’s firm but fair. 

Like any powerful FWD car, the electric Mini will chirp the tyres if you nail the accelerator pedal, especially on a damp surface, but it doesn’t tend to wild understeer on the move either. Drive it with the requisite competency on a winding road, and it’s as much fun as it is capable. 

How Aussie buyers feel about the pricing structure remains to be seen, but it’s still fair to say that electric vehicles aren’t cheap. But then, when you buy a Mini, you’re buying more than simply a conveyance. And as such, the buying profile, and what the buyer wants, result in a slightly different set of priorities.

There’s no doubt, though, that despite its very 2025 drivetrain, the new electric Mini Cooper retains many of the qualities that made the original a legend.