While the focus of the Mini range might be on the original Cooper, for many it’s undoubtedly here with the Countryman where their focus is based. All the fun of the smaller Cooper, but with added space and practicality, there’s no questioning its popularity.
For enthusiasts, it might be diluting that original Mini appeal, but the Countryman along with the forthcoming Aceman is where the majority of sales will be longer term. It’s not by mistake that Ford and VW dropped the three-door versions of their Focus and Golf models so long ago. More practical versions like this Countryman simply have a wider appeal to more customers.
That’s not about to change with this electric version either. Unlike the smaller Cooper, there’s just a single choice of battery with a 64.7kWh model and the choice of the two-wheel drive E and four-wheel drive SE. But can the Countryman retain that more emotional appeal of its smaller stablemate?
MINI COUNTRYMAN E – DESIGN
While we’re fans of the smaller Cooper, we have to admit to not being entirely convinced by the styling of this Countryman.
Obviously larger, some of the dimensions feel a bit awkward and out of proportion. The cute circular lights of its smaller stablemate have been replaced by squared-off hexagonal ones, but it’s a more traditional two-box shape (of bonnet and cabin) than might be seen with rival SUVs.
And that’s the point. This is, in effect, a small SUV, so perhaps it’s unfair of us to expect the same cuddly looks of the Cooper. The squared-off rear lights also leave a very wide tailgate with the over-sized lettering across the back. We wouldn’t say it’s a bad looking car – and certainly some of these elements have benefits elsewhere as we shall explore later – but overall the design doesn’t quite as feel as coherent as some.
MINI COUNTRYMAN E – POWER AND RANGE
As mentioned in the introduction, there’s no choice of battery size with the Mini Countryman as on the smaller Cooper, just a single 64.7kWh battery with a range of 287 miles on the E and 269 miles on the SE four-wheel drive model. While we’d like to see a marginally larger battery to push the range up beyond the psychologically-important 300 mile mark, that’s still pretty good.
With the E boasting a 0 to 60mph time of just 8.6 seconds with a 3.8mls/kWh average efficiency (we average 3.3mls/kWh without even trying on a short drive), those are pretty decent numbers for what is, after all, meant to be an entry-level car. Albeit an entry-level car that starts at £42,980 before any option packs – a healthy chunk of money for something wearing a Mini badge, even a Countryman.
The SE model meanwhile boasts the equivalent of 302bhp and a ridiculously rapid 5.6 second 0 to 60mph time (this a family car remember) along with a 3.4mls/kWh efficiency (though probably not if you’re exploiting the majority of that on-tap performance with your right foot).
Capable of up to 130kW at a ultra rapid DC charger, the Countryman can charge from 10 to 80% in just 30 minutes, while the sat nav can be preset for charging stations to pre-warm the battery to ensure it’s ready for time-efficient charging.
MINI COUNTRYMAN E – ON THE ROAD
There’s three negative things you half expect when climbing aboard the Countryman. You don’t expect it to handle as well as the smaller Cooper, you don’t expect it to be as much fun to drive and lastly, you expect the entry-level E model to feel like some kind of half measure. Two of those are totally wrong while the third is only half wrong.
On the excellent driving dynamics of the Cooper, it would be unfair to expect the larger Countryman to handle with the same precise and fun cornering characteristics and, to be fair, it doesn’t. But by no means does it disgrace itself as the Mini Countryman can still put a smile on your face and is probably still a step above rival family cars in terms of being an enjoyable drive. The only element that we would improve is a slightly lower driving position as it feels a bit too high for a truly involved driving experience. As with the Cooper though, the ride is exceptional on the E model.
Most tellingly, that previous statement also applies for the E too, which is definitely not the short-straw you might expect. In fact, with its slight range advantage and the not-small £5000 price advantage, we’d even go so far to say that we think that this might just be the sweet spot in the range – more on which in the end verdict.
Like the Cooper, the Countryman has the same regen braking modes with Adaptive, Low, Moderate and High. You can read more about them on the Cooper review here as our opinion is much the same on this car, but needless to say that we’d prefer them to be slightly stronger to align with most other modern EVs.
MINI COUNTRYMAN E – INTERIOR
Unsurprisingly, the interior of the Mini Countryman is also much the same as the Cooper. So the dash is dominated by the circular display in the centre of the dashboard with the same choice of driving modes.
The system is also the same ninth-generation of BMW’s infotainment and it’s brilliantly simple to use. What seems initially quite daunting and complicated actually proves fairly intuitive.
There’s augmented reality for the sat nav and also the possibility of a digital key on your phone if you want one too. Plus there are toggle switches for switching between the experience modes mentioned before and a novelty turn key retro-style starter.
There’s good space around the cabin and the Panoramic glass roof lets plenty of light into the cabin. On more practical elements, there’s a good amount of space in the rear seat (thanks in part to it being 13cm longer than its predecessor) and also a front seat third Isofix point for a baby seat. At 460 litres, we wouldn’t mind the boot being slightly larger, but it’s on a par with the Volvo EX40 and can expand to 1450 litres with the rear seats folded down.
SUMMARY
Your view of the Countryman is likely to mainly depend on what you’re looking for from it. If you’re looking for the same cut looks and pin-sharp handling as the Cooper, then you’re likely to be disappointed.
Then again, as we said earlier, this is a more practical everyday family car, which isn’t something you could say of the Cooper. This is a rival to many small SUVs and therefore appealing to an entirely different customer base.
And to them, we think it will succeed very much indeed. It’s not perfect, but practical enough, still fun enough to drive (just) – which certainly isn’t something you could aim at many all-electric family cars – and, again just, it retains enough of the Mini charm and appeal about its looks.
For us too, at £42,080, as mentioned, the E is the sweet spot in the range. The SE is highly capable, but at over £47,000, it wouldn’t take many options to take it the wrong side of fifty grand and that, for us, for a Mini, starts to become questionable. Take the E though, and this electric Countryman will suit you very well indeed.
FACT BOX
Model: Mini Countryman Electric
Price: from £42,080
Power: Battery – 64.7kWh
Range: 269-287 miles
Average efficiency: 3.8mls/kWh (E)
Average charge time on a domestic wallbox: 9hrs
CO2 emissions: 0g/km
Rating: 8/10