2023 mini without its camouflage

It is smaller than the F56, at least on the outside (thanks again to @insightman for the nice photoshop overlay), but nonetheless is still destined for the US market.

Additionally, and although this is an EV forum, MINI has stated that it will be difficult to visually distinguish between the EV and ICE versions. Apparently that is possible because the current F56 platform is "modular", allowing it to be modified to match the new shorter wheelbase of the EV.

IOW, the MINI hatch is going back to its roots and growing smaller again, current infatuations with SUVs and pickups be damned.

 

The front is ok… will take some time to get used too but that back is horrible. Looks like a spaceship. I feel like it’s going away from what I loved about mini, their aesthetics. Glad I ordered the ‘22 before they switch.

 

The scoop certainly did work on the earliest Cooper S models. The scoop provided fresh air to the intercooler to feed the supercharger.

 

When you say "earliest Cooper S models," you're forgetting John Cooper's Mini Cooper S that preceded the supercharged BMW MINIs. None of John Cooper's Minis had scoops.

And after BMW's MINI switched to turbocharging, the designers went skeuomorphic, deciding an "S" had to have a hood scoop even if it was a fake hood scoop. Surprisingly, I don't think the fake scoop looks bad, but a fake anything on a MINI Cooper would bother me. A fake scoop makes even less sense on an electric car. I fixed it on my SE.



It's funny that the camouflaged pre-production 2024 Chinese MINI Electrics had a taped-on hood scoop, but the when the camouflage came off, there was no scoop to be seen. I'd love to have been in the room when MINI's designers discussed dumping the hood scoop. Maybe one of them brought out a folder of all the letters I wrote, begging to pay $1,500 extra for the less expensive base MINI Cooper hood. Nah, those letters found the circular file as soon as they were opened.

 

Historically, the cost savings to a manufacturer by moving production to a cheaper labor market does not result in lower consumer prices. It typically is done to increase the profit margin and return to investors. It's the result of the "chasing increasing quarterly profits" model used by most publicly traded businesses. Apple is a classic example. At best, moving production to China will result in smaller price increases down the road.

 

Also, as this Inside EVs article "Mini Asks US Dealers To Accept 3% Margin Cut On Next-Gen Cooper SE" reveals, the made-in-China small EV will be subject to a 27.5% tariff in the US. So even if the US dealers don't use "market adjustments" to maintain their traditional margins, lower prices for the non-UK electric MINIs don't seem likely.

 

I think with electric cars two factors are likely in play, particularly for MINI:

1. Needing a new plant for the new platform without disrupting current production capabilities
2. The Chinese market is huge, and getting factories in China bolsters their market share in that country

So it's not necessarily about cutting costs.

 

I stand Humbled having forgotten the very roots of the brand! It was the Minis of the original Italian Job movie that I saw when I was in school that inspired me to acquire my first Mini - the 2002 Mini Cooper S I was thinking of when I penned that note.