BMW could get financial boost to built electric Mini in the UK

Existing thread here: https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/bmw-uk-government-in-talks-to-reverse-se-oxford-production-decision.15466/

 

I don't think £75,000 is enough money to bring the next Oxford MINI Electrics out any sooner than the rumored 2027 date, but maybe it will guarantee Plant Oxford can continue operations.

Will Oxford overhaul their production line to build the Zhangjiagang MINI Electrics and then flip the retrofit scenario to shoehorn an ICE into that car? Or will they continue building evolved versions of the current ICE cars on a separate production line? Or will 2026 be the last year for ICE MINIs?

It would seem that the 27% import tariff the US imposes on Chinese vehicles would be the main impetus for keeping Plant Oxford open and switching it to build MINIs from Chinese parts. But will the cost of maintaining that supply chain and the UK's greater labor costs overwhelm the benefit of the import tariff reduction?

Finally, will Zhangjiagang-built MINI Electrics cost less in the UK than Oxford-built cars? If so, then Plant Oxford will be building cars only for the US. Why not just build the US cars in the US and make them eligible for the federal EV tax credit? But the US wants SUVs, not MINIs, so the production numbers may not make financial sense.

 

Then again, they could build MINI’s at their new Mexican plant

 

Sure if you want to wait until 2027 for Neue Klasse.

 

Screwed either way then!

 

£75,000,000 ("75 million pound")

 

Oops. Thanks for the correction. I was too involved with inserting the British pound sign to see my mistake. Still, not much money when it comes to retrofitting a modern factory as large as Plant Oxford.

 

I think it's some money to keep to extend the F56 BEV production for just a little bit longer into the 2024 model. That could imply the J01 isn't available until model year 2025.

The UK Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is getting split into multiple departments as of Feb 7, 2023:
Business & Trade
Energy Security & Net Zero
Science, Innovation & Technology

So we will see what happens later...

 

How popular would the hold-over F56 SE be in the US when people see the quicker, faster, lighter, longer-range MINI Electrics available to the rest of the world?

Will the UK get the Zhangjiagang-built MINI Electrics?

 

Well the British monarchy has ties to the German House of Hanover back in 1714 so I'd imagine they are closer to the Germans than the Middle Kingdom (Zhongguo 中國).

I think there is certainly a chance for the US market to get some of the limited edition 2024 F56 BEV models but the lack of tax credits makes it less desirable for individuals. It's a moot point for LLCs and the corporate tax write off easily exceeds $7,500 in personal tax credits.