Is an EV MINI really a MINI?

For the 200 grand they want for an upcoming Polestar 6, I'll keep my current MINI SE and just go for an upcoming tourist space flight.

 

"Polestar 2 Battery Replacement Far Exceeds Car’s Price In China
The owner of one Polestar 2 in China was quoted the equivalent of $79,200 for a new battery pack."

 

What company is going to make a small, sporty, EV competitor for the SE that costs less than triple what I paid for my SE?

 

Being in the industry I know what stuff costs I also know automotive media doesn’t report on the full picture. I’ve had newer cars come in that hit something and needed to have the engine replaced. Insurance scrapped the car vs paying out the 35k for an engine

 

None. Small cars aren’t profitable

 

Small cars aren’t profitable in North America.

 

I know FCA lost $20K on every Fiat 500e they sold in the US. Would MINI still be selling the SE if the car wasn't profitable? Does MINI sell enough SEs to achieve a significant regulatory credit for their ICE cars?

 

No clue

 

The only Wv can do it and Wv id3 in Europe is sell for equivalent of $33000 and all Wv sell in USA ACE are doing great and that car have 3 battery options meets any body requirements 45 kWh 58 kWh 77 kWh and milage 205 miles 262 miles 341 miles Why we can’t buy a car here . Is rear drive which I prefer over front SE having experience with I3 .WV must punish North America for Diesel Gate .I own many WV they excellent cars.

 

In the original Bloomberg Oct 2017 quote:

"Battery-powered autos have yet to become profitable, with the company losing as much as $20,000 a car on its Fiat 500 subcompact’s electric version, Marchionne said Monday in a speech at a university event in Rovereto, Italy. The carmaker, which the CEO has wanted to combine with a competitor to share development costs, hasn’t been in talks with Hyundai Motor Co., he said in a Bloomberg Television interview, referring to South Korean media reports of a potential tie-up."​

McKinsey & Co said in Mar 2019:

"OEMs have reached a crossroads on vehicle-platform design, with a number starting to invest in “native,” or purpose-built, EV platforms, while others primarily produce EVs based on modified ICE-vehicle platforms. Purpose-built EV platforms are lower in material cost and allow better performance in range, acceleration, and interior space. They do, however, come with additional investments in new, stand-alone platforms, leading to higher fixed-cost allocation, especially when initially produced in lower volumes. Each automaker would need to save more than $4,000 per vehicle in direct materials cost to recoup the estimated $1 billion in incremental fixed costs for a dedicated platform if selling about 50,000 units per year over five years. Today’s mass-market EVs typically sell at volumes between about 30,000 and 80,000 vehicles globally. Significant debate, especially for passenger-car segments, resides around the choice of a pure EV platform versus a versatile platform that can house both EV and ICE power trains. OEMs that choose to make a BEV or PHEV from a modified ICE platform to limit capital investment will often have to sacrifice higher material costs driven by the “overdesigned” platform and face challenges in battery packaging, not only in the same capacity (sacrificing range), but also in a less cost-efficient manner, potentially making them less exciting to consumers."​

 

We are first time mini buyers that purchased a used SE and have a second one on order.

 

Fortunately, the MINI Cooper SE avoided the "potentially making them less exciting" result.

 

Why wouldn't you buy a China built MINI?

 

I’m not going to pay a premium price for a car that will be advertised as “British Inspired” but built in China. I’d buy an MG EV if it wanted that experience and save 10k

 

There's only one tiny part of an MG EV SUV that could possibly be called "British Inspired."



At least MINI is going to make an attempt to reformat the Ora Good Cat into a shape reminiscent of the Mini. I'm certain the 2024 "MINI Cooper" SE will be a lot more fun to drive than a current "MG."

 

I have to agree with this. Chinese (and neighboring emerging economies’) manufacturing abilities rival and even exceed those of G7 nations: tell them what you want, and they will make your product exactly to spec. But I can’t justify paying what will likely be $50k for a BMW-engineered MINI built by Great Wall that likely cost BMW less than half what one made in the UK/EU did.

 

I would get one of these

 

Small cars aren’t profitable?

 

I love that Aceman concept, especially the interior materials and infotainment - but why are they farming out the new MINI EV to another company? I have never heard a good answer for that, and for those reasons I'm out.

 

Will depend on all the development costs, factory machinery, tooling, etc. If the platform costs about $2bn and the manufacturer budgets 5 years to recover the costs, then you would need about 100,000 vehicles annually at a margin of $2,000 for 5 years. MINI sold 34,851 Cooper SE models worldwide in 2021.

The alternative is to split development costs with another company or retrofit an ICE/PHEV platform.