Has the SE ruined you for other EVs?

[Pennyworth]

Here's 285 km/177 mi:

This was so encouraging to see! I need to learn to stay in the lower third of the "potential meter" (or whatever Mini calls the yellow dashes), stop having range anxiety, and push Mini's range estimate (because of course Mini has to provide the worst case scenario). Interesting to see the warning lights that came on and to see the driver had plenty of time to get to a charging station! Thank you for sharing!

 

[SameGuy]

I was holding my breath towards the end!

 

[Rexsio]

Clever! I don’t think a car with 1.2 seats would sell very well…


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What about eliminate rear sits in 2 door SE and accommodate more batteries maybe a rear space a little higher but a trunk will be nice size and bc front is heavier they can achieve 50/50 balance and 50 kWh battery can easy give you 200 miles practically nothing change just bigger range for so many people refuse 114 miles range. I buy a two sitter no questions ask . My SE is sufficient for me I do 3000 miles a year but 200 miles will be nice bonus for many people who never put two adults in rear seats at Mini Cooper SE

 

[insightman]

What about eliminate rear sits in 2 door SE and accommodate more batteries maybe a rear space a little higher but a trunk will be nice size and bc front is heavier they can achieve 50/50 balance and 50 kWh battery can easy give you 200 miles practically nothing change just bigger range for so many people refuse 114 miles range. I buy a two sitter no questions ask . My SE is sufficient for me I do 3000 miles a year but 200 miles will be nice bonus for many people who never put two adults in rear seats at Mini Cooper SE

MINI knows how to do that--the 2009 MINI-E had no rear seats because the old-tech 100-mile battery occupied not only the rear-seat area, but part of the boot area, too (why did the battery need head-rests?):

I want my SE to weigh less, not more. By the time my battery dies, I hope there will be a solid-state aftermarket battery that weighs much less and still gives me 110 miles of range. If the SE's limited range was a problem there would be MINI dealers with excess stock offering discounts in an effort to get rid of them.

 

[Tifosi]

Just got back from my second i4 test drive, this time the decked out $70k M50 variant.

Nice car but I came away cold. I am afraid that our humble Mini SE has ruined me for other EVs. Anyone else find other EVs a bit boring after owning the SE?

why did it leave you cold. I loved the i4 M50 and was about to place an order save the recession that we are in that nobody will admit to! lol (not making any significant purchases until prices and demand drop)

 

[Tifosi]

smart used to have an ad that read something like, “Studies show that the average car has 1.2 occupants. We decided to be generous and give you two seats.”

lol, our rear seats stay folded down 99% of the time for storage. My son (6-3) refuses to sit back there and my wife (5-7) hates it. We take the Q7 almost anywhere when we all go out. But yes, we have 4 cars, so we have choice (like good americans, we are consumers! lol). We have cars for specific tasks and dont have to compromise for one that can do it all. The EV is meant to be the daily driver of whomever has to drive the most that day. And that alone saves us more than the combined payment/insurance for the SE (as it did for the i3 before it). So its free to us. Even at twice the price with gas as it is, it would be free for us. Our other cars are more performance based and economy is not the concern.

 

[polyphonic]

why did it leave you cold. I loved the i4 M50 and was about to place an order save the recession that we are in that nobody will admit to! lol (not making any significant purchases until prices and demand drop)

It just didn't seem very interesting or engaging to drive. Hard to put a finger on it. The salesman agreed and said the iX was a lot more fun, which is funny considering it's an SUV, but maybe the R&D dollars all end up there.

 

[Tifosi]

thanks. Have you had BMW's before that you are comparing it to or just the SE? Trying to gauge. I have had a lot of them and found the i4 to be in line with all of the modern 3/4 series (even the M4 I had for a while). I dont find them super "fun" but great cars to drive and get around. I am not looking for it to be a racecar or a sportscar, just a good solid daily that feels solid and handles well. I keep my e46 m3 for the fun as it is way more pure and enjoyable than the modern ones. I hate the iX with such a passion that I refused to drive it! lol

 

[polyphonic]

thanks. Have you had BMW's before that you are comparing it to or just the SE? Trying to gauge. I have had a lot of them and found the i4 to be in line with all of the modern 3/4 series (even the M4 I had for a while). I dont find them super "fun" but great cars to drive and get around. I am not looking for it to be a racecar or a sportscar, just a good solid daily that feels solid and handles well. I keep my e46 m3 for the fun as it is way more pure and enjoyable than the modern ones. I hate the iX with such a passion that I refused to drive it! lol

Yes - i3 and X3 M40i. The M40i was hilarious. Way too powerful and it sounded amazing. Super comfortable on long trips.

Totally with you on the iX, that's why I haven't tried it

For your needs it sounds like the i4 would be excellent.

 

[Tifosi]

ok, thanks. That helps. You certainly did have a good one in the X3. We had a 1st gen X3 and it was underwhelming, they have done a good job getting that line where it needs to be!

I just cannot stand tesla, and I want a mid size EV sedan. Options suck. lol. As I have decided to not make any capital expenditures with recession looming, there will likley be better ones. I may plan for an i4 euro delivery next year. We just got back from Europe and chargers are everywhere. I last did a euro delivery on a e39 540i/6 speed. that was a great autobahn car!

As an aside, I like the SE way more than our old i3 (except for rear seats). What is your take?

 

[polyphonic]

ok, thanks. That helps. You certainly did have a good one in the X3. We had a 1st gen X3 and it was underwhelming, they have done a good job getting that line where it needs to be!

I just cannot stand tesla, and I want a mid size EV sedan. Options suck. lol. As I have decided to not make any capital expenditures with recession looming, there will likley be better ones. I may plan for an i4 euro delivery next year. We just got back from Europe and chargers are everywhere. I last did a euro delivery on a e39 540i/6 speed. that was a great autobahn car!

As an aside, I like the SE way more than our old i3 (except for rear seats). What is your take?

Mine was the G01 (2017+), apparently they made significant improvements over the prior gens. Really felt special. Don't let me dissuade you from getting an i4 - BMW makes impressive EVs. Other than BMW for sedans I might look at Mercedes. Do they have an electric C/E sedan in the pipeline?

SE vs i3? SE by miles! Other than the i3 styling and the back seat the SE is far superior. I would be hard pressed to recommend it, whereas the SE is a slam dunk if the range works. How long did you have the i3?

 

[Tifosi]

Yea, I agree on the G01 and the i3. We had a 30 month lease. It was good, the SE is way better in every respect (other than the rear seating). Ours was an i3 range extender (non s). We only used the gas gen like 3 times. lol.

 

[Rexsio]

ok, thanks. That helps. You certainly did have a good one in the X3. We had a 1st gen X3 and it was underwhelming, they have done a good job getting that line where it needs to be!

I just cannot stand tesla, and I want a mid size EV sedan. Options suck. lol. As I have decided to not make any capital expenditures with recession looming, there will likley be better ones. I may plan for an i4 euro delivery next year. We just got back from Europe and chargers are everywhere. I last did a euro delivery on a e39 540i/6 speed. that was a great autobahn car!

As an aside, I like the SE way more than our old i3 (except for rear seats). What is your take?

And trunk in I3 was twice bigger sits down all a time own for 6 years and front sits and view at signal lights no issue as in SE I have a neck pain looking at signal lights when I’m first in line frunk was good addition too and nobody believe 2014 no Rex was faster than SE bc car was 2600 lbs not 3150 lbs SE