Is the MINI Cooper SE still the perfect “city EV” in 2026?

[insightman]

On a side note, if solid state batteries, which should have a much higher charge density ever hit the market, would anyone make a retrofit pack for our SEs? Something giving us say 45-50kW. Would you retrofit one if the price was reasonable and what would you consider reasonable?

I'd be willing to pay $4,000 for a 32.6 kWh, solid-state battery if it would make my SE 400 pounds lighter, but I wouldn't pay much to lose just 100 pounds. How much would you be willing to pay for the installation of a 50 kWh battery that extends your SE's range to 160 miles per charge, but doesn't save any weight?

Imagine you were starting a company to make solid-state replacement batteries. Which EV would you choose to first showcase your company's products? These would be some of the factors to consider:
1. Can the owners of the chosen EV afford your expensive solid-state replacement battery?
2. Would your solid-state battery make a big enough difference that the owners of the EV would consider the price reasonable?
3. Are there enough of those enthusiastic owners to justify the hardware and software R&D costs?
4. Would the customers be testamonial fanatics, raving about the benefits of your solid-state battery?

I'd say F56 MINI Cooper SE owners could satisfy #2 and #4, but perhaps not #1 and #3. When the batteries get smaller, it's more likely there will be complete EV motor+battery retrofits for the large numbers of Miatas, Porsches, and Corvettes on the road.