Mini's - EV or petrol Cooper S
Discussion
In a position where i need to get a little daily city car.
Brain suggests getting the new mini cooper SE electric through my business which is great for tax and low running costs as everything including the mindstaggering expected depreachiation can be offset against profit for tax purposes - so less money going to rachel in accounts.
Its supposedly quite nippy, but weighs nearly 1.5 tonnes.
Heart is saying to get a 19/20 petrol cooper S/JCW - no further explanation needed - but will hugely dent the wallet as will have to pay from post taxed income - which at present i'm reluctant to take any more than needed to fund this s
te government.
Has anyone run either? Is the electric one almost as fun and agile as the petrol? Will it put a smile on my face? I've driven the older version electric and it felt dull and soleless. Waiting for a test drive on the new one.
cheers
Brain suggests getting the new mini cooper SE electric through my business which is great for tax and low running costs as everything including the mindstaggering expected depreachiation can be offset against profit for tax purposes - so less money going to rachel in accounts.
Its supposedly quite nippy, but weighs nearly 1.5 tonnes.
Heart is saying to get a 19/20 petrol cooper S/JCW - no further explanation needed - but will hugely dent the wallet as will have to pay from post taxed income - which at present i'm reluctant to take any more than needed to fund this s
te government.Has anyone run either? Is the electric one almost as fun and agile as the petrol? Will it put a smile on my face? I've driven the older version electric and it felt dull and soleless. Waiting for a test drive on the new one.
cheers
theicemario said:
1680 kg (EU, 1610 DIN) actually. No idea how they've managed that.
Saw a new Cooper S in Classic trim the other day. Thought it looked rather smart. Seems surprisingly affordable as well
its crazy weight for that size. the older model was around 1400kg and that felt heavy to drive. have seen a few youtube videos reviews on the new SE version saying they are ok, but nothing from as a comparison to the petrol. Saw a new Cooper S in Classic trim the other day. Thought it looked rather smart. Seems surprisingly affordable as well
HughT4 said:
its crazy weight for that size. the older model was around 1400kg and that felt heavy to drive. have seen a few youtube videos reviews on the new SE version saying they are ok, but nothing from as a comparison to the petrol.
i love the instant torque electric motors but miss ragging a petrol into the higher revband and hearing it sing - so hence wondering if a good handling ev might compensate for the lack of sound and revs.Harry Metcalf did a good review recently over on Harry's Garage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc99G3mhFIg
ka90 said:
Harry Metcalf did a good review recently over on Harry's Garage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc99G3mhFIg
Referenced it quite a bit in his review of the new Renault 5 EV too (which is the one I'd be going for over the Mini).ka90 said:
Harry Metcalf did a good review recently over on Harry's Garage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc99G3mhFIg
thankyou 
I keep seeing advertised that Mini are doing 24 hour test drives on the new EVs, get on line and book one and see how you get on.
I think it may be limited to 100 miles but will certainly give you some idea what they are like.
My MIL has an 18 month old EV Mini via Motobility, which she loves, range isn't great on it (160m?) but there again the furthest its been is a 30 miles roundtrip...
My personal preference would be the S/JCW petrol but there again this is Pistonheads...
I think it may be limited to 100 miles but will certainly give you some idea what they are like.
My MIL has an 18 month old EV Mini via Motobility, which she loves, range isn't great on it (160m?) but there again the furthest its been is a 30 miles roundtrip...
My personal preference would be the S/JCW petrol but there again this is Pistonheads...
DaveyBoyWonder said:
Referenced it quite a bit in his review of the new Renault 5 EV too (which is the one I'd be going for over the Mini).
This, I assume most people who get a brand new EV meet the following criteria.1)It is a salary sacrifice/company lease so they can offset the tax
2)They can charge it at home
3)They only use it for local journeys
4)They have a traditional ICE car for longer journeys
Which is why there is little second hand market for them.
thanks for the tips.
yes, the (only) attraction of the EV (apart from the instant torque) is that it works out around half the cost of buying and running compared to the petrol S due to the various corporation tax relief available on depreciation, interest and running costs (v's paying for it an S personally). Just means i can then justify further spends on an older classic car
Trying to get a 24 hour test drive, but local Swindon dealer doesn't appear to want the business of a new purchase.
yes, the (only) attraction of the EV (apart from the instant torque) is that it works out around half the cost of buying and running compared to the petrol S due to the various corporation tax relief available on depreciation, interest and running costs (v's paying for it an S personally). Just means i can then justify further spends on an older classic car
Trying to get a 24 hour test drive, but local Swindon dealer doesn't appear to want the business of a new purchase.
Edited by HughT4 on Wednesday 29th January 12:48
DaveyBoyWonder said:
ka90 said:
Harry Metcalf did a good review recently over on Harry's Garage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc99G3mhFIg
Referenced it quite a bit in his review of the new Renault 5 EV too (which is the one I'd be going for over the Mini).66HFM said:
I keep seeing advertised that Mini are doing 24 hour test drives on the new EVs, get on line and book one and see how you get on.
I think it may be limited to 100 miles but will certainly give you some idea what they are like.
My MIL has an 18 month old EV Mini via Motobility, which she loves, range isn't great on it (160m?) but there again the furthest its been is a 30 miles roundtrip...
My personal preference would be the S/JCW petrol but there again this is Pistonheads...
They’ve been doing them for quite a while. I think it may be limited to 100 miles but will certainly give you some idea what they are like.
My MIL has an 18 month old EV Mini via Motobility, which she loves, range isn't great on it (160m?) but there again the furthest its been is a 30 miles roundtrip...
My personal preference would be the S/JCW petrol but there again this is Pistonheads...
Gives you an idea of what they are like as you say
I bought a petrol ‘S’
My Mrs has a 2019 cooper S with the JCW pack on it.
The seats are great and it's great to drive (when I'm allowed to).
I'd definitely go the petrol route over electric. We only went to see what was available near us as we needed something bigger than her 500 and as soon as she saw the mini she had to have it.
Need to check what exhaust is on it as it's loud on coldstart!!!
The seats are great and it's great to drive (when I'm allowed to).
I'd definitely go the petrol route over electric. We only went to see what was available near us as we needed something bigger than her 500 and as soon as she saw the mini she had to have it.
Need to check what exhaust is on it as it's loud on coldstart!!!
So I got fed up of depreciation on "bigger" stuff and as I was only really going to the station I picked up a 2016 Cooper S on 20K miles 2 years ago and saved myself the difference to a JCW (at the time circa 1700/2K equivalent). I came out of a 440i convertible. In all honesty, it's a great thing. I can leave it anywhere without worry, it's quick enough and great handling. It does motorway well, decent seats and it's not that noisy (although I put a JCW exhaust on mine as I picked one up for 100 quid and it seemed rude not to). There are loads of them about, so be picky on spec.
Heated windscreen is a massive benefit. Widescreen nav decent, and at the age your looking at should have CarPlay (but check). Heated seats def help. Parking sensors - all were options. I like the HK stereo, some don't. Pan roof is a nice option.
JCW cars are quicker and have a couple of things to note - the brakes are significantly better. Day to day the S is fine but on a spirited drive they give up pretty quickly so most folk swap the pads out. Secondly, there are a lot of base spec JCW out there with no nav etc. Again, lots to choose from so can afford to be picky.
Heated windscreen is a massive benefit. Widescreen nav decent, and at the age your looking at should have CarPlay (but check). Heated seats def help. Parking sensors - all were options. I like the HK stereo, some don't. Pan roof is a nice option.
JCW cars are quicker and have a couple of things to note - the brakes are significantly better. Day to day the S is fine but on a spirited drive they give up pretty quickly so most folk swap the pads out. Secondly, there are a lot of base spec JCW out there with no nav etc. Again, lots to choose from so can afford to be picky.
I have the pre facelift mini EV and it's a lovely little thing for city driving. It came cheap with a salary sacrifice deal through the other halfs work. Suits my lifestyle perfectly, though if you want a range of over 100 miles it can get a bit squeaky bum with the guessometer.
Quite a few of these kicking about now as the price on them absolutely tanked.
One thing I will say about the facelift model is it's not hugely popular with mini enthusiasts. It's lost a bit of something for me too. You might pick up an old stock pre facelift, which for me is a lot nicer, but thats personal choice.
Quite a few of these kicking about now as the price on them absolutely tanked.
One thing I will say about the facelift model is it's not hugely popular with mini enthusiasts. It's lost a bit of something for me too. You might pick up an old stock pre facelift, which for me is a lot nicer, but thats personal choice.
SistersofPercy said:
One thing I will say about the facelift model is it's not hugely popular with mini enthusiasts. It's lost a bit of something for me too. You might pick up an old stock pre facelift, which for me is a lot nicer, but thats personal choice.
I deliberately chose it - the pre-lci cars have more power. Gassing Station | Car Buying | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff