2021 Mini Countryman PHEV review

Small car specialist Mini is ramping up its efforts in the electrified vehicle space, having recently added a battery electric vehicle to its plug-in hybrid offering.

Now the Countryman PHEV has been updated, bringing more EV range and additional features, including a digital instrument cluster.

The new LED tail lights also incorporate a union jack motif to really ram home the British heritage.

Value

It’s easy to be baffled by the Mini range, so let’s start there. There are four main models: three-door hatch (with a convertible option), five-door hatch, Countryman and Clubman). As the name hints at, the Countryman has aspirations of tackling dirt roads, while the Clubman (with a similar elongated five-door body) is more city slicker, complete with classic Mini ‘barn doors’ at the rear.

Within those model ranges are three broad equipment levels: Classic, S and JCW, the latter bringing sporty tinges and more power.

With the Countryman PHEV it’s only available with that basic Classic equipment pack, albeit with a Signature model that brings leather trim, among other tweaks.

Deep breath… now into the nitty gritty.

As mentioned, there are two models, the Classic ($60,900) and Classic Signature ($66,200). That represents a $3700 price increase from a couple of years ago. And the PHEV brings a price premium of about 15 percent over the 2.0-litre engine versions.

Both get parking sensors front and rear, dual-zone ventilation, smart key entry, speed sign recognition and auto braking. There are also 18-inch alloy wheels, although our car had optional 19s. Another option fitted to ours was a Harman Kardon sound system, which doubled the regular number of speakers to 12.

An 8.8-inch touchscreen is housed in the circle that dominates the dash (and harks back to the central speedos of Minis from decades ago).

There’s wireless phone charging, wireless Apple CarPlay (but no Android Auto) and digital radio tuning.

For that extra $5300 the Signature replaces fake leather with the real stuff.

Inside

It may be a Mini, but the Countryman is anything but small. The five-door compact SUV is the largest thing to come out of a Mini showroom.

It’s longer and wider than a Suzuki Vitara or Nissan Juke, for example, and only marginally shorter than the Kia Niro Electric.

Head room is generous in the cabin, at least up front.

The back seats are slightly higher than those in other Countrymans, a result of batteries beneath. It’s fine for kids but taller adults will be less convinced.

Rear leg room, too, is more tailored to the smaller in society, at least if those up front are utilising their maximum sprawling space.

At 405 litres, the boot is 10 percent smaller than other Countrymans due to its slightly higher floor, again due to batteries underneath.

But there’s a useful 40/20/40 rear seat split-fold configuration that allows easier packaging of bulky luggage.

In true Mini fashion the cabin has lashings of retro flair, from circular themes throughout and toggle switches in the dash.

At the same time there’s plenty of modern thinking, including striped ambient lighting across the dashboard. It’s nicely integrated into the dash, giving a high tech tinge to the retro-infused dash.

A giant circle dominates the dashboard, reminiscent of the central speedo of original Minis. It’s no longer a speedo, instead housing an 8.8-inch touchscreen. There’s also a collection of hard buttons in the centre console to allow quick darting between the home screen and main menu items such as audio or navigation. It takes some time to work out when it’s best to touch the screen and when it’s best to hit a physical button.

Performance and efficiency

The raw numbers of the Mini look impressive on paper. The combined output of the hybrid system is 162kW, most of which comes from the petrol engine.

That petrol engine is a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo with 100kW and 220Nm and it drives through a six-speed automatic transmission.

The electric motor makes 65kW and 165Nm and drives through a single-speed reduction gear.

The two power sources look after different ends of the vehicle, combining to provide all-wheel drive, or All4, as Mini markets it.

The petrol engine only drives the front wheels, while the e-motor drives only the rear wheels, computers figuring out when to provide punch, at what end and how much. But short story is, if you floor the throttle it’s the petrol engine doing most of the work.

The outputs of the electric motor means it’s no firecracker when running alone. Initial acceleration is lethargic, in part because of the weight of the petrol engine that’s always part of the deal. It’ll generally meander along with traffic, a kickdown point on the throttle alerting you not to push further or you’ll wake the petrol engine.

Of course, if you want that full 162kW that’s exactly what you’ll have to do. And the Countryman is relatively swift, hitting 100km/h in 6.8 seconds.

Some of that punch comes from the e-Boost function, which adds the electric motor’s 65kW/165Nm to the petrol engine’s 100kW/220Nm for an extra kick when your right foot is pressed to the floor.

But drain the battery and the e-Boost function is no longer available, reverting the Countryman PHEV to a front-drive, petrol-powered Mini that’s carrying a fair bit of weight. Fortunately the hybrid functionality builds some charge back into the battery quickly enough, bringing back full power.

As for fuel use, the official claim is 2.4 litres per 100km, but that’s only if you plan on driving to the government fuel efficiency test criteria. In other words, it’ll never happen.

Drive it in the real world and things are very different.

Driving purely on electricity we found it was good for about 40-45km. That’s a step up from the circa-25km of the previous Countryman PHEV. It represents electricity consumption of about 19kWh/100km, which is more than many similarly sized EVs (the weight of the ICE system would no doubt have plenty to do with that).

Drive beyond that 40-45km limit – or call on more power – and you’ll likely use 6.5 litres per 100km or more as the petrol engine does all the work, albeit with a hybrid system regenerating electricity where possible.

Charging

Battery capacity for the Countryman has risen from 7.6kWh to 9.6kWh, which is what takes that range to as much as 45km.

Charging is done only via an AC plug located up front on the passenger side and it takes about four hours from a regular powerpoint or about half that if using a wallbox charger at up to 22kW.

Ride and handling

Mini has long marketed the fun driving characteristics of its cars. And while the size of the Countryman and weight of the PHEV system means it doesn’t have the chuckability of a Mini Hatch, there’s still plenty of that Mini flavour.

Key to it is fairly sharp steering, so when you aim the nose it faithfully follows the course. It’s sharp and accurate, too, adding to that sense of control.

There’s no hiding the weight, something that makes itself known when you step up the pace. Even on grippy 19-inch tyres they’ll raise the white flag if you push too hard in a hairpin.

The tuning is towards the firmer side for a small car, something designed to step up that fun factor. But it also takes its toll on everyday comfort, with the Countryman PHEV picking up plenty from the road surface.

Talking point

There are subtle reminders of Old Blighty occasionally within the Countryman, from the Union Jack pattern in the tail lights and various British inspired trims and colours. Even some of the alloy wheels – like the optional British Spokes – have some Union Jack hints.

Safety

The Countryman gets six airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection and speed sign recognition. There’s also an emergency call button, which can automatically contact a service centre or emergency services in the event of a crash to provide location data.

Verdict

The PHEV version of the Countryman does its best work with some charge in the battery and in hybrid mode, at which point it can provide maximum power or revert to just electricity. While EV performance is leisurely, it’ll generally maintain pace with city traffic, providing plenty of electric car benefits along the way. Don’t expect the same when the battery is drained, though, the longer range running the biggest benefit.

Make/Model specifications

Price: $60,900 (Classic), $66,200 (Signature)

Basics: PHEV, 5 seats, 5 doors, compact SUV, AWD

Range: 40-45km (realistic EV range)

Battery capacity: 9.6kWh

Battery warranty: 8 years/100,000km (no gaurantee relating to how much of the original charge is remaining)

Energy consumption: 19kWh/100km (on test)

Drivetrain: 1.5-litre 3-cylinder turbo (100kW/220Nm), rear electic motor (65kW/165Nm), combined 162kW peak

AC charging: 22kW, Type 2 plug

DC charging: NA

0-100km/h: 6.8 seconds