OXFORD - With many countries around the world, particularly in Europe, expected to ban petrol and diesel cars between 2030 and 2040, a number of carmakers have signalled their intention to go electric only. These include Jaguar, Volvo and Ford’s European division, with many more no doubt set to follow.
And now Mini has become the latest car nameplate to announce an all-electric future. The BMW-owned brand says it intends to offer a fully-electric line-up by the early 2030s.
But here’s the scary part for fans of traditional, fume-producing cars - Mini says it will launch its last combustion-engined vehicle in 2025, after which all new model introductions will be electric-only. Mini expects battery cars to account for at least half of its sales by 2027, three years ahead of parent company BMW’s own brand.
Mini has already launched its first fully electric car, the Mini Cooper SE which is currently also on sale in South Africa, priced from R658 000 and offering a claimed range of around 217km between charges.
Next up will be the new-generation Mini Countryman which is set to debut in 2023 in both electric and combustion engined variants.
“Mini is set to play a pioneering role going forward, as the urban brand is absolutely ideal for electric mobility,” BMW said at its annual media conference, which was held this week.
“It will therefore be introducing its very last new combustion engine model as early as 2025 and launch only fully electric models from that point onwards.”
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