Mini推出的首款插电混动车将基于第二代Countryman，该车很可能在车名后面增加一个字母“E”作为后缀。目前Mini还没有透露该车更多细节，但车厂表示，新车搭载的内燃机引擎将负责驱动前轮，而电机驱动后轮，从而形成全轮驱动能力。这款节能环保型Countryman启动时采用电机驱动模式，最高时速可达125公里。该车的硬件与宝马去年发布的225xe共享，包括一台1.5升三缸涡轮汽油引擎和一台电机，综合功率165千瓦/224马力，扭矩385牛米。在后排座椅下面是一台7.7千瓦时电池组，足以使225xe在纯电动模式下行驶41公里。目前还不清楚Mini Countryman混动版的性能，但共享硬件的225xe百公里加速时间6.7秒，最高时速202公里。更重要的是，宝马这款插电混动车百公里油耗仅为2.0-2.2升。电池完全充满电耗时3小时15分，如果选装快充电器，充电时间可减少1小时。预计Mini Countryman混动版的各项性能指标与225ex差不多。至于外观设计，Countryman E外观与其他版本基本一样，只是在前翼子板上增加了一个充电插口。车厢内的变化包括转速表被电量表所替代，而启停按键将采用黄色而非红色涂装。Countryman E预计将于明年上市。

2017 Mini Countryman hybrid teased
The first ever plug-in hybrid model to wear the Mini badge is going to be based on the forthcoming second-gen Countryman and will likely carry the “E” suffix. Mini isn’t sharing a lot of details about the car, but it does say the combustion engine will drive the front wheels while the electric motor is going to power the rear axle to provide the car with an all-wheel drive layout. The eco-friendly Countryman will always start in electric mode and is going to reach speeds of up to 77 mph (125 kph) without sipping even a drop of fuel.

Chances are the Countryman E will have just about the same hardware as the BMW 225xe introduced last year with a turbocharged 1.5-liter, three-cylinder gasoline engine working together with an electric motor. It should give it a combined output of 224 horsepower (165 kilowatts) and 284 pound-feet (385 Newton-meters) of torque. A 7.7-kWh battery pack is going to be installed underneath the rear seats and will have enough juice for an all-electric range that should be in the same ballpark as the 225xe’s 25 miles (41 kilometers).

There’s no word about performance just yet, but the aforementioned BMW 225xe runs to 62 mph (100 kph) in 6.7 seconds and tops out at 126 mph (202 kph). More importantly, the plug-in hybrid people carrier from Bavaria has a combined fuel consumption of 2.0 - 2.1 liters / 100 km. Charging the battery takes 3 hours and 15 minutes in the 225xe, which can also be had with an optional fast charger that reduces the charging time by an hour. Expect roughly the same numbers from the equivalent Mini.

As far as the design is concerned, the Countryman E will look just about the same as the other versions of the range, with the exception of the additional cap mounted on the front-left fender. Some changes will occur on the inside where the rev counter is going to be replaced by a power display, while the start/stop button will glow yellow instead of the usual red.

The Countryman E will likely be available from day one and should go on sale at some point in 2017.