Electromobility is conquering city traffic. And the new MINI Cooper SE (combined fuel consumption: 0.0 l/100 km; combined electricity consumption: 16.8 – 14.8 kWh/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 0 g/km) will finally allow the driving fun so typical of the brand to be experienced with local zero-emission mobility in urban environments. MINI ELECTRIC is raising the profile of sustainable mobility at the market launch for the all-electric model of the British premium brand in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon. The charisma emanating from electric mobility is being symbolised in a very special way using powerful searchlights connected to public charging stations in the city as their impressive cones of light are directed into the night sky. The light show is projecting a very clear message: There’s no shortage of charging points. MINI ELECTRIC is showing the route to them and highlighting their availability: The ideal time has now come to transfer to local emission-free mobility.
The location for the spectacular show put on by MINI ELECTRIC was selected with care. The European Commission has selected Lisbon as the “Green Capital of Europe 2020”. The metropolis on the Atlantic coast has qualified for the award with a large number of initiatives on improving environmental conditions and the quality of life in the city. A total of more than 500 public charging points gives Lisbon one of the world’s densest networks for supplying electricity to electric vehicles. And the city authority is becoming increasingly committed to local emission-free mobility. 39 percent of the municipal fleet is already made up of electric vehicles.
The event is being staged by MINI ELECTRIC in cooperation with Lisbon’s city authority and it is concentrated on the inner city and three urban districts along the Atlantic coast. It quite literally highlights the sheer density of the network of charging points and thereby demonstrates the excellent conditions for electric driving. The light cones projected into the sky by the searchlights signal that drivers of electrically powered automobiles are able to charge the high-voltage battery installed in their vehicle at virtually every street corner. The light show was designed in close collaboration with the Portuguese air-safety authorities so as to exclude any impacts on air traffic.
Lisbon is being transformed into a beacon for many cities where significant progress has recently been achieved in the expansion of the charging infrastructure. Across Europe there is now a network of more than 170 000 public charging points for electric vehicles. Parallel development is seeing battery-cell technology achieving a steady increase in range. As a consequence, the new MINI Cooper SE benefits from specific technology designed into the model in the form of a high-voltage battery located low in the floor of the vehicle and configured to deliver a range of between 235 and 270 kilometres. The car offers exactly the same space for passengers and baggage as the conventionally powered MINI 3-door automobile.
Meanwhile, the driving fun offered in the new MINI Cooper SE is absolutely unique, delivered by an electric motor packing 135 kW/184 hp and generating spontaneous development of power. It can accelerate from zero to 60 km/h in 3.9 seconds and sprints to 100 km/h in just 7.3 seconds. And there’s no delay when the high-voltage battery is being charged up. The charger for the new MINI Cooper SE allows direct-current quick-charging stations to be used along with a refresher of the energy reserves with power of up to 50 kW. This means that the high-voltage battery can be charged to 80 percent of total capacity within just 35 minutes.
