New MINI Aceman revealed in full: baby SUV aims for style and substance

MINI has finally given us the new fully-electric MINI Aceman, a small SUV designed with the aim of filling the hole between the MINI Cooper and the MINI Countryman, while also injecting a bit more excitement into the baby SUV world. It is no easy task to compete in this segment as there is no shortage of options, with cars such as the Volvo EX30, Jeep Avenger, Vauxhall Mokka Electric and Renault Megane E-Tech all ready to compete for buyers’ affections.

MINI has always been true to its design ethos with a clear lineage back to the original Mini. The latest batch of MINI models all follow the new “charismatic simplicity” themes. As you would expect from MINI, the Aceman shares certain similarities with its siblings such as the shape of the headlights and the grill. The darkened pillars blend into the windows producing the familiar appearance of a free-standing roof. The Aceman still has its own identity, however, with an aggressive SUV flavour derived from chunky cladding down the sides in black plastic, extended wheel arches and skid plates in both bumpers.

Inside, the classic circular dial in the centre of the dashboard, that originally housed the speedo in classic Minis, has evolved into the infotainment screen on the latest cars. The Aceman gets this same unit with the 9.4-inch, ultra-thin OLED touchscreen controlling virtually everything in the car and displaying key driving information, too. 

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The car itself can be configured in eight different MINI Experience modes using a bank of toggle switches below the main screen. There are Core, Go-Kart, Green, Timeless, Trail and more settings, each with purposely designed screen graphics and ‘Driving Sounds’. As you would expect, full connectivity is available with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, as well as the new MINI virtual assistant which comes with a virtual friend on the main screen that MINI has named Spike. The interior decor has been designed to feel “homely” with the MINI Aceman using special vegan leather material called Vescin, knitted fabric and recycled polyester. 

Measuring up at around 4 metres long and 1.75 metres across with a 5-seat layout, the car is a very similar size to rivals such as the Vauxhall Mokka Electric and the Jeep Avenger. At 300 litres, it does have less boot space than either of those, however, 10 litres less than the Mokka and a massive 55 litres less than the Avenger. When the seats are fully folded down in the MINI Aceman you do get 1,005 litres, but that is still 55 litres less than the Mokka and 48 litres less than the Avenger in the same configuration.

The MINI Aceman platform is shared with the MINI Cooper electric, with the E model being the entry point of the range. This model has a quoted range of 192 miles from its 42.5kWh battery and plenty of poke with 0-62mph in 7.9 seconds, 181bhp and 290Nm of torque. It’s over a second faster from 0-62mph than the Jeep Avenger which takes 9 seconds. 

But if you are wanting a bit more fun in your Aceman you could go for the top model, the SE. This gets a more powerful 215bhp, 330Nm, motor powered by a larger 54.2kWh battery which knocks 0.8 seconds off your 0-62mph time. That configuration is enough for an official range of 252 miles.

Even the top-of-the-range MINI Aceman is short on the Volvo EX30’s official range of 296 miles. MINI has said that both models will be capable of topping up from 10-80 per-cent in under 30 minutes on rapid chargers while the charging speeds will be 75kW for the entry level E and 90kW for the SE.

With order books opening on 12 June, pricing for the Aceman starts at £31,220 for the E and £35,720 for the SE. As you’d expect with a MINI, there’s various option packs that will bump up these numbers, starting with the Classic, and going up to Exclusive and Sport.