Mini is delaying electric vehicle production at its U.K. plant, which could further delay U.S. sales of both a redesigned electric Cooper hatchback and the Aceman, a new nameplate being sold only as an EV.
Both models are currently built in China and were due to be added at Mini’s Oxford, England, plant next year. But Autocar reported Friday the U.K.-made Mini EVs are delayed “for an unspecified period of time,” citing Mini parent BMW.
“Given the multiple uncertainties facing the automotive industry, the BMW Group is currently reviewing the timing for reintroducing battery-electric Mini production in Oxford,” a BMW spokesperson told Autocar.
2025 Mini Cooper electric hatch
Mini has already spent more than 600 million British pounds (approximately $758 million at current exchange rates) to ready the Oxford assembly plant and a nearby body plant in Swindon for EV production. The automaker confirmed to Autocar that it’s returning a related government grant.
Mini confirmed last November that a decision on whether to sell these electric models in the U.S. was being delayed. That left the door open for one or both models to reach the U.S. eventually, but that’s likely dependent on U.K. production. China-produced versions of the Mini Cooper and Aceman are likely non-starters for the U.S. due to steep tariffs. Mini did start taking orders for the Countryman SE ALL4 electric crossover last year.
Already on sale in Europe, the current-generation Mini Cooper EV was unveiled alongside the Countryman SE ALL4 at the 2023 Munich auto show, promising more range than the 114 EPA miles of the outgoing Mini Cooper SE. Gasoline versions of the current-generation Cooper are being sold in the U.S. as 2025 models.
The Aceman crossover, sized between Cooper and Countryman, was unveiled in early 2024. That’s smaller than the Hyundai Kona Electric or Volvo EX30, which has made it a long shot for the U.S. all along.
Mini aims to go all-electric by 2030, and it has also shown sportier John Cooper Works (JCW) versions of some of its recent EVs. But a delay in U.K. production will likely further push back the introduction of them to the U.S.
