Our cars
Road tripping – no stress!
Three-months in, and our Cooper SE goes on a road trip to visit its elderly relatives.
morning roads, cruise control seemed the best solution. The car chose the A1, A14, and M6 for its route, so as soon as I hit the A1, I set the limit at 70mph and let the Mini do everything but the steering and braking.
Martyn Collins
I’m a Mini fan, but I don’t just like current models like our Cooper SE – I like early cars, such as the first R50 hatch, launched in the summer of 2001. So, when the opportunity arose for a couple of tickets to catch up with friends in The Y Register, at the Lancaster Classic Car Show, the Cooper SE seemed the perfect car for the trip North to the National Exhibition Centre. Despite my previous home charger playing up, I was thankful the Mini was at 100% on the morning of our trip. This equalled 170 miles of range according to Mini’s app. With the total trip to Birmingham equalling
105 miles, I knew I’d need the public charging network on the way home, for a quick ‘splash and dash’. It was a cold, early start for a Sunday when I twisted the Cooper SE’s starter. The heated steering wheel and seat presets were welcomed by my daughter and me – although I was concerned how much these would affect the efficiency – but they quickly turned off, and the heat they gave to the faux leather trim was noticeable.
I was hoping for a bit more range after flicking to ‘Efficiency’ mode but after sending the route to the car via the app, sadly there was no change! To make the most of the range, and quiet Sunday
Still, we were able to enjoy the comfort of the sports seats, and the punchy performance of the Harman Kardon stereo that’s included in the Level 2 pack that’s fitted to our car. Two hours and no dramas later, the Cooper SE rolled into one of the NEC’s many car parks, with 66 miles left of the range, which I was a bit disappointed with. The only excuse was the weather appeared to turn the
Mini Cooper SE
P11D £38,645 Price as tested £39,220 Official range 250 miles Average consumption 4.3miles/kWh Mileage 2,250 miles
closer we got to Birmingham. With the need for windscreen wipers and lights by the time we got there. When parked next to my own R50 Cooper, the latest J01 Mini dwarfs it, but a Lamborghini Urus parked behind, makes the Cooper SE look small for once!
My daughter and I had a fun day catching up with friends, but knowing I’d need a charge, we decided to head for home mid-afternoon. After previous experience with the similar infotainment system in the BMW iX1 on a trip to Leeds around a year ago (which was mostly successful!), I sent the route again to the Mini via the app, and let it work out the trip home – including the necessary charging stop.
This time, it routed back via the M6, and the charging spot wasn’t long after we joined the motorway. The Mini’s navigation chose Corley Services, and I quickly spotted the bank of Instavolt fast chargers at the back of the car park. Thankfully there was a free one, just one tap later and the Cooper was charging – too easy!
More useful, was the app was telling me a charge to 71% in 15 minutes would be enough to get us home. It even buzzed my phone to tell me when it had reached this figure, which helpfully coincided with us finishing our warm drinks while waiting. £18 charge later, the next 80 miles home passed without problem. This was without doubt the easiest electric car trip yet. Good day, good car, more please!
Why we’re running it
To see how our 2024 ‘Business Car of the Year’ works for fleet.
52 | November/December 2024 |
www.businesscar.co.uk
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