Mini Countryman Sephev

FIRST DRIVE Behind the wheel of MINI’s first-ever plug-in hybrid model

- Lawrence Allan

JUST because a car maker relies on retro design to sell its products, it doesn’t mean it can pass off old parts and dated technology underneath the skin.

The new MINI Countryman S E is anything but old. You might not guess it from the clunky name, but it’s the first plug-in hybrid MINI ever, and yet another model from the brand that’s likely to cause a stir among enthusiasts of the original fifties Mini.

We can gloss over that, though, as this car isn’t targeted at those purists. It’s a family-sized MINI with a three-cylinder engine and electric motor that together produce 221bhp. Yet despite the power, this SUV promises up to 134mpg – and it’s difficult not to be intrigued by that. We’re driving the petrol-electric Countryman for the first time in Spain, to see if it’s as good on the road as it looks on the spec sheet.

The Countryman S E uses the same powertrain as the plug-in BMW 2 Series Active Tourer. That means a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine paired with a rear-mounted electric motor, so the Cooper S E can hit 0-62mph in 6.8 seconds – four-tenths faster than a Cooper S.