Earlier this year, we tried out the new Mini Countryman and came away impressed. The little crossover combined the driving feel of its smaller siblings with practicality like usable back seats and better cargo capacity. The one we really wanted to try—the Cooper S E Countryman ALL4 plug-in hybrid EV version—wasn't available back in March, but it is now. It remains a quirky and engaging drive when internal combustion and electromechanical systems are working in harmony, but the small battery means you do have to plug it in at every opportunity for that to happen.

The bits that make it go

Under the hood the Cooper S E Countryman ALL4 (henceforth known as the hybrid Mini) uses the same engine as the standard Countryman Cooper. The 1.5L 134hp (100kW), 162lb-ft (220Nm) three-cylinder turbocharged engine now just drives the front wheels via a six-speed Steptronic (automatic) transmission. The rear axle is now driven by an 89hp (65kW), 122lb-ft (165Nm) electric motor, instead of the mechanical Haldex-style system you would find in a conventionally powered all-wheel-drive Mini. The setup is closely related to the one we liked so much in the BMW i8, although a more accurate comparison would be with the Europe-only BMW 2-Series Active Tourer (that's all but identical).

Together with the 7.6kWh lithium-ion battery, the hybrid Mini is about 200lbs heavier than a Cooper S Countryman ALL4. (Curb weight is 3,825lbs/1,735kg.) But with a combined output of 221hp (165hp), and more importantly a combined torque figure of 283lb-ft (385Nm), it's quite a bit more potent: zero to 62mph (100km/h) takes 6.8 seconds compared to 7.4 seconds for the four-cylinder gasoline-powered car. On city streets it's a highly effective powertrain, but it rarely gives you full power or torque from both sources of propulsion at once. That depends on the precise combination of drive modes.

Like other Minis, you can choose between a Sport and Green setting at the base of the gear lever, remapping the accelerator and gearbox. In Sport it's more precise and holds on to gears longer; in Green the response is much more relaxed, and it will coast more readily. But a toggle switch on the center stack controls other functions.

Auto eDrive relies on electricity alone below 49mph (80km/h), with the internal combustion engine joining in at higher speeds or in response to a floored throttle. Max eDrive will rely on battery power up to 77mph (125km/h), and there's a Save function that keeps the engine running all the time, using spare power to charge the battery to 90 percent and keeping it there. The ICE will also run constantly if the lithium-ion cells get below seven percent (at which point Max eDrive is no longer available).

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin



Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin



Jonathan Gitlin

Needs more battery

As I mentioned in the intro, when everything is working together, it's a very effective system. The EPA gives it a combined 65MPGe, which is a lot better than the 24mpg combined for the four-cylinder Countryman. But the small battery capacity is problematic unless you plug it in at every possible opportunity. (Empty-to-full will take a little over three hours with a 240v supply.) With just 7.6kWh, the hybrid Mini has just 12 miles (19.3km) of EV range, so even if you start every day with a fresh charge the battery will probably be drained come evening.

You really notice when it's empty and relying on conventional power. Gone is the silence and effortless wave of torque that makes electric power such a great way to drive around a city. Instead, there's steady background noise and vibration as the engine does its thing. It's not that it's particularly bad at NVH, and you probably wouldn't complain about it if you were driving the $26,100, front-wheel drive Cooper Countryman. But a hybrid Mini with an empty battery is both a lot more expensive—it starts at $36,800—and a good 800lbs (360kg) heavier.

However, as it's a Cooper S, the hybrid Mini is better-equipped than the cheapest Countryman, and on gasoline alone we actually managed about 29MPG, two miles per gallon better than the EPA predicted we'd get. (For a description of the Countryman's other features, we refer you to our March write-up.)

A battery EV Mini is now in the works, but it won't arrive in showrooms for another two years and will be based on the three-door regular Mini body style rather than the titchy SUV. So In the meantime, the PHEV Cooper S E Countryman ALL4 is the only game in town if you need an eco-friendly Mini or a small PHEV crossover. Of course, options like the current Chevrolet Volt are at a similar price with more than double the kWh (which also means a much bigger IRS tax credit)...