The car was revealed recently but left many wanting more, not just because it only had a small battery, but also due to the design.
Turning a conventional car into an EV is fine as long as you're not going after the lifestyle groups and offer a decent battery. Kia and Hyundai are probably the best examples of a job well done. However, more is expected of MINI.
After all, the original model was probably the most influential car of the last century, changing the way most modern cars are "packaged" to make the most of their size. But the Cooper SE has been put together the other way around, stuffing new components in a platform that's been developed for a completely different job.
We get it; MINI needed to sell an EV immediately, just like everybody else. But after seeing the finished $30,000 car, we wondered what it would have looked like if it had been designed from scratch.
Sean Keunyoung, a student from the Korean National University of Art, put digital pen to digital paper and created this piece of art. It proves that there's still plenty of ways to reinvent the car, and maybe automakers should give up on their conservative ways once in a while.
Anyway, the study is referred to as the MINI Tomboy a couple of times, and that's what we'll call it. Many of its proportions differ from the Cooper SE, though it's still instantly recognizable as a MINI.
The designer has kept the large, rounded hood design but paired it with halo-like headlights. Its grill is only a hint of its former self, while the back is one big Union Jack that lights up. The minimal overhangs and tight two-seater layout are indicative of a racing EV, though excessive use of glass, the Korean artist manages to give it an airy feel.
And let's be honest here, anything that's as funky and overpriced as a MINI needs to go electric, Clubman or Countryman included.
