Ordered a 2022 Iconic, silver/white with white roof (for the tropical sun) about 6 weeks ago, still shows as 'Scheduled for Production' status. I'm concerned the chip shortage is slowing or stopping production at the Oxford plant. I am new to forum but not new to BMW or EV's - I had a Nissan Leaf for 4 years. It had about a 70 mile range (including the 2500' climb to my house) but only required charging away from my garage once in 4 years. I think of ev's as big smartphones, use all day and plug in when you get home -- then leave the house with a full tank of electricity. I think Mini has nailed it in the SE, no giant/expensive/heavy/long-charging battery but still enough range to handle urban and everyday needs. For me it appears to be a perfect second car.
Did you get to test-drive a MINI Cooper SE? Compared to an elderly Leaf, it will be a huge upgrade in fun (and, in this rare instance, even an upgrade in range). You'll enjoy the SE's power on the climb to your home in the sky.
Did you happen to buy an outrigger from a guy in Eva Beach a few years ago? He drove his leaf over there and had to find a family member to recharge... stuck in my memory. (congrats on the order BTW)
Congrats on your order! While the Leaf is a fine car, the Mini is just so much fun to drive by comparison. I hope you enjoy it when it arrives
Completely agree! Some reviewers really fail to grasp how a large 250 mile battery would ruin the dynamic of the Mini. The engineers really found a great balance. I love the car more and more every day. Range is a total non-issue. 7.6 kW charging on a 28 kWh (usable) battery is also incredibly fast. That's 20% per hour on AC. You're going to love it
+1 to ^ this - and if you can find a DC fast charger, the 0-80% in 36min makes any trip of range a non-issue.
Thanks everyone for the enthusiastic support! Now I have to practice my patience. Has anyone heard if the Oxford plant is still constrained by the chip shortage?
No, I've driven Mini's before but the SE is rare here so far. Buying without trying is always an adventure but I think the marriage of a Mini chassis and an I3S electric drive is just a natural -- and an extraordinary value since development costs are minimized and both are well sorted. The SE is a drivers' EV.
Also in Hawaii. Estimated production completion date on mine, according to Ask-MINI anyway, recently changed from June 2 to June 7. Maybe there's a small slowdown at the plant? Or they ran out of white roofs?
Online reports that Oxford closed for 3 days near the end of April due to chip shortage but little else about current situation. When did you submit your order? Mine was about 6 weeks ago. Long trip from Oxford to Hawaii!
We ordered two weeks ago (May 15). Status went to "in production" which means almost in production pretty fast after that. Just found this post, which may or may not be accurate, that says the chip shortage has made them miss 8 out of the last 16 work days at the MINI plant in Oxford. https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news/2219193-semiconductor-stoppages-to-continue-in-2h-carmakers
Thanks for that update, looks like the different chips in different models make for differing delays. I just need to be patient, not one of my strengths! Hope yours is shipped promptly and gets to Hawaii soon.
My completion date went from May 31st to June 4th to June 8th. I asked my dealer about the delays, but he didn’t have much information to offer other than, yeah, there’s a chip shortage. Oh, and he said he’s been told it’s especially problematic for the SEs in comparison to the ICE models.
Automobile News Europe reported in an April 25 article entitled "BMW, Mini output hit by global chip shortage -- Output will be paused at plants in UK & Germany". Unfortunately, the full text of the article is behind an Automobile News paywall, so I can't see any details of this that may be reported in the article. But the headline certainly gives credence to Mini production delays for this reason.
The SE is my second car, but I would not say secondary. It is my primary car - I only drive the Bolt when I need more seats or longer range.
To those who don't consider the SE to be a valid primary car I ask, "Which vehicle in your garage would you choose first for most of your excursions, the MINI Cooper SE, the Ford F-150, or the Ferrari?"
My SE is secondary only to road trips at the moment, as well as trips requiring hauling a lot of stuff. So that is what I meant using the term. But it is my main car all the time except for those instances.
The SE is my primary car. We have a second car, but this is my around town car. I do offer it to my husband now and then but I rarely drive his.
As the EV manufacturers like to point out, most drivers do about 22-24 miles per day. That's a task for which the Mini SE is excellent. The champion of long distance drives is still a dinosaur-burner although the Tesla network of superchargers is getting close to practical.