Although a completely undisguised example of the upcoming MINI Cooper SE has already been spotted just a few days ago, the British carmaker isn’t stopping its teaser rollout of the all-electric model.
This video stunt depicts the Cooper SE as a “muscle” car as it takes on the role of an airplane tug at the Frankfurt airport, hauling a Lufthansa Boeing 777F cargo plane that weighs well over a hundred tonnes. Towing planes appear to be popular showcase of performance for car brands of late, as Porsche and Tesla have done in the past – Land Rover prefers road trains instead.
Aside from the show of strength, MINI is keeping mum about the Cooper SE’s specifications, but it’s likely to use a version of the BMW i3s’ powertrain, albeit adapted for front-wheel drive. Power outputs rumoured include 181 hp and 270 Nm of torque, although the size of the battery isn’t known for now – the i3s is available with 120 Ah or 60 Ah batteries.
The model is based on the on standard MINI 3 Door, and will be produced at the company’s plant in Oxford from November this year. Based on an earlier sighting, the vehicle will be styled with influence from the MINI Electric Concept that was revealed at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show.
The overall shape is familiar to those who’ve seen the current F56 generation car, although the Cooper SE gets unique styling touches like a new grille that illustrates the zero-emission powertrain, bright yellow accents and unique wheels.
This isn’t the first time MINI wanted to build an all-electric car, as there was the MINI E based on the R56 generation which was built in limited numbers – just 500 were made for private leasing. With the Cooper SE, the BMW Group will have its second mass market purely electrically powered model within its portfolio.
GALLERY: MINI Cooper SE spyshots
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Meh! In Malaysia we have people who pulls planes. Car pulling plane is nothing.
even kancil 660 auto can do this. nothing..marketing so 90s