Mini E – Electric Car Trial Results

In December 2009 The BMW group launched a trial to see how electric cars performed in the real world. They did this by producing the Mini E test vehicle, 40 of which were handed to a mixture of fleet drivers and private buyers in the UK to test over 6 month periods. The test was run in 2 batches with the final experiment coming to an end in March 2011. Tests were also conducted in Beijing, Berlin, on the east and west coasts of the USA, Munich, Paris, Shenzhen and Tokyo.

Between the 138 drivers of the UK electric minis 33,345 journeys were made clocking up 258,105 miles between them.

The main findings included:

• Four out of five people reported 80% of their trips could be made in the Mini E
• Average single trip was 9.5 miles
• Average daily distance was 29.7 miles
• Average range was 90 miles
• Average cost to recharge was 2p per mile
• On average drivers recharged 2.9 times per week
• A staggering 96% said they would now consider buying an electric car, with a third saying they would consider doing so within the next year.