► New Mini John Cooper Works on the way
► Electric and ICE versions planned
► Fresh spyshots, intel, specs and more
You’re looking at the next Mini John Cooper Works ahead of its full reveal at the Nürburgring next month. Mini has announced plans to reveal the new car at the N24 and has also furnished us with several new pictures of its forthcoming hot hatch.
Our spy photographers have already snapped prototypes of the electric version testing (it’ll be available in both ICE and EV variants) but now got these ‘official spy shots’ to examine too. The red pictures are official, while our spy photographers snapped the yellow EV prototype.
They show very little thanks to a generous amount of camo – par for the course in this sort of launch activity – but they do show a more aggressive stance than the standard car. What’s more, the prototype shown also wears a bespoke camo pattern, itself an homage to the iconic racing liveries by the brand in the 1960s.
What about the electric one?
We snapped it conducting validation testing on the public roads around Munich earlier this year.
It’s BMW’s answer to the growing band of electric hot hatchbacks gradually filtering through to market: a case of old-world thinking meeting the new-world order. Historically, performance derivatives have been seen as aspirational and a cut above mainstream models – and now manufacturers appear to be fusing the two genres together again.
Witness the dawn of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, the Abarth 500e and forthcoming Alpine 290β pocket rockets.
Mini Cooper Electric JCW: what to expect
The new Mini Cooper Electric will be revealed officially on 1 September at this autumn’s IAA car show in Munich and these spyshots reveal the fizzier JCW sporting derivative.
These spyshots reveal a butch bodykit comprising a lowered stance, pronounced front air dam and rear diffuser, side skirts and a rear spoiler comprising mini shark finlets on the rooftop to manage airflow across the car.
Look closely and lower-profile tyres and enlarged brake discs appear to be on the menu, too, signifying that this is a proper performance overhaul, not merely a styling exercise.
Specs, battery size and more
No official figures are available yet for the 2024 Mini Cooper Electric John Cooper Works (JCW), but our sources suggest a brawnier single-motor set-up will be fitted to flex the regular Cooper SE’s powertrain.
The next-generation Mini Cooper Electric comes in two battery sizes – the 54kWh offering a 250-mile range and a smaller 40kWh with a 200-mile range. Expect the larger battery in the JCW, which is tipped to drive more than 200bhp through the front axle.
We’ll update this story once we know more.