Photo: MINI
Betting on the fact the MINI convertible “has a large and particularly loyal fan base,” the brand’s owner BMW decided to indulge these fans some more and announced it would keep making this variant of the small city car, at least until the end of this decade, if we are to read between the lines.
Born in 2004, this body style has endured through some of the toughest times the industry had to face. And that’s an important testimony to how faithful the mentioned fan base is, given how MINI as a whole is a niche carmaker and the convertible an even more so product.
A quick look at the sales numbers for the convertible might make some believe they don’t seem to back such a decision, though, as in the U.S., the car is struggling up and above the 5,000 units sold per year mark ever since 2011. Others see in this not “just 5,000 units sold per year,” but rather “a constant 5,000 units sold per year,” and throw in the fact that about 20 percent of all new MINIs sold are convertibles.
BMW seems to be part of this latter group, and today announced it is planning a new convertible variant, one that should be unveiled in 2025. Because it is so far off into the future, there are, of course, no other details on it.
That doesn’t stop us from speculating. Given MINI’s commitment to becoming a pure electric carmaker over the next decade, it’s probably safe to say the 2025 MINI convertible (and by extension the entire next-gen MINI range) will come as an EV as well. And, if no one else comes up with something similar in the meantime, that would mean we're going to get the first-ever, proper convertible MINI electric car.
But there’s a long time to go until then, and the Brits are fresh on the market with the new generation of the convertible, so let’s enjoy this one a bit for now.
A quick look at the sales numbers for the convertible might make some believe they don’t seem to back such a decision, though, as in the U.S., the car is struggling up and above the 5,000 units sold per year mark ever since 2011. Others see in this not “just 5,000 units sold per year,” but rather “a constant 5,000 units sold per year,” and throw in the fact that about 20 percent of all new MINIs sold are convertibles.
BMW seems to be part of this latter group, and today announced it is planning a new convertible variant, one that should be unveiled in 2025. Because it is so far off into the future, there are, of course, no other details on it.
That doesn’t stop us from speculating. Given MINI’s commitment to becoming a pure electric carmaker over the next decade, it’s probably safe to say the 2025 MINI convertible (and by extension the entire next-gen MINI range) will come as an EV as well. And, if no one else comes up with something similar in the meantime, that would mean we're going to get the first-ever, proper convertible MINI electric car.
But there’s a long time to go until then, and the Brits are fresh on the market with the new generation of the convertible, so let’s enjoy this one a bit for now.
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