Seeing This Mini Coasting Over Water Will Have You Question Reality

What we’re here to discuss today is called Mini Mare, and it is a Mini-inspired outboard motor boat that looks so much like the real thing it might have you question reality, and the British carmaker scrambling to find the engineer behind the conversion. Only it’s not a conversion we're looking at, but a boat designed and soon to be built from the ground up to look like the Minis of old.

The thing is a four-seater, and unlike the Fiat 500 boats, it is a hardtop. It’s this approach that makes it look like a real car that somehow manages to move over water without sinking. That, and the fact that the steering wheel on this one is correctly placed on the right side.

As per the specs provided by Floating Motors, the Mini Mare is 4.2 meters long (13 feet, significantly longer than the standard MINI hatch we get on the roads today) and 1.8 meters wide (6 feet). It has a draft of 600 mm, a total height of 2.2 meters (7.2 feet, including the submerged bits), and tips the scale at 850 kg (1,500 lbs, dry weight).

Just as is the case with the La Dolce, the Mini Mare is offered with two powertrain configurations. The first relies on a couple of Mercury MerCruiser engines that develop a combined 140 hp, making this thing the most potent in the Floating Motors range. The engines can push the cuddly contraption to a top speed of 35 knots, the same as in the case of the La Dolce.

The starting price for this model, as listed at the time of writing, is $40,000, and the company requires a $5,000 deposit when placing the order. Delivery time is estimated at about eight months.

The second and last Mini Mare version is the one powered by a couple of Torqeedo electric motors. They’re of the same variant as the single one deployed on the La Dolce, and develop a combined 40 hp of power, but come with a boost function that can take that output to 50 hp. The top speed on this one is rated at 32 knots, but we are not being given any info on range.

The electric Mini Mare sells from $65,000, and the down payment when ordering one is double, standing at $10,000. The delivery time is the same, meaning eight months.

Floating Motors does not provide details on what extras and options are available for the boat, but the one it’s showing on the official website is all MINI, with the telltale red, stripes, and Union Jack up on the roof.

That’s probably the version we’ll get to see most often, provided the company really makes it and starts producing these things. Floating Motors does not say how many orders it received so far for these models, or when production is slotted to begin.

For various sums, one can get involved in the production of these boats, without ordering one. You could, for instance, make a $1,000 donation and become a supporter (with a variety of perks in case you decide to turn into a client), or $35,000 to become a dealer, or even $50,000 to be considered a shareholder.