2017 MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid teased ahead of launch

Ahead of the debut of the new 2017 MINI Countryman, MINI tease the new version of their biggest model with a new hybrid plug-in Countryman.

We’ve known for some time that the new MINI Countryman would launch in 2016 (especially as MINI has stopped building the current Countryman), we’re just a bit surprised it didn’t make it to the Paris Show for a reeval. But perhaps that tells us more about the lure of Motor Shows in this digital age than MINI’s intent?

So despite missing from the Paris SHow, it seems highly likely the 2017 MINI Countryman will be revealed before the end of 2016, especially after this – a tease for the 2017 MINI Countryman Plug-in Hybrid.

MINI’s first ever plug-in hybrid, this even bigger MINI Countryman is essentially a BMW 225xe with a MINI skin and interior and will, offer much of what the BMW does but in arguably funkier clothes.

That means the same back-to-front BMW i8 layout, with a 1.5 litre three-cylinder petrol engine up front driving the front wheels and an electric motor at the back driving the back axle, with the 134bhp and 87bhp respectively adding up to an output of 221bhp (and 284lb/ft of torque).

Performance is likely to be similar to the BMW too, which will mean the plug-in Countryman is quicker to 62mph (6.7 seconds) than the current Countryman Cooper S, and with official economy of 140mpg and an EV only range of 25 miles. In the real world that will be more like 50mpg and 15 miles, but still appealing.

With the 2017 MINI Countryman now officially being teased, you can expect more – and a full reveal – to follow before long.