As the BMW Group prepares its sixth-generation (Gen6) 800-volt electric vehicle architecture, this will be for “all vehicle segments,” the manufacturer has stated, which will include future MINI models.
BMW claims that the Gen6 eDrive technology will bring 30% faster charging and 30% more battery range, and certain models underpinned by this architecture could achieve even larger improvements. Gen6 eDrive technology will debut in the Neue Klasse this year, and it will eventually power all models in BMW’s fully electric product range, it said.
At present, the current MINI Cooper SE and MINI Aceman are based on a platform built in conjunction with Great Wall Motor, and both MINI models are powered by a single motor driving the front wheels.
As the platform for the upcoming Neue Klasse model is configured so that, while configurable, the primary, electrically excited synchronous motor (EESM) for the Gen6 powertrain is located on the rear axle, where the drive unit, power electronics and transmission are located. A second, more compact asynchronous motor (ASM) without a gearbox will be specified on the front axle for all-wheel-drive variants, according to BMW.
According to an Autocar report, BMW Group engineers said that the manufacturer currently has no plans to develop the EESM for use on the front axle, while the smaller ASM will be used on the front axle. This is because a rear-drive setup is “better for dynamics,” BMW Group engineers were quoted as saying.
Would this latest development in the group’s electric powertrain and architecture layouts mean that MINI models would no longer be front-wheel-drive? “We will see what the future is,” BMW board member for purchasing and supply Joachim Post said.
Future models from the British brand will “always have Mini-ness,” Post said. “What is the best, the optimum for the package? We want to make one thing feasible: sheer driving pleasure,” he said. Future changes to the base architecture of MINI models will be some way in the making, as the current models were introduced relatively recently, such as the J01 in the third quarter of 2023.
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