• Decent performance from Aceman SE
• Feels like a MINI Cooper to drive
• Drive mode ‘experiences’ are weird

What power options are there?

The Aceman is an electric-only product for the MINI family and is closely related to the Cooper Electric hatchback, so much so that the powertrain structure is effectively the same. All Aceman models are front-wheel drive only, and both models can be charged at up to 11kW AC and up to 95kW on a DC rapid charger.

Aceman E is your entry-level model, which features a 42.5 kWh battery pack and develops 184hp. It can accelerate to 62mph in 7.9 seconds, and MINI says the Aceman E is capable of 192 miles of range.

Step up to Aceman SE and you’ll benefit from more power and more range from a larger battery. The SE includes a 54.2kWh battery pack with a maximum range of 252 miles, a more powerful 218hp electric motor good for a 0-62mph sprint in a slightly faster 7.1 seconds.

At the top of the range sits the Aceman JCW, which uses the larger battery from the SE, but gets a more powerful electric motor with 258hp and 340Nm of torque (pulling power). It reduces the 0-62mph time to 6.4 seconds and reduces the electric range to a claimed 242 miles. The JCW’s closest rivals are the Alfa Romeo Veloce and Abarth 600e, which get a more potent 280hp and shave a further half a second off the 0-62mph time.

What’s it like to drive?

• Sharp, accurate steering
• Terrible ride from Sport model
• Agile, MINI-like handling

It’s a real mixed bag with the way the Aceman drives – with some excellent aspects and some really quite poor elements. The good news is that the small MINI SUV hasn’t lost any of the fun-to-drive elements you also benefit from with the smaller Cooper hatchback.

This is a neat and tidy car out on the road. The steering, for example, feels very accurate when you turn but it doesn’t require significant effort, either. The turning circle feels tight, too, which is good for urban streets and tight car parks. It feels small and agile, and more like a hatchback than an SUV to drive. It also stays flat even when cornering enthusiastically and you also sit quite low for a crossover-type vehicle.

Performance interestingly doesn’t feel all that quick off the mark but feels punchier at speed – different to how you’d expect a city-aimed car to perform. But once up and running it’s brisk, almost too much so for the wheels as it can torque steer and spin the wheels if you accelerate harshly in damp conditions. We hope MINI can sort this for the John Cooper Works model, though we haven’t yet got behind the wheel.

The Aceman also features the same ‘Experiences’ (or drive modes) that the electric versions of the Cooper hatchback and Countryman have. The default is ‘core’, with ‘green’ acting like an eco mode and ‘go kart’ being a sporty one. But some of the other modes are, frankly, weird; ‘balance’ mode has a persistent hum while you’re driving, like you’re sat in the middle of a yoga class, for example.

While we were impressed with the Aceman’s ride quality on the international launch, back in the UK we’ve been very disappointed by its ride, finding it to be brittle on our Sport-trimmed test car on the large 19-inch alloy wheels. It’s far too firm and feels especially unsettled at motorway speeds as it bobbles along the surface constantly and never settles down. It makes it quite hard work to do any significant distance in, and it’s also not very refined by EV standards. In fact, it’s quite noisy with lots of tyre noise especially.

However, the available range may not be that attractive. Given MINI’s claims, it makes sense to go for the Aceman SE model. But, during our tests, that claimed 252-mile range hovered closely to 200 miles. Is that enough for you? Great. But plenty of the Aceman’s rivals can do better for a similar amount of money.