Exclusive: The J01 MINI Cooper Electric Confirmed for US Sales

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A couple of our most reliable sources have finally confirmed what so many of us have been waiting for; the new generation of electric MINI Cooper is coming to the US. But which MINI Cooper models and when will we finally see them in the US? Let’s dive into what exactly we’ve heard from sources and what it means for North American MINI fans.

Why The New J01 MINI Cooper Electric Isn’t Already Sold In North America

The J01 MINI Cooper is built on the brand’s first ever bespoke EV architecture and represents a major leap in range, performance and technology compared to its F56 MINI Cooper SE predecessor. And as we speak it’s filtering into showrooms throughout most of the world. However the fact that it’s manufactured in China has eliminated the possibly of North America imports in the current tariff-centric atmosphere. But MINI has a solution.

Last year MINI and the UK government announced a plant expansion at the Oxford Plant in 2026 paving the way for production of the electric J01 MINI Cooper and the J05 MINI Aceman. However nothing was announced about US imports and thus far MINI has been very tight-lipped about their plans. In fact there were more than a few that assumed we wouldn’t even see this generation of electric MINIs in the US at all.

The J03 MINI Cooper Electric Convertible is our first confirmed model but we expect J01 confirmation shortly.

What Electric MINIs Are Coming to the US

Through our most reliable sources we have our first confirmed model destined for North America; the J03 MINI Cooper Convertible. While only the J03 and not the J01 Cooper hardtop? It’s simply the first we’ve been able to 100% confirm through sources. But we fully expect this is just the tip of the iceberg.

These sources tell us that the J03 will be offered in four models global; the Cooper E, Cooper SE and JCW E. North America will only get the latter two: the SE and JCW E models.

Our sources were also quick to say they expect to confirm the J01 and potentially even the J05 Aceman for North America imports soon. In fact there’s no scenario where MINI would bring a low volume car like the J03 Convertible and not the more mainstream J01 Cooper. Using that logic, the fact that we can confirm the J03 for North America means that J01 is also surely coming. Following what we know about the J03 variants coming, it’s also safe to assume we’ll see the J01 Cooper SE and JCW E and not the lower spec E model.

MINI Cooper SE North American Release Timing

Knowing the new MINI electric models won’t begin series production until early 2026, we’d expect the first North America deliveries to happen likely in the middle of the year. If we had to guess we’d look for the J01 Cooper first followed later in 2026 by the J03 Convertible.

While we do not have any information on the J05 Aceman yet, it would be safe to assume we’d see the Aceman SE and JCW E models in North America around that same time period.

We’ll have much more on the new electric MINIs coming to North America in the months ahead.

The post Exclusive: The J01 MINI Cooper Electric Confirmed for US Sales appeared first on MotoringFile.

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