Another model goes down in history: Mini Clubman leaves the assembly line

The place of the station wagon at the plant in Oxford will be taken by the upcoming all-electric new product, which will be called Aceman.

Owned by the Bavarian company BMW, the British brand Mini first showed the current Clubman station wagon 17 years ago: the model debuted in 2007 as one of the modifications of the Mini Cooper. At the same time, the current second generation Clubman debuted in 2015, it also has an all-wheel drive version with the addition of All4 to the name, and it underwent an update in 2019. Earlier, there were rumors in the media that the company could develop a new generation of this five-door, but last fall it became known that it was decided to retire the station wagon.

Now it has become known that the Mini Clubman has left the assembly line of the plant in Oxford (UK). In total, the company produced over 1.1 million copies. However, recently the demand for the model has not pleased the management of the brand, as previously stated by the head of the Mini brand, Stephanie Wurst. Therefore, it was decided to “leave the station wagon behind”: in September 2023, only new generations of the Cooper three-door hatchback and the Countryman SUV debuted.

It is known that a partial replacement for the retired Mini Clubman will be the new subcompact crossover Mini Aceman. As Kolesa.ru reported earlier, its premiere will take place in April of this year, during the Beijing Motor Show. This new product will go on sale towards the end of 2024.

So far, the company is only preparing for the imminent premiere of Aceman and is publishing official photographs of a camouflaged prototype during tests. It is known that the overall length of the future SUV will be 4075 mm, width – 1754 mm, and height – 1495 mm. The salon is designed for five passengers. The company also reported that the new product will receive a battery with a capacity of 54.2 kWh, which is also equipped with the Cooper SE hatchback.

At first, the Mini Aceman will be produced only in China at the facilities of a joint venture between the BMW Group and Great Wall Motor (GWM) – Spotlight Automotive. The plant is located in Zhangjiagang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. Later, in 2026, production of this “electric train” will be established at the historic Mini plant in Oxford, and electric versions of the Cooper will be installed on the same conveyor. In the near future, this site will undergo a large-scale reconstruction.

In the photo: Mini Aceman prototype 1/3 < img src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/b0d3a4df249ddf38b70834dce4557a9f.jpg" /> Pictured: Mini Aceman 2/3 prototype In the photo: Mini Aceman 3/3 prototype

According to preliminary data, the cost of the basic version of Mini Aceman on the home market, in the UK, will be about 32 thousand pounds sterling (equivalent to approximately 3.65 million rubles at the current exchange rate). According to the official website of the brand, the current Mini Clubman can now be bought here for no less than 27,440 pounds sterling (about 3.13 million rubles).

So far, the brand is maintaining the appearance of the Mini Aceman subcompact crossover in secret. The other day, Kolesa.ru designer Nikita Chuiko suggested what this new product would look like. We will find out in the coming spring whether the artist’s assumptions coincided with reality.