Mini has shown camouflaged images of its new Countryman crossover SUV ahead of production starting later this year.
The third-generation Countryman will be offered with a choice of petrol engine and all-electric battery power.
Notably, the 2023 Countryman also becomes the first Mini to be built in Germany.
with love from leipzig
Previous versions of the Mini Countryman were built around the world, including factories in Austria, India and the Netherlands. However, so far, no Mini has been produced in Germany.
BMW has chosen its Leipzig plant in Saxony to build the next-generation Countryman, which the company says is one of the most environmentally sustainable.
The Countryman will be produced alongside the BMW 1 Series Hatchback, 2 Series Gran Coupe and 2 Series Active Tourer. As such, it also marks the first time that Mini and BMW models have been produced side-by-side.
The electric version of the Countryman will use batteries produced at the Leipzig plant. BMW has invested more than 800 million euros (£709 million) in the factory’s capacity to make components for electric vehicles and will hire an additional 1,000 people by 2024.
Currently, Leipzig employs 5,600 workers and produces up to 1,000 vehicles a day.
factory powered by i3 batteries
Electricity is also at the heart of daily operations in Leipzig thanks to four 190-meter-high wind turbines. Together, they will generate nearly 22GWh in 2021: equivalent to the energy consumption of 5,000 three-person households.
This energy is harvested in a storage field of 700 high-voltage batteries, the same as those in the BMW i3 electric car.
According to plant director Petra Peterhaensel, the Leipzig plant is “the first automotive plant in the world to use newly developed burner technology in our paint shop, which enables the use of green hydrogen instead of natural gas”.
“Hydrogen has been used in factory logistics since 2013. Today, five hydrogen refueling stations power more than 130 fuel cell-powered industrial trucks, the largest fleet in Germany.”
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