We also find that the Aceman has almost too many drive modes to mention, but you’ll rarely need to delve deeper than the usual Core, Green and Go Kart settings – the latter replicating a traditional ‘sport’ mode. Which you choose has an effect on a number of parameters – from motor response to steering weight, as well as the sound the car makes. The raciest of these isn’t what you’d call conventional; the almost sci-fi-like sound crescendos in a pleasing enough way, and changes tone if you push the accelerator pedal past a certain point. It doesn’t attempt to replicate an old-school petrol engine like the Abarth 500e does, but it still offers a level of engagement missing in many rivals.
Performance, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed
Kicking things off is the Aceman E, and it’s certainly no slouch with 181bhp and 290Nm. In our experience, it picks up instantly, with a strong surge of power all the way up to our national speed limit; 0-62mph takes only 7.9 seconds.
The Aceman SE offers plenty of power through the ‘rev’ range. It’ll do 0-62mph in just 7.1 seconds, and we can’t see many needing to step up to the full-fat JCW. If you do, though, it’ll trim this time even further to 6.4 seconds if you utilise the ‘Boost’ paddle behind the steering wheel, unlocking the full 254bhp. Most of the time, the Aceman JCW produces 227bhp.
| Model | Power | 0-60mph | Top speed |
| E 42.5kWh | 181bhp | 7.9 seconds | 99mph |
| SE 54.2kWh | 215bhp | 7.1 seconds | 105mph |
| JCW 54.2kWh | 227bhp (254bhp in Boost mode) | 6.4 seconds | 124mph |
Town driving, visibility and parking
Lively performance, great brake pedal feel and quick steering all make the Aceman an ideal companion for driving around town. Unfortunately, this is all undone by the unnecessarily stiff ride comfort. It’s no firmer than the smaller Cooper Electric, but it seems slightly more forgivable in that car, because practicality is not such a consideration – family cars don’t need to ride like this.
B-road driving and handling
For a long time, MINI has promoted its ‘go kart handling’ characteristics with firm suspension set-ups that minimise body roll. While that almost works on a 10-year-old MINI Cooper S that weighs not much more than a tonne, on the 1,800kg-plus Aceman, it only really gives a thin veneer of fun, which is promptly undone, thanks to the car’s hard ride. The weight is masked by overly sensitive steering, which points the Aceman’s nose at a corner with plenty of enthusiasm, but with little in the way of feel or feedback. There are few cars in this class that could cover ground so effectively, but the MINI still isn’t particularly thrilling.
Motorway driving and long-distance comfort
Even at high speeds, the suspension never fully settles down, but otherwise the Aceman’s impressive stability and performance make it a solid long-distance cruiser. There’s a little wind noise at motorway speeds, but no worse than rivals’.
The bigger battery adds to the cost, but the Aceman is at least competitive in this class
Pros |
|
Cons |
|
All Acemans use a single electric motor mounted to the front axle, with the base ‘E’ model featuring a 42.5Wh battery for up to 192 miles of range, while the punchier ‘SE’ and John Cooper Works models feature a more powerful motor and a larger capacity 54.2kWh battery, and do 251 and 221 miles to a charge, respectively.
