But the BMW Group-owned brand is expanding its industrial footprint beyond the shores of Great Britain. Mini will build the next-generation Countryman in Germany, and the automaker will team up with Great Wall Motor Co. to build EVs in China.
The addition of North American output would help lift brand awareness and cost competitiveness in the world’s second-largest auto market.
While the drumbeat for North American production grows louder, a spokesperson said Mini hasn’t decided on localizing output.
But BMW Group’s recent multibillion investment in North American EV production and the Biden administration’s push to incentivize EV and battery manufacturing might help pave Mini’s way.
The small car maker’s ambitions to expand beyond its niche status in the U.S. also fuels the case for regional production. Mini is reorienting its portfolio toward larger crossover-style models that Americans prefer.
“Over the next handful of years, we will have all the right products in place, which allows us to get on this growth trajectory,” Peyton said. “So that starts to say, ‘Why have we never talked about any localized production opportunities?’ ”
The future product lineup includes crossover-type models tuned to American tastes.
Mini teased the China-made subcompact crossover in the Aceman, a four-door concept with short overhangs that maximize interior roominess in a compact exterior footprint.
A small electric crossover “ticks all the boxes,” Wurst said. “It is what we thought was missing in the range.”
John Secondo, general manager of Mall of Georgia Mini in Buford, Ga., said an electric subcompact crossover, which would fit below Mini’s volume Countryman, would expand consumer consideration for the urban brand in the U.S.
“A diverse and robust product line helps bring customers into showrooms,” Secondo said. “As Mini goes all-electric, we anticipate a future of EV models across more segments.”
