The world’s first MINI Cooper SE built for racing is entering its third competitive season, proving that electric race cars can be just as tough as those with combustion engines. It has a busy schedule up ahead in 2023 as it will be competing in approximately 15 races in no fewer than five championships. Since its debut at the Poiana Brașov Hillclimb Race in 2021, it has taken part in more than 30 events.
Dubbed MIMI, the zero-emission race car has been fully developed in Romania where it took its first championship points last year. Driver Andrei Barbu managed to reach the top 10 and score points in the National Hill Climb Championship. With Horia Platona behind the wheel, the purpose-built Cooper SE reached the podium in the two-wheel-drive class National Super Rally Championship. Not only that, but it also dominated the under-250-horsepower class in the National Championship of Electric Vehicles.
For 2023, MIMI is gaining the “EVO” suffix to reflect updates that have been implemented to make it even more competitive. After making improvements to the Drexler limited-slip differential last year, Engage Engineering has worked on the software. The electric race car has already had its race debut finishing 24th (out of 37) at the Râșnov Trophy last month as part of the Hill Climb Masters Championship.
May is off to a strong start as the MIMI EVO will compete this weekend in the first stage of the National Electric Vehicle Championship, which will take place at CTP Park Bucharest-Pitesti. In the following weekend, Horia Platona will race the bespoke EV in the Super Rally season in the Mangalia race scheduled for May 13. It will be joined by a new electric MINI race car developed by the same Engage Engineering for an independent project led by Sebastian Șerban.
Eventually, but inevitably, electric race cars will become the norm. The MIMI EVO wants to be ahead of the game and will get more competitive in time with subsequent improvements made on both the hardware and software sides.
Source: MINI
