Launched last year in electric SE form, the MINI Countryman has since spawned a petrol version, the Countryman S, priced at the same RM258,888. It’s rare that the combustion-engined and EV versions of the same car are on such equal footing, and it’s rarer still that we’ve driven both versions, so we’ll see which is better in this review. The S you see here is actually the second to be offered in Malaysia, now CKD locally assembled and costing a whopping RM90,000 less than last year’s CBU model. One casualty of the lower price is that the 48-volt mild hybrid system, which normally adds 20 PS and 55 Nm, has been jettisoned – seemingly having an effect on the car’s performance, as you’ll find out. Besides that, however, motive power remains the same – the venerable B48 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder continues to produce 204 PS from 5,000 to 6,500 rpm and 300 Nm of torque between 1,500 and 4,000 rpm. All that is routed to all four wheels through a seven-speed wet dual-clutch transmission. Spec-wise, the S is comparable to the SE, both in range-topping Favoured trim with adaptive LED headlights, 20-inch Windmill Spoke alloy wheels, customisable lighting signatures, powered John Cooper Works sports seats wrapped in Vecsin faux leather, a knitted fabric dashboard, a 9.4-inch OLED circular infotainment display, a head-up display, a 360-degree camera, Harman Kardon audio and the Driving Assistant package. Same price and specs, but equipped with a vastly different powertrain – the petrol S may be the more logical choice for most Malaysians, but is it better overall than the electric SE? Watch yours truly’s review of the car in the video below.
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