Mini Brand Ponders Model Proliferation, Again

BMW AG’s Mini brand may expand its lineup with new crossover models and two-door hatchbacks.

Pieter Nota, head of BMW Group sales, tells Automotive News that Mini needs more crossovers to match global shifts in consumer demand.

The trend is especially true in the U.S., where crossovers captured 38% of the light-vehicle market last year, up 11 percentage points in five years. AN notes that Mini’s largest model, the Countryman small crossover (pictured), is its best-selling model in the U.S.

The new quest for variants comes five years after Mini announced it would trim its proliferating lineup from eight models to 5 “superhero” body styles to better differentiate them. At the time, the company pointed out that the move also would cut costs and complexity.

Meanwhile, Mini sales in the U.S. skidded to 43,700 units last year from a peak of 66,500 units in 2013. Demand through the first half of 2019 plunged another 22%. AN notes that BMW has advised Mini dealers to downsize their operations to combine them with their BMW stores.

The re-expansion appears to be focused on adding models within the previously defined five body styles. Those segments include wagons, crossovers and three- and five-door hatchbacks.