The BMW MINI E is one of the most exciting and head turning electric car concepts and now it is being put to the test thanks to a partnership between BMW and the University of California at Davis.
The research will focus on user interactions with the MINI E and is expected to provide insight into real-life usage and perception of electric vehicles. It will gather in-depth information from 50 voluntary participants through online diaries, written questionnaires and a series of interviews.
Studies will be led by the UC Davis Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle Research Centre, which is administered by the Institute of Transportation Studies and is funded by a three-year, $3million grant from the California Energy Commission’s Public Interest Energy Research Programme.
Dr Tom Turrentine, the director of UC Davis’ PHEV Research Centre, described the study as “an exciting opportunity to talk with users about their daily experience of the cars”.
US field trials of the MINI E are already under way for two months, with BMW gathering data from the 450 MINI E drivers. The vehicles are now in daily operation in New York, New Jersey and Los Angeles after residential charging stations were installed into the garages of MINI E drivers. The vehicle reportedly has a 100 mile range on a single charge.
