Pour one out for the MINI Clubman as a result of the six-door contraption is formally no extra. The ultimate instance of the quirky wagon with its barn doorways has been assembled at Plant Oxford. Since sitting beneath the BMW Group’s company umbrella, MINI made 550,00 items of the fashionable Clubman. The R55 technology was offered from 2007 till 2014 when it made means for the F54.

The unique Clubman is way older than that, having been launched in 1969. In whole, greater than 1.1 million autos have been inbuilt 55 years and exported to over 50 international locations worldwide. The mannequin’s demise was predictable since MINI launched a Closing Version in 2023 as a final hurrah for a small automotive with an enormous character.

A direct substitute isn’t deliberate as a result of the Clubman was by no means an enormous business success for the BMW Group. As a substitute, MINI is launching the Aceman this 12 months as a five-door crossover variant of the brand new electrical Cooper three-door hatchback. The brand new mannequin will turn into the model’s first EV-only mannequin and shall be initially produced in China by Highlight Automotive – a 50:50 three way partnership between the BMW Group and Nice Wall Motor.

Come 2026, Plant Oxford will kick off manufacturing of the Aceman but in addition of the second-generation Cooper E/SE electrical hatch. The crossover’s world premiere is scheduled to happen on April 24. Initially, the mannequin is not going to be offered in america for the reason that automobiles constructed on the Zhangjiagang manufacturing facility in Jiangsu Province usually are not destined for the US. Nonetheless, that may change in 2026 when the Aceman will start to roll off the meeting line in Oxford.

Whereas it’s unhappy to see a automotive with character being changed by one more crossover, the individuals have spoken, and so they need EVs and SUVs, which the Aceman is each. If the Clubman had been well-liked, it might nonetheless be right here. From round 2030, MINI will solely promote electrical autos, so the Clubman is one in every of a number of ICE automobiles to get the proverbial axe till the top of the last decade.

Supply: MINI