Compare the2023 Hyundai Kona ElectricVS 2023 MINI Cooper SE

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Hyundai Kona Electric are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Cooper SE doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Kona Electric are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Kona Electric has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Kona Electric’s blind spot warning system uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer a system to reveal objects in the driver’s blind spots.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kona Electric’s standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Kona Electric and the Cooper SE have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

The Hyundai Kona Electric weighs 572 to 693 pounds more than the MINI Cooper SE. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts. Crosswinds also affect lighter cars more.

For its top level performance in all IIHS frontal, side, rear impact and roof-crush tests, and its standard front crash prevention system, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Kona Electric the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2017, a rating granted to only 234 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Cooper SE has not been tested, yet.

The Kona Electric comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Cooper SE’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Kona Electric 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Cooper SE. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Cooper SE ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 8 times as many Hyundai dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Kona Electric’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 25 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked 11th.

The Kona Electric’s electric motor produces 20 more horsepower (201 vs. 181) and 92 lbs.-ft. more torque (291 vs. 199) than the Cooper SE’s electric motor.

On the EPA test cycle the Kona Electric gets better mileage than the Cooper SE (134 city/106 hwy vs. 119 city/100 hwy MPGe).

The Kona Electric can travel longer on a full charge than the Cooper SE (258 miles vs. 114 miles).

The Kona Electric has a standard locking charge port with a remote release located convenient to the driver. The Cooper SE doesn’t have a locking charge port. A locking charge port prevents tampering and damage.

For better stopping power the Kona Electric’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Cooper SE:

For better traction, the Kona Electric has larger tires than the Cooper SE (215/55R17 vs. 195/55R16). The Kona Electric’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Cooper SE (215/55R17 vs. 205/45R17).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Kona Electric has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Cooper SE.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Kona Electric’s wheelbase is 4.2 inches longer than on the Cooper SE (102.4 inches vs. 98.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Kona Electric is 3.2 inches wider in the front and 3.2 inches wider in the rear than on the Cooper SE.

The Kona Electric’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (54% to 46%) than the Cooper SE’s (58.1% to 41.9%). This gives the Kona Electric more stable handling and braking.

The design of the Hyundai Kona Electric amounts to more than styling. The Kona Electric has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .28 Cd. That is lower than the Cooper SE (.3) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Kona Electric get better fuel mileage.

The Kona Electric has standard seating for 5 passengers; the Cooper SE can only carry 4.

The Kona Electric has 12.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Cooper SE (92.4 vs. 80.3).

The Kona Electric has .1 inches more front legroom, 4.9 inches more front shoulder room, .8 inches more rear headroom, 2.6 inches more rear legroom and 6.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cooper SE.

The Kona Electric’s standard power windows have a locking feature to keep children in the rear seat from operating them, but the driver can still raise and lower all of them with the lock engaged. MINI does not offer a locking feature on the Cooper SE’s standard power windows.

While driving with high beams on, sensitive light sensors standard on the Kona Electric Limited detect other vehicles which could be blinded and automatically switch to low beams. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer automatic dimming high beams.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Kona Electric Limited keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Kona Electric has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

For greater rear passenger comfort, the Kona Electric has standard rear heat vents to keep rear occupants more comfortable. The Cooper SE doesn’t offer rear vents.

The Kona was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2019. The Cooper SE has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.