Kalie's Tesla Replacement: Cheapest New EV You Can Buy - 700+ Mile Road Trip in 2022 MINI Cooper SE!

Branden's Porsche is sold, so clearly it was time for Kalie to get a new car so Branden can drive the VW ID.4 everyday. With Kalie being a prior MINI owner and having spent (and loved) a few months with another MINI Cooper SE (all electric!), it only made sense that Kalie gets one for herself! We looked for months to find the right one and finally found one in Florida...one minor "problem"...we live in Charlotte, NC! Well, being the EV Nomads that we are, flying down to pick it up and then road trip it 700+ miles back to NC was clearly the easiest solution! Join us for many Electrify America stops, our thoughts on the 2022 refresh, camera-based adaptive cruise control and the typical road trip shenanigans you've come to expect from Branden & Kalie.
Tesla to J1772 adapter: amzn.to/2MSaIrp
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Drone footage shot with DJI Mavic Air 2, other footage on Sony A7 siii or iPhone 12 Pro Max and all editing done in Final Cut Pro on Apple M1 MacBook Air.
Any inquiries contact at [e-mail]
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Here are some of the products that we use on the road and in the making of videos. Check them out with the links below and it helps support the creation of future content.
DJI Mavic Mini: amzn.to/3dZ9c2i
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Best phone mount: amzn.to/2XXhoKV
Tablet mount: amzn.to/3cXT7Jd
Segway (newer version): amzn.to/37p8CbP
Portable SSD (great for Sentry mode and dash cam): amzn.to/30BBdt3
GoPro: amzn.to/3dXZX2l
Dash cam: amzn.to/2XXOdaG
Radar detector: amzn.to/30CSMJ6
12V air compressor: amzn.to/2MSLid5
Tesla to J1772 adapter: amzn.to/2MSaIrp
Martian Wheels: rwrd.io/gjvrpho?c
Tesla Referral Link - 1000 Free Miles of Supercharging: ts.la/branden56429
TeslaFi Referral Link - 30 day trial instead of 14 day: www.teslafi.com/signup.php?re...
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[@kccrusoe4956]

OMG!!!! Long videos again :) love the channel name change as well. Keep going y’all I’m enjoying the channel.

[@Annette_Hons]

I feel the same way about the Beetle! I've owned 2 and I can't wait for an electric version, so in the meantime, I just ordered and AWD ID4! Keep up the great work guys, love you videos!

[@aaronchambers2866]

every time im watching these videos im like "Hmmm i wonder at which point I posted to FB asking what car they got" Lol. waiting to hear the new msg sound great video as also, nice to see new cars. this is one i didnt look into at all so it was all new content to me.

[@papacos4745]

I would love to own the mini se. I have a round trip of 50 miles a day 5 days a week to work. So I would just charge on 120 outlet over night. My wife has a 2012 Mini Cooper s which is a blast to drive. Enjoy your new car and great review ✌️

[@mitchellbarnow1709]

What an awesome trip in a beautiful EV, by the wonderful couple, Kalie and Branden!

[@brandenflasch]

Thank you!

[@carolyngauthier]

Obsessed 🤩. Love this video!!! Again, video with your Mini SE please!! 🙏🏻 Cheers from Montreal Canada 😄

[@williamrutkowski]

I'm really considering Mini Cooper SE. Thanks for sharing your road trip.

[@bruceshick9559]

I’m a big fan of your videos, with their real world perspective! As a soon-to-become new SE owner (first EV), I’d really appreciate your doing a video on all the notable quirks you should understand to make your SE experience as fun as possible. Most of my road tripping will be in New England, where the backroads are where the fun is. The Mini is a perfect car for driving the backroads.

[@n8ndrwz]

Great video! I am sure you guys have figured out by now, but the powertrain is similar to the BMW i3, thus when charging you have to go into the infotainment system and check off a toggle box to activate comfort climate control to get A/C working while sitting still. This is what happens when you initiate it from the app as well :) Great video, and awesome car!

[@justicepool]

Love the Mini! We still have a 2018 BMW i3Rex in the family. The EPA is very accurate on the BMW electric drivetrain. Enjoy the Mini!

[@PedroBrandaodrums]

You guys drove by my house lol I’m in Boca Raton I’m planning to do the same exactly trip to Charlotte appreciate the video helps me a lot in regards of the charging. Great video.

[@anad44]

We leased a Leaf in 2012. Technology has really improved since then. I’ve wanted a Mini for years still talking my wife into it.

[@kabob21]

Y'all are brave roadtripping a car so far with an EV with only a ~140-150 mi range. I thought about doing like you and buying a Cooper SE out of state (had one optioned like I wanted in Miami) but I just couldn't do such a long trip back to Texas. Wound up just ordering one to my spec at my local dealership and put down a reservation deposit. Fingers crossed it arrives before February 2022.

[@brandenflasch]

We were open to finding one essentially anywhere east of roughly St Louis, though there were definitely some areas that would’ve been more tricky to road trip from with such short range. Glad it ended up being in Florida and we could travel on the well-covered (in charging) I-95 corridor

[@danielfries6994]

Thank you for creating this informative Mini SE video. My son is about to add to our EV family by placing an order for his first car ( 2023 Mini SE) and you were able to answer some of our charging questions with the video. 👍🏼

[@brandenflasch]

Glad it was helpful!

[@erolcoulson9194]

I'm getting a mini cooper s electric great video. 👍

[@darrenbush4491]

Great video guys we are waiting for our new Mini Cooper SE we get it in March next year,We do have a Cooper S petrol it will be interesting To compare the tow cars so we will have two Minis,lucky our drive to our garage to collect the car is only approximately 12 miles. We are in Nottinghamshire in the UK.

[@king-crane4956]

Would you be able to do some cost analysis for what you spent on charging vs the cost of gas for your area? WSJ just did an article this week about cost comparison for charging in various state’s vs the cost of gas and was pretty interesting to see the regional differences.

[@jasonshortphd]

Nice color! And the smile on her face was awesome. The range is scary for distance, but great for daily driving.

[@brandenflasch]

It was actually quite easy for distance - I find range is a pretty minimal concern on trips since you’re just hopping charger to charger anyway

[@E_Static]

That Moonwalk gray with the black roof is a great color combination. Being in NC I would prefer a white roof to keep it cooler in the summer heat. If I didn’t already own a Model 3 I would seriously consider an electric mini. The base model is a bargain at $30k with the $7500 federal tax credit. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[@kabob21]

It doesn't really make a difference what color roof you get when you have the panoramic roof as most of the top is glass, anyway.

[@clementmussotte6384]

Great video! This Mini is impressive!

[@brandenflasch]

It really is!

[@apzausa]

Great epic trip. I lost count, how many times did you charge?

[@Ummmmmkay88]

Nice choice! Congrats!

[@remmie1972]

Hi guys, great video. Regarding the climate control when charging, when you switch off the car, there is a message on the center screen. It has a checkbox with something like "climatise now" or "activate climate". Then the AC will come on, just like via the app. I think I saw the message on one of of the charging stops footage ;) happy motoring.

[@remmie1972]

at 42.11 : the message is "activate climate comfort now" :)

[@brandenflasch]

Interesting… strange that turning the car on doesn’t turn it on though 🤷‍♂️ seems pretty counter intuitive and could be frustrating for a lot of people.

[@ra65c83]

Also if you miss this screen at shut down, you can access the “comfort climate” anytime in the MINI settings screen.

[@keithhall2593]

I'm in the Charlotte area and curious about the CLT airport parking. Was that in one of the daily parking decks near the terminal and is it first come/first serve, stay as long as your trip?

[@brandenflasch]

We did the hourly ramp since we were only gone for 2ish days… with online advanced registration it was about $50 for 3 days and the charging was a $5 flat fee. An Uber/Lyft probably would’ve been ~$35+ so this was worth the convenience especially since it was a 7am flight and we had to be there so early to begin with

[@BTinHD]

Enjoyed your vid. When you use your own charging cables, do people steal them when you walk away from your car? If so, how do you prevent that?

[@ravitoday]

The charging adapter is locked when you lock the car on some car models. Don't know about Mini though

[@timoliver8940]

Just taken delivery of a 2022MY British Racing Green U.K. spec Level 3 and love it, when are we going to see more videos of Kalie’s Mini?

[@brandenflasch]

Congrats! What kind of videos would you like to see?

[@jag2944]

Congratulations on your new car

[@JellyFish1965]

I love the mini. I would have considered getting one but the range is too low for me.

[@Thisistrulyoddtv_Mark]

Hate when people call them cheap EV £30,000 + isn’t cheap by no means it’s Avery nice car but I don’t personally like the black wheels I prefer chrome alloys

[@tooflesstesla]

Great transition from your Tesla Model S(es!) to your two new EVs. I like the 2022 Mini as a daily driver! At 42:30, is there a seatbelt warning light? 😇

[@brandenflasch]

There is… I’m actually not sure why it’s not going off in that clip. The seatbelt chime is actually pretty obnoxious 😂

[@jeepsandevs486]

I bet the car won't let you turn it on while it's charging, my Honda clarity does not let you turn it on while it's charging. nice job using that free id4 charging on the mini!

[@brandenflasch]

It’s certainly strange that the AC doesn’t come on when you turn it “on” while charging, but if you turn on climate from the app while charging, it does.

[@Paul-if1jq]

Great Colour and combo, I wish the battery did a few more miles

[@timshephard]

Does the car route you from charger to charger like a Tesla? Does the Apple CarPlay do it?

[@brandenflasch]

It does not - we just winged it since we’re pretty confident in our own route planning abilities. We did check ABetterRoutePlanner just to make sure it was doable, but their calculations were extremely conservative and we beat their arrival battery SoC estimate every time.

[@latca]

In many ICE cars turning the ignition one time gets you fan but no A/C. A/C being available only after turning on the engine. Maybe the Mini retained that from its ICE cousins.

[@Lifeofpye314]

I was hoping y’all would stop in Brunswick. Does the car plan your charging stops for you or is that something you do manually? What’s the best practice? I don’t have an EV yet but making the change soon I hope!

[@brandenflasch]

We essentially hopped from Electrify America station to station, but we scoped out the route with A Better Route Planner. No built in route planner on the Cooper SE and it’s not needed for most people buying a short range EV like this

[@gc641]

Wow with Tesla converter cable that changes the whole game, I just ordered my mini and more hopeful now to take it on a road trip,

[@brandenflasch]

Just to be clear - the adapter I used doesn’t allow you to use Superchargers, but even just having the ability to use Tesla destination chargers is very helpful.

[@gc641]

@@brandenflasch are you able to charge at a reasonable time though?

[@brandenflasch]

Same as using J1772.

[@gc641]

@@brandenflasch thank you

[@samuelpacheco37]

I'm so happy for you guys I got the 2020 version the first model that came out and love it to this day. By the way your car could go 130 to 140 miles on one charge on normal setting ywith no problem Even after it hits 0 miles which is not recommended but I've done it I've driven 25 miles after 0 miles and the car never died on me. Which it almost a 2 hour drive. In other words it gives you a lot more than 95 to 105 miles on the display.

[@brandenflasch]

With my experience in EVs, I would not recommending pushing your luck past 0%… usually you can only do that when your battery is out of balance and the car doesn’t realize the energy remaining.

[@samuelpacheco37]

@@brandenflasch good to know

[@E_Static]

Good advice about not driving the battery life to zero. That's not good for battery health in the long term. Sadly, people who do this routinely will experience increased battery degradation, then complain that EV batteries "suck" without admitting they abused it.

[@Goliath7781]

We just bought a 2021 mini se and love it. With more charging stations range won’t be a big issue. We got white silver with the white top and yellow mirrors . We are trying to find black mirror caps and possibly wrap the roof in black. Do you know what time a good estimate may be on the roof rack? Also looking at buying the Tesla to j1772 adapter to use when on the road and f we need to hit destination chargers. Any info on this would be great. Thanks

[@Goliath7781]

Roof wrap*

[@brandenflasch]

Hi! Congrats on the new car! $2-300 would be pretty reasonable for a roof and mirror wrap at a shop, though you may be able to find someone to do it for less. I actually have a whole video about the Tesla to J1772 adapter that I made recently - I demonstrate with my VW ID.4, but it works on the Cooper SE as well.

[@Goliath7781]

@@brandenflasch we saw it and are going to order. Thanks

[@brandenflasch]

Glad to help!

[@Crazypostman]

that's a cool car!

[@brandenflasch]

We certainly dig it!

[@abbaby555]

If you scroll thru to the last menu you'll find where to use the HVAC while charging

[@brandenflasch]

Last of which menus?

[@kccrusoe4956]

Also it would’ve been fun to see you road trip the ID4 there and back, but I understand that would’ve been a lot of editing.

[@brandenflasch]

We considered it, but $60 flights were hard to pass up for the time savings

[@davidws5439]

You two will be a big test, going from the Tesla Superchargers network with the ease of use - plug and charge to CCS1 stations and using a phone with lots of different apps. I would never drop to that small of a battery (42 kw bare minimum for me) even for a "City Car". There should be lot more of new CCS1 and Tesla stations coming on line so that will help with that very small battery. Brandon & Kalie where are your id4 road trips.?

[@brandenflasch]

How did you determine 42kWh as your minimum capacity? That seems oddly specific. EA charging is quite easy - you can do tap and charge with NFC / Apple Wallet, but swipe to charge in the EA app seems faster and you can see live statuses this way before you start charging. You only need to use the EA app. ID.4 road trips are coming… a few planned!

[@davidws5439]

@@brandenflasch 42 kw, is what a model of the leafs had and you can still buy today.. I did a road trip with a friend that had one and it seemed to be about the smallest size I would want road trip with. But your trip just showed us that a smaller one can do trips but nothing I would want to do. Too, it's plan is to be a city car and that it should do very good.

[@brandenflasch]

@@davidws5439 those are limited to 50kW, right? I believe charge speed is a far larger factor than battery capacity. If the Cooper SE had even 80-100kW DCFC, that would make a very significant difference in charge times

[@BruceDowns]

Hi, I really enjoyed the video of your trip and experience with charging. I currently drive a 2008 mini cooper and I'm strongly considering the 2022 mini SE. Did you calculate the charging cost of your 700 mile trip? Also since you've had a car for a while, how many miles are you averaging for your daily driving? And what options or trim packages do you recommend as a daily driver car? My round daily drive for work is 70 miles. Thanks.

[@brandenflasch]

I probably wouldn’t recommend such a short range car with a 70 mile commute.

[@-DDD-]

@@brandenflasch Disagree - That is round trip and he could easily do it.

[@brandenflasch]

In a mild climate, sure, but that would be using nearly the entire battery for just commuting.

[@-DDD-]

@@brandenflasch Not really, that is only about 2/3s of available miles and is exactly what the Mini EV is designed for.

[@brandenflasch]

I personally think a car like the ID.4 would be better suited for that. Better driver assist as well,

[@wtmke1ify]

Hey Charlotte. Woo-hoo. I'm not to far from yall.

[@Goliath7781]

Hi just a few questions re: road tripping in our mini. We will be going from Tx to Kentucky soon and I am concerned about range loss in the cold. Do you think it’s possible and what is the best way to road trip in an ev? Normally in an ice vehicle we just gas up and go. I have a better route planner and there are a lot of electrify America’s along our route and also level 2 for bailout options. Just nervous as we have never roadtripped more than a few hundred miles in the mini se. Got rid of both ices and have two short range evs. But the mini is efficient so thinking it’s doable. Thanks for any info.

[@brandenflasch]

Where in Texas and where in Kentucky? In cold, I’d be nervous for stretches more than ~80 miles in a Cooper SE.

[@brandenflasch]

That looks very dicey. Probably not a trip I would do in the winter in an SE.

[@Goliath7781]

@@brandenflasch thanks for the feedback.

[@brandenflasch]

@@Goliath7781 wish I had better news

[@Goliath7781]

You were right. We probably wouldn’t have made it in the mini. We ended renting a model 3 long range and it was awesome. Thanks for the advice.

[@rafmanansala1]

How many miles did you guys get before you had to charge again?

[@brandenflasch]

Basically going from EA station to EA station - some are a bit over 100 miles apart, some closer. Ideally would do about 80 miles between chargers if possible.

[@rafmanansala1]

@@brandenflasch thank you... you guys are awesome 👍

[@AnotherSimpleDayinUS]

Can you use id4 free 3 years account to charge your mini se?

[@brandenflasch]

😉😉

[@AnotherSimpleDayinUS]

@@brandenflasch enjoy your 50mins video! Better than short video!

[@brandenflasch]

Glad you enjoy! There are more Tesla road trip videos in the pipeline still also

[@RegularEVDad]

Great video - your journey to the CCS side is complete !!!

[@brandenflasch]

Still need to road trip the ID.4 to make it complete!

[@Chrisb8s]

Here in Arizona, if you have SRP electric there is a $1000 rebate for electric cars.

[@brandenflasch]

Is that new?

[@davidws5439]

Did you think about getting a model 3 standard range 🤔. ?

[@brandenflasch]

It was a consideration and we may have gone with one if we were buying now with the now readily available LFP SR+, but they’re still about $10k more with tax credit factored in.

[@davidws5439]

@@brandenflasch thanks for the reply 👍.

[@superliegebeest544]

Dont have anything against or for the mini, but for me.that would be a perfect car, I only do around 30 miles a day. Most days maby halve that. Just work shopping groceries visits a couple people thats it. For road trip ive got a diesel. To bad every car with a plug is to expencive for.me to buy.

[@Samp1eTech]

What was your average charging cost?

[@robotJox1256]

I soooo want one. But thinking i would be so screwed if i would get into a car collision.

[@brandenflasch]

Why?

[@robotJox1256]

@@brandenflasch Minis are the smallest vehicles on the road and because if this i suppose would sustain more damage in an accident with say a truck or suv. Its simple physics. Its more dangerous being in one is what im trying to say.

[@brandenflasch]

That is not even remotely correct

[@robotJox1256]

@@brandenflasch I really hope so!

[@robotJox1256]

F = m*a Force is mass times acceleration. The bigger vehicle produces more force and is generally better off in a collision with a smaller force producer ( mini)

[@arthdenton]

Seriously, you should try OMAD (one meal a day) and cut down on processed foods as much as possible. I've been doing OMAD for 2 years now. It took me about 3 months to 'lose' about 40 lbs and reach my exact, ideal weight and it's been staying there ever since. Life is good now.

[@betzy7560]

Not sustainable

[@arthdenton]

@@betzy7560 It works for me. Over 2 years now. I do OMAD every day and, twice a month I do 0MAD (i.e. zero-MAD). It's perfect. I also exercise 2 days on, one day off. I eat very much what I want and how much I want, within reason, of course. I hope it helps someone.

[@davidws5439]

Brandon, it's not like charging a Tesla. You know how much nicer the Teslas supercharger network is, much better than EA. 43 minutes in and it does look like your making it fine with the small battery and EA charging. It may be a blessing that you both had older & shower charging Teslas or you would really be feeling the pain 😕. I have a Tesla M3DM 😎 and love it. I have a 2022 Y that should arrive any day now. I also have a Tri motor Cybertruck on order but about 240,000 out to get it!

[@brandenflasch]

Tesla Superchargers are great, but EA is pretty solid too. The Supercharger advantage is dwindling with how many CCS stations are going up and how many Teslas are being pumped out and crowding superchargers.

[@davidws5439]

@@brandenflasch I have never been to a full supercharger yet in three years but, Tesla is selling everything they can make.

[@brandenflasch]

@@davidws5439 Many stations need more stalls than they have and become bottlenecks on heavy travel days.

[@davidws5439]

@@brandenflasch Ture, I also think when Tesla opens it's chargers to CCS1 cars, Tesla will also have a CCS1 to Tesla Adapter similar to your Setec adapter but with 150 kw output. So some Teslas will be on the CCS1 networks and should help them grow. I'm in Oklahoma City and we have about 250 charge sites in the state, they report it is higher than California but not too EV'S here yet!

[@brandenflasch]

@@davidws5439 that would be very useful for Tesla owners

[@mauricetaylor742]

I like it too.....loves beautiful...Moe

[@FoamyDave]

Tour de Walmart