2021 MINI Cooper
Electric Gas Compact car
The 2021 MINI Cooper is sold in the U.S. as a electric and gas compact car with 13 EPA-rated configurations. Its longest-range version, the Cooper SE Hardtop 2 door, is EPA-rated at 110 miles with 108 MPGe combined efficiency. NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of B. Owners have filed 7 complaints, most often about electrical system.
Specs & fuel economy (EPA)
| Configuration | Powertrain | Drive | Engine / motor | City | Hwy | Comb | Range | kWh/100mi | Charge (240V) | Annual fuel* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cooper SE Hardtop 2 door | Electric | FWD | 135 kW DCPM | 115 | 100 | 108 MPGe | 110 mi | 31.3 | 4 h | $700 |
| Cooper Convertible | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 28 | 37 | 31 | — | — | — | $2,500 |
| Cooper Hardtop 2 door | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 28 | 37 | 31 | — | — | — | $2,500 |
| Cooper Hardtop 4 door | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 28 | 37 | 31 | — | — | — | $2,500 |
| Cooper Convertible | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 26 | 37 | 30 | — | — | — | $2,600 |
| Cooper Hardtop 2 door | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 26 | 37 | 30 | — | — | — | $2,600 |
| Cooper Hardtop 4 door | Gas | FWD | 1.5L 3-cyl turbo | 26 | 37 | 30 | — | — | — | $2,600 |
| Cooper S Hardtop 2 door | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 26 | 35 | 30 | — | — | — | $2,600 |
| Cooper S Hardtop 4 door | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 26 | 35 | 30 | — | — | — | $2,600 |
| Cooper S Convertible | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 26 | 34 | 29 | — | — | — | $2,650 |
| Cooper S Hardtop 2 door | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 23 | 33 | 27 | — | — | — | $2,850 |
| Cooper S Hardtop 4 door | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 23 | 33 | 27 | — | — | — | $2,850 |
| Cooper S Convertible | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 23 | 32 | 26 | — | — | — | $3,000 |
*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.
Out of factory warranty soon?
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Recalls (2)
Seat Belts
highProblem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2021 2 Series (230i, 230i xDrive, M240i, M240i xDrive), 330e, 330e Xdrive, 4 Series Coupe (430i, 430i xDrive, M440i xDrive) M4 Coupe, M4 Competition Coupe, BMW 4 Series Convertible (430i, M440i), BMW X1 sDrive28i, xDrive28i, 2 Series Gran Coupe (228i, 228i xDrive, M235i xDrive), M2 Competition Coupe, 330i, 330i xDrive, M340i, M340i xDrive, M3, M3 Competition, 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper, CooperS, JCW), X2 sDrive28i, X2 xDrive28i, X2 M35i, Z4 sDrive30i, Z4 M40i, MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper SE), MINI Convertible (Cooper, Cooper S, JCW), MINI Clubman (Cooper S, Cooper S All4, JCW), MINI Countryman (Cooper
Risk: During a crash, a seat belt retractor that does not function as intended increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the seat belt retractors (including the seat belts) and, if necessary, replace the retractors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 3, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417; 1-866-825-1525 (MINI); 1-877-877-3735 (Rolls Royce); and 1-888-270-9371 (Toyota).
Air Bags
highProblem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2020 X1 xDrive28i, X1 sDrive28i, X2 xDrive28i and X2 sDrive28i, 2020 MINI Clubman Cooper S All4, 2021 MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper, Cooper S, John Cooper Works and Cooper S E) and MINI Hardtop 4 Door (Cooper and Cooper S) vehicles. Due to a problem with the rollover sensor within the air bag control unit, in the event of a rollover crash, the head air bag, seat belt pretensioners and other safety systems, may not activate.
Risk: If the safety systems do not deploy as intended in a roll over crash, it may increase the risk of injury.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag control unit, free of charge. The recall began July 17, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
Owner complaints
7 complaints filed
1 involved a crash, 1 a fire, 2 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.
Filed by year — 2021: 1 · 2022: 3 · 2023: 1 · 2024: 2
Most-cited components
- Electrical System — 3
- Tires — 1
- Air Bags — 1
- Steering — 1
- Fuel/Propulsion System — 1
Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.
Crash ratings
NHTSA has not published 5-Star crash ratings for this model year.
Other Cooper model years
2026 Cooper
1 recalls · 3 complaints
A2026 Cooper
1 recalls · 3 complaints
D2025 Cooper
4 recalls · 5 complaints
C2024 Cooper
2 recalls · 1 complaints
A2023 Cooper
0 recalls · 7 complaints
A2022 Cooper
0 recalls · 7 complaints
B2020 Cooper
2 recalls · 7 complaints
B2019 Cooper
2 recalls · 12 complaints
A2018 Cooper
0 recalls · 8 complaints
C2017 Cooper
3 recalls · 28 complaints
D2016 Cooper
4 recalls · 41 complaints
Sources & method
Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.
EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 42634, 42526, 42530, 42531, 42718, 42719, 42720, 42565, 42566, 42527, 42532, 42533). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.