MINI Countryman review - Practicality & boot space

The MINI Countryman is not only the brand’s current largest car, it’s the largest MINI ever. Its latest dimensions put it on par with rivals like the Nissan Qashqai and it’s even larger than the Range Rover Evoque, in terms of size. MINI has put the extra space to good use, and the latest Countryman has rear seats big enough for fully-grown adults, though getting in and out of it isn’t as easy as in some rivals. That said, this boost in practicality means it’s a more viable family car than the previous model.

Those back seats can also slide forwards and backwards to prioritise legroom or boot space, which is a useful touch – it’s clear that MINI has aimed to make the latest Countryman more usable than ever, as well as making it more comfortable for passengers.

Does the MINI Countryman have a big boot?

The MINI Countryman’s boot is larger than the old car’s by 10 litres, for a total of 460 litres – that figure is identical for the petrol and electric models. If you need more space, the seats fold down to free up 1,450 litres of luggage space. It’s not a class leader in this area, of course, but that at least puts it slightly more on par with rivals such as the Mercedes GLA and BMW X1 than before. 

The load area is fairly conventional, and we would have liked to see more practical storage solutions back here, but there are a couple of plastic bag hooks and some decent space under the boot floor, the cover of which is hinged very far back making it easy to move out of the way to load items. This underfloor storage area will be useful for charging cables in the electric models.

Is the MINI Countryman a good tow car?

Petrol versions of the MINI Countryman can tow up to 1,500kg, while the towing capacity of electric versions is less at 1,200kg.