Mini Celebrates The Flash With Bespoke Electric John Cooper SE

Tie-ins between automakers and entertainment aren’t new phenomena. Many of these collaborations have the automaker supply TV shows and movies, video games, and more with cars, though some lead to wild-looking promotional vehicles. The latter is the route Mini took to help celebrate the 80th anniversary of The Flash. The faster-than-light DC Comics superhero has had a resurgence in popularity thanks to the TV show and Justice League franchise.

However, The Flash wouldn’t be famous on the big screen without the comic book, which is what Mini is celebrating with its unique all-electric Cooper SE. The company built the Mini for the online Lucca ChanGes 2020 international fair, which covers comics, gaming, fantasy, and animation with the design penned by cartoonist Carmine Di Giandomenico, who has created more than 34 issues of The Flash comic. Giandomenico reinterpreted the cover of issue 123 by Carmine Infantino for the car.

The design features both Jay Garrick and Barry Allen’s versions of The Flash with Central City in the background, just like the original cover. Giandomenico channeled his inner Flash, completing the project in just 10 hours. That’s not difficult for someone dubbed “the fastest cartoonist in the world” after drawing 56 comic tables in 48 hours in 2016. Mini doesn’t dive deep into the creative process, though the company says Giandomenico used a “mixed technique.”

The new art doesn’t change the SE’s performance. It packs a single electric motor powering the front wheels with 181 horsepower (135 kilowatts) and 199 pound-feet (270 Newton-meters) of torque. Sadly, it trails The Flash in performance, hitting 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour) in 6.9 seconds with the top speed limited to 93 mph (150 kph). For comparison, The Flash can move at seven times the speed of light. Maybe the rumored all-electric John Cooper Works GP will be able to keep up.