Battery pure street racers from China will be alongside Brit-born petrol equivalent by March.

THREE thousand dollars separates the two most powerful electric cars yet from Mini, the John Cooper Works versions of its latest Cooper hatch and Aceman hatch-styled city sports utility vehicle.

However, as expected, pricing announced today for the two battery pure derivatives that’ll be here by next March confirms them to be more expensive choices than the petrol JCW hatch also set to be in the market by then, and apparently pricier than any previous smallest-bodied Minis outside of limited edition cars.

Whereas the petrol JCW hatch kicks in at $65,990, with a Favoured upgrade adding $4000, the electric JCWs are $72,990 in hatch and … yes, you got it, $75,990 in Aceman.

The first electric cars out of Mini’s performance division are siblings under the skin, built in China on a platform co-developed with GWM.

These and the latest JCW Countryman that also continues to run with ICE, are also properly new-generation cars.

Conversely the petrol hatches - and the convertible - out of England are heavily revised versions of the decade-old previous generation equivalents.

To maintain sense of familial continuity, the electric hatch is very similar in its styling and size to the petrol hatch. Aceman, of course, is a new bodystyle.

The battery-pure products are officially known as the Mini John Cooper Works Electric for the hatch, and Mini John Cooper Works Aceman for the SUV – even though both models are electric, not just the hatchback.

Power is from a 190kW/350Nm motor on the front axle, good for a claimed 0-100kmh acceleration time of 5.9 seconds in the hatch, and 6.4 seconds in the Aceman. Both top out at 200kmh. A JECW petrol hatch is faster overall, and its 2.0-litre turbo four makes 170kW/380Nm.

The JCW electric hatch and Aceman share a 54.2kWh (gross capacity) battery. WLTP rated ranges are up to 371km in the hatch and up to 355km in the Aceman.

For comparison, the regular Cooper SE electric employs a 160kW/300Nm motor and 54.2kWh battery for a 6.7-second 0-100kmh and 402km WLTP range. The Aceman SE achieves the highway limit from a standing start in 7.1s. It has capability of seeing 406km WLTP from the same motor and battery.

The JCW siblings gain revised suspension tuning, Hankook Ion Evo R sports electric-car tyres, performance brakes with red and white JCW-branded calipers and styling packs.

These include sportier front and rear bumpers with black accents, horizontal stripes in the daytime-running lights, a rear spoiler, and chequered-flag JCW badges.

Exclusive to the performance versions are red accents on the front-bumper air curtains, unique 18-inch and 19-inch wheels on the Cooper and Aceman respectively. Cooper also has a black flag-patterned panel on the tailgate.

Buyers can order solid red contrast or red/black multi-tone gradient roof panels, as well as body stripes. Mini has set up an online configurator for customers.

Inside, there are JCW sports seats with black synthetic leather-look and multi-coloured knitted fabric upholstery – plus red contrast stitching – as well as black and red knitted fabric on the dashboard.

In supplied comment, Alexander Brockhoff, the general manager for Mini New Zealand and Australia, said his operation was “thrilled to introduce these new additions to our line-up, bringing together the renowned road feel and engagement of John Cooper Works Mini models with the instantaneous power delivery and response of our fully electric offerings for maximum driving fun.”