Compare the2025 Nissan LeafVS 2025 MINI Countryman SE

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Leaf have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The MINI Countryman SE doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Leaf are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Countryman SE doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

The Leaf has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the Leaf and the Countryman SE have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available daytime running lights, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

Nissan’s powertrain warranty covers the Leaf 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Countryman SE. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Countryman SE ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 10 times as many Nissan dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Leaf’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan above average in initial quality. With 16 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is rated lower.

On the EPA test cycle the Leaf gets better mileage than the Countryman SE:

The Leaf SV PLUS can travel longer on a full charge than the Countryman SE 19-inch wheels (212 miles vs. 204 miles).

The Leaf’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Countryman SE are solid, not vented.

The Leaf has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

For better maneuverability, the Leaf S’ turning circle is 3.9 feet tighter than the Countryman SE’s (34.8 feet vs. 38.7 feet). The Leaf SV PLUS’ turning circle is 2.5 feet tighter than the Countryman SE’s (36.2 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

The Nissan Leaf may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 to 1100 pounds less than the MINI Countryman SE.

The Leaf has .5 inches more front headroom and 1.7 inches more front legroom than the Countryman SE.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Leaf has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Countryman SE only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Leaf has standard extendable sun visors. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Compared to the MINI Countryman SE, the Nissan Leaf eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its optional integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the rear view mirror.