MINI Cooper S Convertible
What it costs to keep fuelled
$1,600a year, fuel only
The 2026 MINI Cooper S Convertible is EPA-rated at 30 MPG combined (26 city / 36 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 500 gallons, $1600 a year in fuel, or $0.107 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 2005–2026 run it averages 27.5 MPG, improving by 6 MPG over 22 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 30 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the minicompact cars average, 22.4.
- Fuel, per year
- $1,600 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.107
- Per kilometre
- $0.066
- Gallons burned/yr
- 500
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.083 | $833 | $1250 | $1667 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.100 | $1000 | $1500 | $2000 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.107 | $1067 | $1600 | $2133 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.117 | $1167 | $1750 | $2333 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.133 | $1333 | $2000 | $2667 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.150 | $1500 | $2250 | $3000 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.167 | $1667 | $2500 | $3333 |
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
22 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 30 MPG | 26 | 36 | $2550 | 292 | 1 |
| 2025 | 30 MPG | 26 | 36 | $2550 | 292 | 1 |
| 2024 | 28.5 MPG | 25 | 34.5 | $2700 | 311 | 2 |
| 2023 | 28.5 MPG | 25 | 34.5 | $2700 | 311 | 2 |
| 2022 | 28 MPG | 25 | 34.5 | $2750 | 314 | 2 |
| 2021 | 27.5 MPG | 24.5 | 33 | $2800 | 322 | 2 |
| 2020 | 29 MPG | 26 | 34 | $2650 | 304 | 1 |
| 2019 | 27 MPG | 24 | 32.5 | $2850 | 327 | 2 |
| 2018 | 27 MPG | 24 | 32.5 | $2850 | 327 | 2 |
| 2017 | 27 MPG | 24 | 32.5 | $2850 | 326 | 2 |
| 2016 | 27 MPG | 24 | 32.5 | $2850 | 326 | 2 |
| 2015 | 28.5 MPG | 25.5 | 33.5 | $2700 | 311 | 2 |
| 2014 | 29 MPG | 26 | 34 | $2650 | 310 | 2 |
| 2013 | 29 MPG | 26 | 34 | $2650 | 310 | 2 |
| 2012 | 29 MPG | 25.5 | 33.5 | $2650 | 307 | 2 |
| 2011 | 29 MPG | 26 | 34 | $2650 | 307 | 2 |
| 2010 | 28 MPG | 25 | 33 | $2750 | 318 | 2 |
| 2009 | 28 MPG | 24.5 | 33 | $2750 | 318 | 2 |
| 2008 | 23.5 MPG | 20 | 29 | $3275 | 378 | 2 |
| 2007 | 23.5 MPG | 20.5 | 28.5 | $3275 | 378 | 2 |
| 2006 | 24 MPG | 21.5 | 29 | $3200 | 370 | 2 |
| 2005 | 24 MPG | 21.5 | 29 | $3200 | 370 | 2 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the minicompact cars bay
Among the 68 minicompact cars models tracked here, the MINI Cooper S Convertible ranks 4 on current figures, against a class average of 22.4 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: MINI Cooper (31), Scion iQ (37), Fiat 500e (116).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 292 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 4.4 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the MINI Cooper S Convertible get?
The 2026 MINI Cooper S Convertible is rated at 30 MPG combined by the EPA — 26 city and 36 highway. Across all 22 model years in the database it averages 27.5 MPG, ranging from 23 to 30 depending on year and trim.
How much does a MINI Cooper S Convertible cost in fuel per year?
At 30 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 500 gallons — roughly $1600 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.107 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2026 model is $2550.
Has the MINI Cooper S Convertible become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 24 MPG in 2005 to 30 in 2026 — an improvement of 6 MPG, or 25% across 22 model years.
Is the MINI Cooper S Convertible efficient for its class?
It ranks 4 of 68 in the Minicompact Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 22.4 MPG. That is 7.6 better than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
