Compare the2025 Volvo EX40VS 2025 MINI Countryman SE

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Volvo EX40 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.

The EX40’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Volvo EX40 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.

Both the EX40 and Countryman SE have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The EX40 Ultra has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Countryman SE’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The EX40 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the EX40 and the Countryman SE have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

There are almost 3 times as many Volvo dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the EX40’s warranty.

The EX40 Twin Motor’s optional electric motors produces 94 more horsepower (402 vs. 308) and 130 lbs.-ft. more torque (494 vs. 364) than the Countryman SE’s electric motors. The EX40 Twin Motor Performance’s standard electric motors produces 128 more horsepower (436 vs. 308) and 130 lbs.-ft. more torque (494 vs. 364) than the Countryman SE’s electric motors.

As tested in Motor Trend the EX40 Twin Motor electric motors is faster than the MINI Countryman SE:

On the EPA test cycle the EX40 gets better mileage than the Countryman SE:

The EX40 can travel longer on a full charge than the Countryman SE on a full charge:

The EX40 stops shorter than the Countryman SE:

For better traction, the EX40 has larger tires than the Countryman SE (F:235/50R19 & R:255/45R19 vs. 225/55R18).

The EX40’s standard 235/50R19 front and 255/45R19 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series front and 45 series rear profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Countryman SE’s standard 55 series tires. The EX40 Ultra’s 255/40R20 rear tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Countryman SE’s optional 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the EX40 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Countryman SE. The EX40 Ultra’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the Countryman SE.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the EX40 is .8 inches wider in the front and 1.5 inches wider in the rear than on the Countryman SE.

The EX40 Ultra handles at .87 G’s, while the Countryman SE pulls only .85 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the EX40’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Countryman SE’s (37.4 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

The EX40 has .5 inches more front legroom, 1 inch more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 1 inch more rear legroom and 1.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Countryman SE.

The EX40 has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Countryman SE with its rear seat folded (57.5 vs. 56.2 cubic feet).

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the EX40’s optional rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The EX40’s standard Keyless Entry & Drive allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the vehicle, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Comfort Access standard on the Countryman SE doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the EX40 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the EX40 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.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The EX40 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The Countryman SE’s cornering lamps activate a lamp on the front corner when the turn signal is activated. The EX40 Ultra’s standard adaptive cornering lights turn the actual headlight unit up to several degrees, depending on steering wheel angle and vehicle speed. This lights a significant distance into corners at any speed.

Both the EX40 and the Countryman SE have standard heated front seats. The EX40 also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Countryman SE.

Compared to the MINI Countryman SE, the Volvo EX40 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.

The EX40 is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Countryman SE doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The Volvo EX40/XC40 outsold the MINI Countryman by over two to one during 2024.