Dodge Charger vs MINI Cooper: Specs Compared

Running cost over five years: at the EPA's 15,000-mile-a-year assumption the MINI Cooper burns about $700 of fuel annually against $800 for the Dodge Charger. That $100 yearly gap compounds to roughly $500 over five years and $800 over eight — often more than the price difference between two trims of the same vehicle, and the single largest running-cost line item separating these two.

City and highway economy: the MINI Cooper leads in both cycles — 119 mpg city and 100 mpg highway against 104 and 91 mpg — so its fuel-efficiency advantage holds whether you commute in traffic or cover long highway miles.

Powertrain choice: the Dodge Charger is recorded with 4 distinct engine configurations (SIDI, 3.6, 5.7), the MINI Cooper with 3 (SIDI & PFI, SIDI, 1.6). Across 85 recorded Dodge Charger configurations and 135 for the MINI Cooper, the wider the engine spread the more the real-world fuel efficiency depends on which version you actually buy, so check the specific model year and drivetrain rather than the headline number.

Drivetrain and class: the Dodge Charger is offered with All-Wheel Drive, Rear-Wheel Drive, the MINI Cooper with Front-Wheel Drive. All-wheel drive typically costs one to two mpg combined against the same vehicle in front- or rear-wheel drive, which is worth remembering when the gap between these two is small. The EPA classes them as Large Cars and Subcompact Cars respectively — the class drives the interior volume, cargo space and passenger space each one is measured against.

Tailpipe emissions: at their cleanest configurations the MINI Cooper emits 272 g/mile of CO2 versus 389 g/mile for the Dodge Charger. Emissions track fuel consumption almost exactly, so the cleaner vehicle here is also the cheaper one to fuel.