Loyalists were up in arms when the first Mini Cooper Countryman was revealed to the world in 2010 because the idea of a crossover with larger proportions went against the original model's design philosophy. Regardless of what the fans may have thought, the Countryman has proven to be a highly profitable model that's available with everything from a turbodiesel engine to a high-performance turbo gasoline offering in the JCW-guise depending on the market.

Ushering in the age of electrification was a new Cooper Countryman Plug-in Hybrid offering introduced to the global market last year. This uses the existing 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine in conjunction with a 9.6-kWh battery pack to deliver a combined power output of a respectable 221 horsepower and 284 lb-ft of torque.

As the second-generation Mini Countryman nears the end of its life-cycle to make way for a newer and larger replacement crossover, it is now apparent that the brand will be upping the performance of its future plug-in hybrid model. According to information sourced by Autocar, the next PHEV Countryman will be the most powerful car that the brand has ever created, with a rumored output of 322 hp.

How does it plan on doing this? We already know that the next-generation model will inherit the FAAR configuration of the UKL2 platform that has already been applied to the recently revealed BMW 2 Series Active Tourer. Naturally, it is expected to inherit the same powertrain that is used in the flagship 230e xDrive.

This model retains the three-pot turbocharged gasoline engine but it is now paired to a more powerful electric motor and larger 14.2-kWh battery pack. The result is the aforementioned 322 hp power output with a torque figure of 352 lb-ft. We don't have any performance figures for powerful PHEV but the rumor suggests that it will offer an independent EV range of about 55 miles.

This will be a higher trim in the upcoming Countryman range but there's no intent for the brand to abandon its JCW moniker as the badge moves towards a more electric-biased operation. It is also understood that the PHEV offerings will be expanded to less powerful 241 hp and 168 hp states-of-tune as well as a 2.0-liter four-cylinder model offering 215 hp with the help of a 48-volt mild hybrid system.