I occasionally have to go places where there is little or no parking near my destination, so am wondering whether an electric scooter that fits in the trunk of my 2022 convertible would be an option for getting the rest of the way to such destinations? To fit, I expect such a scooter would need to be able to fold in order to fit the trunk. Ideally, it also wouldn't be too heavy to easily lift in and out of the MINI's trunk.

 

Interesting one is Honda motocompato (electric version) or a foldable electric bike (heavier then the moto)

 

Thanks for the suggestion of the Honda Motocompacto. It appears to be exactly what I wanted, and does indeed fit in the trunk of my MINI convertible. Here's info about it:
https://motocompacto.honda.com
My local Honda dealer had them in stock, list price $995, so one is now charging in my tiny garage, alongside my MINI. My son and grandson called dibs on putting it together and taking the first rides, so it's already been tested a bit, and both found it worked fine for them.
Things to note:
1 Weight is 42#. Weight limit is 265#. Not much is adjustable sizewise. Solid tires, so no need for an air pump, but ride can be bumpy on rough roads.
2 The shipping carton was a bit too big to fit in the trunk, but did fit in the back seat. Unboxed and folded, the Motocompacto fits in the trunk easily. Folding and unfolding take a couple of minutes initially - likely less once used to the process.
3 Range is 12 miles on a full charge. Charging can take up to 4 hours.
4 It has 2 modes. In beginner mode, top speed is 10MPH. In advanced mode top speed is 15MPH.
5 It has head and taillights, and a digital spedometer.
6 It supports Bluetooth via a free iPhone Motocompacto app.
7 Made in China in 2024.

 

Update: The Honda Motocompacto was great during its first long ride last Saturday, but would not start this Monday after recharging. The error message is a blinking lock icon on the dashboard, which means either the handlebar stem sensor or the rear wheel fully open sensor does not think its part is in the correct/safe position.

Unable to fix the issue, I took it back to our Honda dealer (Speedway Honda in Santa Ana, California) this morning, and they confirmed the problem and are now figuring out how to handle their first warranty repair of a Motocompacto.

The handlebar stem lock looks a bit off-center to me, so perhaps they can adjust that. Similarly, the lever that rotates to open and close the rear wheel is overly stiff - hard to operate fully except with the help of a Crescent wrench, so perhaps that can also be adjusted to be fully operable by hand.

One other thing I learned, while trying to pair the Motocompacto to its iPhone app on an iPhone 16 Pro is that Bluetooth connection has to be specifically allowed for that app, within the iPhone settings, under apps, and then within Motocompacto. Apparently the 2D map view doesn't work properly, but I'll have to wait for my Motocompacto to return before I can test that.

Overall, a full year after its deliveries began, the Motocompacto still feels like bleeding-edge technology: wonderful when it works, but still has bugs that may or may not get fixed eventually.

 

Update 2: Quick solution by the local Honda dealer. Turns out the control unit went bad, but only took another day to order and replace. Worked fine again after that. Yay!