It all starts at the original Mini page.
The original British Motor Corporation (BMC) Mini, produced from 1959 until 2000, is considered an icon of motoring and of British engineering, an icon of the era 1960s.[1][2][3] In 1999 the Mini was voted the second most influential car of the 20th century, behind the Ford Model T.[4]
Its space-saving front-wheel drive layout – allowing 80 per cent of the area of the car's floorpan to be used for passengers and luggage – influenced a generation of car makers.[5] The vehicle is in some ways considered the British equivalent of its German contemporary the Volkswagen Beetle, which enjoyed similar popularity in North America. [6]
This distinctive two-door car was designed for BMC by Sir Alec Issigonis.[7][8] It was manufactured at the Longbridge and Cowley plants in England, the Victoria Park / Zetland British Motor Corporation (Australia) factory in Sydney, Australia, and later also in Spain (Authi), Belgium, Chile, Italy (Innocenti), Malta, Portugal, South Africa, Uruguay, Venezuela and Yugoslavia. The Mini Mark I had three major UK updates – the Mark II, the Clubman and the Mark III. Within these was a series of variations, including an estate car, a pick-up truck, a van and the Mini Moke – a jeep-like buggy. The Mini Cooper and Cooper "S" were sportier versions that were successful as rally cars, winning the Monte Carlo Rally four times from 1964 through to 1967, although in 1966 the Mini was disqualified after the finish, along with six other British entrants, which included the first four cars to finish, under a questionable ruling that the cars had used an illegal combination of headlamps and spotlights.[9]
On introduction in August 1959 the Mini was marketed under the Austin and Morris names, as the Austin Seven and Morris Mini-Minor.[10] The Austin Seven was renamed to Austin Mini in January 1962 [10] and Mini became a marque in its own right in 1969.[11][12] In 1980 it once again became the Austin Mini and in 1988 the Rover Mini.[13]
The Mini shape had become so well known that by the 1990s, Rover Group – the heirs to BMC – were able to register its design as a trademark in its own right.[14]
References
edit- ^ Reed, Chris (2003). Complete Classic Mini 1959–2000. Orpington: Motor Racing. ISBN 1-899870-60-1.
- ^ Reed, Chris (1994). Complete Mini: 35 Years Of Production History, Model Changes, Performance Data. Croydon: MRP. ISBN 0-947981-88-8.
- ^ Clausager, Anders (1997). Essential Mini Cooper. Bay View Books location=Bideford, Devon. ISBN 1-870979-86-9.
{{cite book}}: Missing pipe in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "This Just In: Model T Gets Award", James G. Cobb, The New York Times, 24 December 1999
- ^ Buckley, Martin; Rees, Chris (2006). Cars: An encyclopedia of the world's most fabulous automobiles. Hermes House. ISBN 1-84309-266-2.
The BMC Mini, launched in 1959, is Britain's most influential car ever. It defined a new genre. Other cars used front-wheel drive and transverse engines before but none in such a small space.
- ^ Strickland, Jonathan. "How the MINI Cooper Works". Auto.howstuffworks.com. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
- ^ Wood, Jonathan (2005). Alec Issigonis: The Man Who Made the Mini. Breedon Books Publishing. ISBN 1-85983-449-3.
- ^ Nahum, Andrew (2004). Issigonis and the Mini. Icon Books. ISBN 1-84046-640-5.
- ^ "Future of Monte Carlo rally in doubt". BBC. 21 January 1966.
- ^ a b Austin Seven - Mini, www.austinmemories.com Retrieved on 16 June 2013
- ^ Michael Sedgwick & Mark Gillies, A-Z of Cars 1945–1970, 1986
- ^ Adams, Keith; Nicholls, Ian. "Mini development story Pt.2". AROnline.
- ^ MINI – A MAJOR FASHION ITEM, www.retrocarsmag.com Retrieved on 3 May 2013
- ^ "Trade Mark & Copyright Attorneys in Ashby-de-la-Zouch". Verymark.info. Retrieved 11 October 2010.[dead link]