History of the MINI | A Brief History of the MINI |
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The Beginnings
We can probably attribute the creation of the original Mini, at least in part, to the 1956 Suez Canal crisis. World War II had ended a decade before and Britain was finally getting back on its feet. Gasoline rationing, which had been in effect during the war, was now only a memory and the British economy was on the upswing. Citizens were finally starting to feel financially secure enough to start buying new cars in larger numbers. The crisis in the Suez cut off oil supplies and resulted in new gasoline rationing and concerns about future supplies. This threatened to put a damper on the British automobile industry, which was finally getting back on its feet after World War II.
Sir Alec Issigonis
It was against this backdrop that the head of British Motor Corporation (BMC), Sir Leonard Lord, challenged one of his designers, Alec Issigonis, to come up with an affordable, fuel-efficient car that could carry four adults. Lord believed the time was right for such a car and that it would sell very well in this environment.
Born Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis in Smyrna, Turkey in 1906, Issigonis arrived in England with his mother at the age of 15. After completing his education, he began working as a draftsman and in 1936 secured a job at the Morris Motor Company, the largest car company in England at the time. Issigonis was later responsible for the design of the Morris Minor, which started production in 1948. After Austin and Morris merged in 1952, Issigonis left the newly merged company for a less bureaucratic work environment at Alvis where he worked on the design of a sports sedan that never saw production. In 1955, he returned to Morris-Austin, which by then had become BMC, as Chief Engineer. Issigonis formed a group within the company to study concepts for a small car. When the challenge to develop a new small car was issued, he was ready.
Issigonis is generally credited with originating the quote “A camel is a horse designed by committee.” The brilliant design of the Mini is elemental, yet elegant in its simplicity and very tightly integrated. It was designed almost entirely by Issigonis himself, and was probably the last mass-produced car to represent the work of a single designer. It delivered on the objectives set out for it much more successfully than any other car of its time, or possibly any other time. This shows it was designed by a visionary dedicated to the purpose set out for the Mini and not by a committee with varied interests and objectives.
Issigonis once said, “One thing that I learnt the hard way - well, not the hard way, the easy way - when you’re designing a new car for production, never, never copy the opposition.” That may explain why the Mini was so different from its competition. Primary competition for the Mini was the Volkswagen “Beetle” 1200, Renault Dauphine and Fiat 600. These cars were all rear engined with rear wheel drive. We can only assume that was at least part of the motivation for Issigonis selecting the drivetrain layout he did for the Mini. The Triumph Herald and Ford Anglia 105E were introduced at approximately the same time as the Mini and aimed at the same market. These were both more traditional front engine, rear wheel drive. Designer. Alec Issigonis was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 1969 for his contributions. Sir Alec Issigonis died in 1988.
The Original Mini
The product of Issigonis’ design resulted in the debut in 1959 of two cars from BMC. The Austin Mini Se7en and the Morris Mini Minor were identical except for their badging and were both known as the Mini. The design incorporated several radical concepts, some of which have since become common throughout the automotive world. The wheels were pushed out to the corners of the car, leaving virtually no overhang at either end. The wheels were only 10” in diameter to minimize the amount of intrusion into the interior passenger cabin space. The design used front wheel drive with the engine mounted transversely and the transmission mounted under the engine to minimize the length of the engine compartment. For simplicity, compactness and cost savings, the suspension used rubber cones instead of metal springs. The result was a car only 10 feet long with a wheelbase of 80 inches. It was 56 inches wide, 53 inches high and weighed approximately 1300 lbs. It was powered by an 848-cc 4-cylinder engine that produced 34 hp. When introduced into the U.S. in 1960, it sold for $1,295. The revolutionary design allowed 80 percent of the Mini’s total length to be dedicated to passenger cabin space. For comparison, a Volkswagen of the same period weighed 1600 lbs, had a 36-hp 1192-cc engine, sat on a 95” wheelbase and used 15” wheels. It sold in the U.S. for $1,695.
John Cooper and the Mini-Cooper
John Cooper followed his father’s footsteps into building racing cars in the late 1940s. Throughout the 1950s the Cooper Car Company was involved in many forms of racing, leading to consecutive Formula 1 championships in 1959 and 1960. John Cooper immediately recognized the potential of the Mini in race and rally competition. Working with BMC and a reluctant Alec Issigonis, Cooper developed a higher performance version of the Mini in 1961. A performance Mini was contrary to the concepts Issigonis believed in and he wanted to keep to the simple basic design he envisioned, but BMC leadership saw potential in Cooper’s vision. This was the start of the Mini-Cooper, with the higher performance Mini-Cooper S introduced in 1963 with engines as large as 1275 cc and 76 horsepower. Front disc brakes were another of the upgrades used on the Cooper models when they were introduced in 1961. Rally prepared Mini-Coopers collected outright wins in the prestigious Monte Carlo Rally in 1964 through 1967, although they were disqualified from their 1-2-3 finish in 1966 due to a minor technical infraction – their headlights lacked both high beam and low beam capability. A number of wins in other competition solidified the reputation of the Mini-Cooper as a performance car.
Evolution of the Mini
The original Mini evolved during its over 40-year lifespan during which almost 5.5 million were made. The Mini also survived several attempts to kill it as the British automobile industry went through a series of transitions and upheavals. In 1966, BMC merged with Jaguar to form British Motor holdings. In 1968, that company merged with Leyland Motor Corporation, Ltd. to form British Leyland Motor Corporation, Ltd., later nationalized by the British government and renamed British Leyland, Ltd. in 1975. During this period, most of the British auto industry was contained in this one company.
The last car to carry the Morris name was manufactured in the late 1970s. Starting in 1986, the company was renamed the Rover Group and various parts of the company ware sold off and privatized. In 1987, the last car badged as an Austin rolled off the assembly line. In 1988, the remaining parts of the Rover Group, which still included the Mini brand, were sold to British Aerospace and sold again, this time to BMW, in 1994. In 2000, BMW sold Land Rover to Ford and retained Mini. The remainder of the company became independent under the name MG Rover Group.
In this environment of ownership upheaval, production of the Mini continued until 2000 when the last original Mini was produced. There were updates and changes along the way, including larger engines, roll-up windows replacing the original sliding side windows, larger wheels and internal door hinges replacing the original exposed hinges. A hydrolastic fluid suspension was introduced in 1964 to replace the original rubber cone suspension. The MkIII Mini, introduced in 1970, saw the return to the rubber cone suspension although Cooper models retained the fluid suspension until their production ended in 1971. Of the 2.6 million Minis built during the 10 years (1961 to 1971) Mini-Coopers were built, only about 125,000 were Coopers, less than 5% of all Minis produced. Of these, about 80,000 were Coopers and about 45,000 were Cooper S models. New U.S. federal emissions regulations stopped U.S. sales of Minis in 1968.
Over the 41-year production life of the original Mini there were numerous variations on the basic theme. The Mini was updated with MkII (1967) and MkIII (1970) versions, each receiving updates and improvements. The Mini Van, a small commercial panel truck, had its wheelbase extended by four inches and its length extended by ten inches. It had an enclosed, windowless rear body with double side-opening rear doors. It was introduced in 1960 and was produced until 1983. The Mini Pickup, based on the same floorpan as the van, but with a pickup bed instead of an enclosed body, was introduced in 1961 and also saw production until 1983.The Mini Moke was originally intended as a military vehicle for use by the British Army, but never saw use as such. Looking like a cross between a golf cart and a military Jeep, it entered production in 1964. It became quite popular in Australia, and all production from 1968 until its demise in 1993, took place in Australia. The Austin Mini Countryman and Morris Mini-Traveller were what we in the U.S. would call station wagons. They were built using the same extended floorpan as the van and pickup. The Clubman, introduced in 1969 with a squarer design, was an attempt to update the Mini to a more modern appearance, but was not well received by Mini enthusiasts at the time. The 1275 Clubman GT was intended to be the replacement for the Cooper, but it was not the performance-oriented machine the 1275 Cooper had been, largely due to using a more modest and less powerful engine, despite having the same displacement. It also suffered from having the unloved styling of the Clubman.
The Mini Cooper was reintroduced in 1990 including the Sportspack, which included 13” alloy wheels and correspondingly larger wheel wells. It was not the great successor to the 1960s Coopers that it should have been, but there were dealer-installed upgrade kits available from John Cooper Garages to increase horsepower and improve performance. This seems to be the precedent for the current John Cooper Works kits available for the new MINI.
In 1991, the Cooper 1.3i was introduced with a fuel injected engine to comply with emissions requirements. In the 1990s, Minis were pushing upmarket with many new features and options. A Mini Cabriolet was produced from 1993 to 1996. Such options as the Sportspack, leather seating and cloth electric sunroof were available.
The Mini became popular in many parts of the world. Peak production reached almost 320,000 vehicles in 1971, an amazing 12 years after its original introduction. Only about 30 percent of that production was sold in the UK. Minis were produced in many countries under license to BL. Production in Australia started as early as 1961, assembling Minis from parts manufactured in England.
Italy produced more Minis than any other foreign country. Innocenti, a company previously known primarily for producing motor scooters, produced many Mini variations that were produced no where else. In 1972, upon the death of its founder, Innocenti faced liquidation. The company was purchased by BL, who continued to produce Minis in Italy under the Innocenti name until 1976. At that time the company was sold to Alessandro de Tomaso, who then produced several Mini variations under his own brand. De Tomaso is probably better known for his much more exotic Mangusta and Pantera, which saw some popularity and production in the 1970s. Spain, Belgium, South Africa, Chile, and Venezuela, among others, also had Mini production facilities.. When the death of the Mini looked imminent in the mid-1980s and worldwide production dipped to around 35,000 annually, demand for Minis was still strong in Japan, Germany and France. This kept production going throughout the 1990s until the final Mini rolled off the production line in 2000.
The New MINI
The new MINI began life under the Rover banner in the 1990s as plans for a new modernized Mini were started, but these plans never made it to production. After BMW took over the company in 1994, they scrapped the work Rover had done and commenced a design effort for a replacement Mini under the direction of designer Frank Stephenson. Stephenson, an American who grew up in Europe, wanted to design a modern Mini while keeping to the original design concepts. His intent was to redesign the Mini along the lines that the original might have evolved if it had kept up with changes in the automotive world. This meant updating to accommodate safety and emissions regulations as well as using up-to-date technology and a modern drivetrain. His plan was for the car to be thoroughly modern, yet instantly recognizable as a Mini and true to the concepts incorporated by Issigonis 40 years earlier. It was also decided that all new MINIs would be known as MINI Coopers.
The new MINI Cooper made its official debut at the Paris Auto Show in September 2000 and made its U.S. debut at the Detroit Auto Show the following January. The MINI Cooper first became available in Europe during 2001. This was followed by the MINI Cooper S a few months later. The first MINIs were available for sale in the U.S. in April 2002.The collaboration between MINI and John Cooper continues despite the death of John Cooper in 2000. Stephenson kept Cooper apprised of the development of the design of the new MINI and John Cooper Works, now operated by John’s son Michael, continues to develop performance parts for the MINI with the full cooperation of MINI’s parent company BMW, including extending full factory warranty to dealer-installed John Cooper Works performance parts.
Many people have complained that the new MINI is not a “real” Mini. Yet the original, popular as it still is over 40 years later, is not a modern design even though it saw many updates and improvements over its lifetime. Despite updates, it has not been legal for sale as a new car in the U.S. for 35 years. Modern emissions and safety regulations required that the redesigned MINI be somewhat larger and heavier. Stronger bumpers, side door beams, air bags, and rollover protection all add bulk and weight to today’s new cars; designers in the 1950s didn't have to deal with such issues. In addition, today’s litigious society makes it incumbent on MINI, especially because the car is still smaller and lighter than almost any other vehicle on the road, to use the most modern technology to achieve the highest possible safety standards. For this reason, even if for no other, MINI was built stronger than it really had to be with more safety features than it absolutely had to have. That is why all MINIs come equipped with traction control, ABS, and side and head airbags in addition to the required front airbags.
Comparison of the Original Mini with the New MINI Cooper
The following comparison shows how the original Mini compares in size to the new MINI Cooper. Despite being larger in every dimension, the MINI is still very small when compared with its contemporaries. A 2004 Honda Civic Si is shown for comparison. Even though the new MINI is almost two feet longer than the original Mini, it is almost two feet shorter than the Honda, which is still a very small car in today’s world.
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| Last Updated ( Wednesday, 20 June 2007 ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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