Times of London looks at half a century of the frugal Mini
1959 Morris Mini Minor - Wikimedia Commons
One of the most iconic and recognizable shapes on the road is the Mini, and 2009 marks the golden anniversary of the original. The brainchild of Sir Alec Issigonis, the Mini was created in response to the 1956 Suez crisis which strangled the supply of Middle East oil to Britain. Issigonis set out to create a car that maximized interior space within a minimal exterior. He came up with a mechanical layout that would eventually be adopted in cars the world over. By turning the four cylinder engine sideways to drive the front wheels, he was able to take all of the powertrain out of the passenger space. The wheels were also pushed out of the way to the corners of the car and shrunk down to a mere ten inches; a change that necessitated the development of new tires. The Mini went through a number of iterations and remained in production until 2000 when it was finally discontinued. The Mini was sold under several brands including Morris, Austin and Rover. At the turn of the millennium, when Rover was under BMW ownership, a new modern MINI was developed. Meeting modern safety requirements meant the MINI grew nearly 22 inches compared to the original, yet it still remains one of the smallest cars on the market.
Happy birthday Mini!
[Source: The Times of London]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Stan Wellaway 6:13PM (1/26/2009)
And fifty years on, that original design still looks good to me. Beautifully proportioned and with lovely subtle curves. As an 11 year old schoolkid on my way back from a swimming class, I recall seeing the first models in a showroom in Monument Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK, and being allowed to sit in them.
In later years, I got to drive a Mini and a MiniVan. Anyone who did so will know they weren't just a smaller car, they were a wholly different type of driving experience. The roadholding, the handling, the seating position, were nothing like any other car. And they were terrific fun to throw about at speed once you got to know how catlike they were in their ability to land the right way round every time!
Happy Birthday Mini! And three cheers for the brilliantly innovative Alec Issigonis.
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jeffzekas 2:11PM (1/27/2009)
Sadly, when we visited London last year, we saw very few of the "old mini" on the roads... if fact, we saw far more classic mini in Paris than in London! And speaking of classic economy cars: the Citroen 2CV have, for the most part, completely disappeared from the streets of Paris-- a shock for me, since the last time I visited France (1978) there were 2CV and Mini everywhere!
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Dazza 10:46AM (1/28/2009)
well Jeff would that be a fair comment on the reliability, desirability and quality of the mini over the Citroen 2CV?