Undoubtedly, one of the most interesting looking cars on the road is the Mini. How did this trendy and attractive car get its start? Why was it created to begin with? You find those answers and more as we follow the history of the Mini – from its inception to now.

It might seem unrelated, but in 1956 Egypt tried to nationalize the Suez Canal. The Suez Canal was a particularly important passageway for the transportation of oil. Because of the political and social troubles caused by the conflict in Egypt, the Suez Crisis occurred in 1956, and there was a shortage of oil. Because of that shortage of oil, the UK, along with many other countries, started rationing oil.

This is significant because pre-1956 cars were larger, with larger engines. Car manufacturers started making smaller cars, notably Germany, who introduced the “Bubble Car.” These small cars were very popular in Europe because of the oil crisis, and the British Motor Corporation knew they had to create a competitor. BMC head Leonard Lord hated the German “bubble cars” and set out to design a better miniature car.

After a lot of changes, time, and research, BMC introduced a production version of the Mini in April of 1959, and the car was ready to sell by August of that same year. There were two models available for purchase – the Austin 850 and the Morris 850 – named after two of the brand names of the BMC. The cars kept those names until 1962, but in 1961 BMC rolled out the Austin Mini, despite Sharps Commericals Car Company’s competitor car the Minicar.

As the Mini evolved, it became more popular. In 1969 the film The Italian Job came out, and it featured prominently a Mark II Mini. The next few decades would see many different incarnations of the Mini, even through The Rover Group’s purchase of part of BMC, and then BMW’s subsequent takeover of The Rover Group. BMW didn’t keep most of The Rover Group’s companies, selling Land Rover to Ford Motor Company, and MG and Rover to Phoenix. But BMW kept the Mini.

By 2000 there were four models of the Mini on the market – the Mini Classic Seven, the Mini Knightsbridge (for European markets), the Mini Classic Cooper Sport, and the Mini Classic Cooper. The last “real” mini was produced in October of 2000, and presented in December of 2000 to the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust.

Today the Mini brand is still owned by the BMW Group and possesses four different models – the Countryman, the Clubman, the Classic Hardtop, and the Classic Convertible. The future of the brand is also exciting – with the development and refinement of the hybrid and electric Minis and Mini’s return to rallying.

Even with some of the criticism that exists for the Mini – some users say that the convertible offers poor rear visibility, the position of the rear club door is problematic for right-hand drive market drivers, and there are some timing chain tensioners problems – Mini continues to refine and perfect their product, and people still buy them up. Minis are a fun car, a pretty car, one that you keep covered until you want to take it out on a pretty day. Not too bad of a legacy, after all, is it?

Author Bio: Jack Labens works for Empire Covers, a leading provider of car covers and other accessories such as boat covers and truck bed covers. Empire Covers can be found online at: EmpireCovers.com .

Category: Automotive
Keywords: mini, mini cooper, the mini, history of the mini