From Sixties Icon, to Uncertain Future, to BMW Purchase
By contributing editor Boris Dzhingarov, founder of What Is SUV
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the British Invasion started by the Beatles, our commemorative this week relates to great British motorcars from the late fifties and early sixties.
The MINI Cooper was definitely a huge part of the automobile history, one of the really iconic vehicles of the sixties, evolving from racing roots to variants that are popular today thanks to the BMW takeover. We can say that Mini Cooper evolved thanks to the strong collaboration between Cooper Car Company and British Motor Corporation.
The First MINI Coopers
MINI Cooper has origins in the original BMC Mini and the work done by Sir Alex Issigonis. Due to what was then seen as a huge problem (fuel shortage) and the necessity to have vehicles that were more efficient as city cars, Mini transformed into a model with 2 doors, featuring a four-cylinder engine.
The first ever Mini (Mark I) was connected to different BMC brands and the official launch was in 1959. In the sixties we saw the Mini rise in popularity, gaining a strong identity, especially with Mini Mark II’s new grille addition.
Darren Burnes 1964 Morris Mini Cooper
Reaching Iconic Status In The 1960s
Mini Cooper appeared as a motorsports version of the original Mini thanks to an idea by John Cooper. Mini Cooper appeared in 1961 and the Cooper S was launched in 1963. Both of the vehicles showcased stronger engines. Cooper had an 848cc model and Cooper S showcased a 1071cc model.
The success of the Cooper brand became reality thanks to 2 achievements. The first one was the success that the sportier version had in the ‘64, ‘65 and ‘67 Monte Carlo rallies. The second one was the appearance in The Italian Job, a British film that showcased the Mini Cooper and Mini as vehicles used in bank heists.
Success of the Mini Cooper caught the attention of another successful group from the UK, the Beatles. All four Beatles owned Minis. George Harrison owned the Austin Mini Cooper S featured in ‘Magical Mystery Tour’. Ringo Starr drove a 1966 Austin Mini Cooper S with a Radford luxury conversion and custom hatchback so he could carry his drum kit. Paul McCartney owned a sage green 1965 Radford Mini Cooper S. John Lennon bought his wife Cynthia a Mini, followed by a black Radford-built Austin Cooper S for himself.
Uncertain Future During The Seventies And Eighties
1980 Mini Clubman | Source= Wikipedia/DeFacto
The Mini Cooper license was sold to different Italian and Spanish companies during these decades. There were new models that were released. Most of them worked around the original Cooper designs. The problem was that there was no real progression. The new models were simply novelties with nothing special to showcase.
In the nineties we saw Rover Group owning Mini rights but this changed once BMW purchased Rover Group. BMW eventually sold Rover when the decade ended but the Mini brand was kept. Ever since the year 2000, we saw a re-launch of the Mini brand.
The Modern MINI
Nowadays, the Mini is adjusted for hardtop and hatch variants. There are different versions available, including Classic Cooper and Cooper Sports. The most important changes that were done after 2000 were the addition of the Toyota diesel engine and the development of new Mini editions. After a successful European launch, both models were launched for the American market in 2002.
In the past few years we saw the appearance of both Cooper and Mini Cooper S models with 121 and 181 horsepower engines, together with different experiments in convertible and hardtop models. Cooper continues to evolve as a brand and nobody can argue with the fact that most of the success is due to the unique design that is showcased.
Photo credit: NRMA Drivers Seat
Over 300,000 Mini cars were sold ever since the 2002 official US market BMW re-launch. While most of the improvements were quite strong and the car is stronger now than it was during the seventies and eighties, the iconic design that was pioneered by Alec Issigonis has withstood the test of time.
We can’t say what the future holds for Minis, but we do hope that the design remains as close to what we see at the moment. There is no reason to change a car that looks so different than most of the competition. It is the design that made the car withstand the test of time and BMW seems to have understood that.
Click the image to learn how eBay uses the MINI Cooper to deliver products
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the British Invasion started by the Beatles, our commemorative relates to great British motorcars from the 60s.
