Mini will release two new models
Lord Mandelson said that British drivers have had a long love affair with the Mini, one that will continue for many years to come. Few people would disagree with these words, prompted by recent news that BMW is planning two new models to be built at the Oxford Mini plant.
Of course, what he did not point out was that, like many of the great love affairs, it got off to a rocky start.
When the Mini was first put on the British market in 1959, early sales were so slow that the company was considering halting production. Somehow the sexy little car and although it was originally designed as a working class utility vehicle, it became the choice for the smart set and a true icon of the Swinging Sixties.
Now, 50 years on, our love story with this special car is still going strong — although, as with long term relationship, it is rather polite not to point out the various changes that have occured over time, such as the new design and the new owner.
Although un success at the beginning, its things improved when the car was adopted by the likes of Anthony Armstrong-Jones. Soon the Mini was the rage.
But it was not just rock stars and actors who bought them, it was also Tory ministers; Ernest Marples [Minister of Transport] owned a special Mini to carry his golf clubs. Princess Alexandra dragged the Daily Mail in court because the paper had wanted to know what was inside her boot.
Following the end of production for the Mini classic, BMW came out with the Mini: bigger, flashier and nothing to do with the original. BMW had rebuilt it in a humourless, but efficient way.
But it doesn’t really matter, the Mini has been an stunning success, even in America, which is something the original edition never achieved.