The Austin Mini Was A Legend That Spawned A Whole Revolution In Auto Industry Itself. The Vehicle Portrays The Prototype And Model Upon Which Most American And Canadian Built Cars Are Built Upon. That Is A Front Wheel Drive, Transversely Mounted Engine Highly Fuel Efficient Vehicle Which Although Small In Size Seat 4 Adult Passengers.
Yet innovations and the products that come out of automobile company crisis's are entirely unpredictable to the greatest degree. President Obama's henchman David Axelrod is credited with saying "Never let a good crisis go to waste". In the case of Ford - first it was the economy car the Ford Falcon which led to the huge volume and profitable Mustang product line. In our era it was trucks and high end , even more profitable products such as the Ford Raptor F-150 based rolling stock that did this trick. Yet with the then revolutionary front wheel drive , sideways mounted engine the interior compartment has no large middle "hump" in the floor to take passenger and cargo space away. On top of that the Austin Mini and its Morris Minor re-badged product offered an innovation which was not introduced into American cars until Ford , on its deathbed introduced women into its "focus groups". The Taurus which saved Ford at the time from extinction had side pockets in the door for storage. Believe it or not many drivers and passengers of original Minis used those side pockets in the doors for carting home groceries and the like from the supermarket and shopping. Interestingly even when GM attempted to copy the success of the Ford Taurus and its Mercury Sable product they - with a limited mindset - missed the boat with this simple feature which auto buyers and owners clamored for a lot more than styling and more chrome. The Lumina was essentially a lackluster me2 copycat product with side pockets in the doors wide and big enough only for a few folded maps. Only a Noel Vandal character , say , might purchase such a lackluster , copycat lowest of quality products off a used car dealers' lot or showroom.
Over time the original Austin Mini had several name, branding and even factory changes. Originally it proudly bore the names Austin and Morris when it made its debut in the market during 1959. However several name alterations were conducted over years, model and ownership and factory amalgamation changes. During 1969, Austin and Morris name was altered and became the Mini alone - as opposed to the two word terms "Austin Mini" and "Morris Mini". And in 1980, there was once again an alteration and turned out to be Austin. An extended selection of model was developed and created a station wagon or what might be called a van version. Yet during this time period all of these models were named Austin mini. In the long run, the name Austin was dropped and in full favor of the brand name Mini alone it was during the year 2000 that the last mini was built as a fully British product.
Austin minis have been widely used in car race competitions. This would definitely give you the idea that this car is a fast car. You would be able to see one in every race track there is. And the most important thing is, it constantly make it to the top. This car has been a winner in several significant contests. That is exactly the reason why this car, in this particular period of time, became one of the most well-liked. You will notice that Austin minis - even very old 60's vintage models are still functional today in most parts of the world especially in Great Britain. Nowadays, this vehicle is one of the most sought after collector's item. The demand is so great that collectors worldwide are willing to pay for overseas shipping just to have them. The cost of shipping from England to their own place maybe very costly but these collectors do not at all mind this. And the price value of this has tremendously increased. The functional Austin mini these days can be sold at a price much greater than the original brand new price. This is a very strong evidence of the uniqueness of this vehicle.
In the end if there is one footnote to early, pre-BMW Minis it was that people loved them. They honked at each other as they drove by. Mini clubs were formed worldwide. On top of that a sleeper racing version was built out of this tiny economy 4 cylinder car that would zoom ahead seemingly out of nowhere. This was the veritable Mini Cooper version of this automotive line.
Yet innovations and the products that come out of automobile company crisis's are entirely unpredictable to the greatest degree. President Obama's henchman David Axelrod is credited with saying "Never let a good crisis go to waste". In the case of Ford - first it was the economy car the Ford Falcon which led to the huge volume and profitable Mustang product line. In our era it was trucks and high end , even more profitable products such as the Ford Raptor F-150 based rolling stock that did this trick. Yet with the then revolutionary front wheel drive , sideways mounted engine the interior compartment has no large middle "hump" in the floor to take passenger and cargo space away. On top of that the Austin Mini and its Morris Minor re-badged product offered an innovation which was not introduced into American cars until Ford , on its deathbed introduced women into its "focus groups". The Taurus which saved Ford at the time from extinction had side pockets in the door for storage. Believe it or not many drivers and passengers of original Minis used those side pockets in the doors for carting home groceries and the like from the supermarket and shopping. Interestingly even when GM attempted to copy the success of the Ford Taurus and its Mercury Sable product they - with a limited mindset - missed the boat with this simple feature which auto buyers and owners clamored for a lot more than styling and more chrome. The Lumina was essentially a lackluster me2 copycat product with side pockets in the doors wide and big enough only for a few folded maps. Only a Noel Vandal character , say , might purchase such a lackluster , copycat lowest of quality products off a used car dealers' lot or showroom.
Over time the original Austin Mini had several name, branding and even factory changes. Originally it proudly bore the names Austin and Morris when it made its debut in the market during 1959. However several name alterations were conducted over years, model and ownership and factory amalgamation changes. During 1969, Austin and Morris name was altered and became the Mini alone - as opposed to the two word terms "Austin Mini" and "Morris Mini". And in 1980, there was once again an alteration and turned out to be Austin. An extended selection of model was developed and created a station wagon or what might be called a van version. Yet during this time period all of these models were named Austin mini. In the long run, the name Austin was dropped and in full favor of the brand name Mini alone it was during the year 2000 that the last mini was built as a fully British product.
Austin minis have been widely used in car race competitions. This would definitely give you the idea that this car is a fast car. You would be able to see one in every race track there is. And the most important thing is, it constantly make it to the top. This car has been a winner in several significant contests. That is exactly the reason why this car, in this particular period of time, became one of the most well-liked. You will notice that Austin minis - even very old 60's vintage models are still functional today in most parts of the world especially in Great Britain. Nowadays, this vehicle is one of the most sought after collector's item. The demand is so great that collectors worldwide are willing to pay for overseas shipping just to have them. The cost of shipping from England to their own place maybe very costly but these collectors do not at all mind this. And the price value of this has tremendously increased. The functional Austin mini these days can be sold at a price much greater than the original brand new price. This is a very strong evidence of the uniqueness of this vehicle.
In the end if there is one footnote to early, pre-BMW Minis it was that people loved them. They honked at each other as they drove by. Mini clubs were formed worldwide. On top of that a sleeper racing version was built out of this tiny economy 4 cylinder car that would zoom ahead seemingly out of nowhere. This was the veritable Mini Cooper version of this automotive line.
About the Author:
In 1969, under the ownership of British Leyland, the Mini was given a facelift by stylist Roy Haynes, who had previously worked for Ford Motor Company of Canada. The restyled version was called the Mini Clubman, and has a squarer frontal look, using the same indicator/sidelight assembly as the Austin Maxi.
0 comments:
Post a Comment