Mini Cars

Automobile manufacturers will have to leave the arena at one time or the other. Although a good share of them manages to cling on due to the thankfulness displayed by their client base, a few manufacturers had to exit the scene. A good example for one such reputed car manufacturer was Mini. The British Motor Corporation, official owners of the company ceased production by 2000 after a glorious era, which spanned approximately 41 years! According to auto enthusiasts, when Germany boasted about their Volkswagen Beetles, Britain showed with great admiration their Mini cars!

Why did the company name their cars' Mini? The "space saving" attribute of these cars was legendary. Almost all the Mini cars came with front wheel drive - in a time when automobile manufacturers considered it as a bane. Likewise, all the cars featured a two-door design; but could comfortably hold up to four people at the same time. One must know that this carmaker also dealt with the production of pick-up trucks, estate cars, a van and a jeep like contraption along with rally cars. The Mini Cooper S series is known well over the racing circles - in a track, sheer velocity does not play many roles; the driver has to maintain the stability of the vehicle while maneuvering corners in high-speed.

The reason for introducing the vehicle among the masses is interesting. By 1956, the region began to face a stiff rise in the crude oil costs. Commoners were finding it extremely difficult to keep up with the surging charges. The sovereign authority bestowed British Motor Corporation with the deed of developing a miniature car - it must carry the average British family, along with their luggage. Needless to state, the deed was already in the tracks and within a few years, the first Mini rolled out from the factory of BMC.

The automaker produced the initial generation of Mini cars in between 1959 and 1967. Initially, cars based on manual transmission systems came into existence. The company began to give a facelift to the existing suspension systems and furthermore, included an advanced four-speed automatic gear system in the subsequent years. From 1967 to 1973 saw the production of the Mini Mark II. By this time, the company began to work secretly on the Mini Cooper and the Cooper S variants. According to engineers deployed at that time, the company began looking into the probabilities of manufacturing a rally car back by 1961. The production of Mark III series began from 1970 and existed until 2000.

The traditional Mini cars came with an 848cc engine. In due course of time, the cubic capacity of the engines included in Mini cars became 997cc. Some of the relatively unknown and unseen aspects were already present in this small car. These include ventilated disc brakes for the front tires and twin carburetors. The company also began to concentrate on developing cars with slightly more powerful engines (1000 to 1300cc) segment. The Mini Clubman was a huge hit, and it gradually found its way even to Australia.

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