This month we will be looking at the history of one of the most famous cars from this country.

Its iconic style and its ability to keep reinventing itself has made it one of the most popular makes in the world.

The MINI you know and love originally began in August 1959 where it was better known as the Morris MINI Minor and the Austin Seven, it wasn’t until 1961 that it took on the name Austin MINI, then just 8 years later it became a marque in its own right.

The unique design of the MINI captured the hearts of many with its transverse-engine, front-wheel-drive layout and incredibly compact dimensions. It quickly became the best-selling British car in history, with a production run of 5.3 million units.

It filled the hole that was missing at the time, little did they know it would shape and influence many makes and models after its launch.

1994 brought in a change for the Mini as it was officially bought by BMW and talks of designing an all new MINI began.

Even though the MINI had changes applied to the engine and to the exterior design, the basic fundamentals not change and the MINI grew in popularity until 2000 when the final model rolled off the production line.

In 2001 BMW decided to launch a new take on the MINI, of course, sticking to its original concept but presenting a more modern version they felt applied more to the current time.

Despite some mixed reviews on this new version of the beloved model it went on to be just as successful as it was before, and it hasn’t stopped there.

Since 2001 BMW has continued to stretch the original idea of what a MINI could be, there is now the Countryman (not so mini), the Roadster and the Clubman just to name a few, and be sure that this is not the end.

The MINI may have come a long way from 1959 but it has proved itself as one of the most withstanding models in recent history.

If you have found this to be an interesting article, then why not tweet us @MotorRange and tell us what other make you would like to know the history of #MakeHistory.

Click here for all the MINIs we currently have in stock.

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