Think of the “Mod 1960’s” - Carnaby Street , Apple Records with the Beatles et al and most likely you will picture that cute little , or almost ugly “Austin Mini” motor-car vehicle. No doubt about it - the marvelous Mini set the stage for the worldwide acceptance of small front wheel drive , transversely laid out engines front wheel drive automotive car engine designs that we take for granted on our roads and highways today.

For example to begin with the Austin Mini - in its various forms is credited widely as being the inspiration for the global block buster car seller - the Honda Civic, which in itself set the basis and backbone for many of the current automobile models that we consider today as our basic standards. To start with the mini was a runt - no more than ten feet long between its bumpers - when automobiles on the roads and highways of the USA were boats and behemoths. On top of that compared to similar vehicles on the road, it had less than half the horsepower. Top that with an actual starter motor button on the floor back of the manual stick shift, located back (towards the rear window) of the floor mounted, through a hole in the floorboards, manual transmission stick.

Not only small but the Mini proved to be quite a fearsome competitor on the competitive rally circuit. Auto racing is the ultimate test of both a vehicle’s mettle , endurance and overall reliability that auto owner’s can expect during the lifetime of owning the product. Racing pushes the vehicle’s engine, power-train and its basic reliability and performance to the max. Unbelievably the little Mini won 3 major Monte Carlo events in a row , only having the fourth true win denied to it on a technicality. It seemed that the driver Timo M Skinen’s car was disqualified in the auto rally race after he took the “checkered flag”.

Yet it was not until 1969 that the two distinct and different badges - the Morris and Austin badges on the vehicle production lines were dropped in favor of the one product - that came to be known simply as the famed “Austin Mini”. The Austin Mini is seen by many in the vintage automotive , automotive history field as being the forerunner and design platform that the original Honda Civic small car economy line was based upon.

Hence it is no accident that the Austin Mini became such a favored and revered role model for future designs and implementations along the path of the development of smaller and more fuel efficient vehicles.

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