How the Classic Mini Survived the Launch of the Austin Metro
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- Опубліковано 6 сер 2024
- The original, Issigonis-designed Austin and Morris Mini is Britain's most successful car, but in the late 1970s, it was being outclassed by more modern competition, so British Leyland developed a new contender - the Austin Metro. It would look like a foregone conclusion, therefore, that the Mini would cease to be in 1980, but It lived on, and today on Twin-Cam, we're exploring why that was the case and how the Mini built itself a legacy and became a cult classic in its own time.
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This young lad is producing better content than the stuff I’m paying for on TV
Love the Mini videos looking forward to the next one👍🏻
I keep forgetting that many younger folks just don't get the importance and social impact the Mini had on the UK in the seventies and eighties. It was such a huge part of my life at the time that it's hard to imagine others not knowing what it was. Really good work Ed.
As proven by the way the way The Moody Blues used one as a continuity device in their 1986 “Your Wildest Dreams” music video. They use both a Mk1 and an ‘80s example: ua-cam.com/video/kmmPFrkuPq0/v-deo.html
My auntie had a the exact same blue mini city it was one of my earliest memories and the reason I got into cars. Quite emotional seeing that. It just shows that cars can be much more than just a machine
My Aunty gifted me a City in this colour as my first car. My best mate had a Mayfair in this colour as his. This could have been our drive back in the day. These cars had a massive impact on our lives, especially the community that came with. Great vid.
My Mum's friend had a Mini City on an X plate when I was a wee lad.
I loved the central Speedo and the sound it made.
Needless to say I sat in the back with no seatbelt on(as there was none) sliding form side to side ..
I went from ashby de la zouch to cornwall twice in the summer of 1980. Also had a girlfriend who moved to ayr in scotland & drove up there twice in 1978 too. Also up & down the M1 to leeds regular for years watching lufc. It only broke down on a long trip once, on the way back from grimsby v leeds 1982. Rac got me home. New head gasket the next day that I did myself, sorted it. Mini mk2 super deluxe it was. :)
The Mini was more than just a car, it was a way of life.
I remember in the 80s various family friends and relatives with Minis, they all loved them and they all had hectic lifestyles that kind of suited the car. In fact, a Mini was usually loved like a slightly naughty pet, creating a continuous source of stories and entertainment.
In those days a typical "trip to town" may include stopping at half a dozen different shops on different streets. This could be done faster in a Mini than almost anything else. Cities were far more car-friendly than nowadays with most streets open to traffic so the cheeky Mini was perfect for zooming around in the narrow side streets.
Worked at longbridge factory from 1985 to 1992 worked on mini and metro.remember the mini specials my favourite was the mini Ritz.and mini 30 nice colours and trim .
My friend had a Cooper S, I believe it was a 1967 model year purchased from Hollywood Sportscars. He was an actor and had just finished a movie with a well know actor who had just purchased a mini and recommended it as a stealth American muscle car destroyer. We did some modifications to help with that goal. I had a BSA so when we went out we were quite a mod pair around town. What a fun car to drive.
My mother had a 1989 Mini Mayfair ([F reg] same spec as the one on the vid), her third Mini. Her first was a green [F reg the other way round] Mini 1000 which I shared with her until I left home about two years later. That had replaced an A40 shooting break that we shared after I passed my test in summer 1972. Before that she had an A30 that I first drove at the age of 9.
That Mini Mayfair's antenna is so massive it's adorable
The 80s to the early 90s Minis are my favourite period of the Mini, especially after the 89 updates with the brake servo becoming standard. It becomes much more civilised and easier to drive but still without the complicated electronics in the form of an injection and ECU. My own 1990 Mini Mayfair II is also very special as it is a JDM Mini which means: air conditioning.
The soundproofing was added at that time IIRC. Mike Read (EastEnders Frank) did a voiceover for one of the new 'quiet minis' as I recall. A great civilising feature, but the A series engine buzz still made itself felt if not heard!
I agree. Well refined by that time, but before the early 90s electronics. I also have a JDM 1990 Mayfair in old English White. Have been having great fun with the car for 5 years now. Sadly, the Japanese owner removed the AC system prior to my buying it.
Tyrrell’s Classic workshop, Harry’s Garage and Twin Cam
Who could ever wish for more?
Thanks for this video Edd, love the basic Mini City, indeed the Mini is a British motoring icon, a car that’s on my bucket list to own one day.
Your research and delivery style is very good it’s nice to listen to somebody your age so enthusiastic about the cars that were current when I was growing up in the 80’s and 90’s.
Looking forwards to the “Cooper” video.
If they revived these exact cars, I'd probably buy one! Love them.
Had a metallic blue Mayfair. It was sublime I loved it .drove it hard everywhere and great mpg too.
I had a 1963 mk1 1071 Cooper S. Wonderful car. Wish I still had it.
Hi Ed, hope you're well....gotta say mate, this is your finest video yet! Thoroughly enjoyed it 😁
Nice one. My mate’s mum had an H-reg black Mini Studio 2 with the massive decals on the front doors.
Another great video Ed, excellent presentation as always and we all love a Mini Adventure, it's hard to believe the Mini has been around so long and it's loyal following it has, I was born when that City Model came out, my aunties ex husband had one and it rubbed of on me when I owned a Later BMW mini R56 that is a staple British icon like fish and chips.
Great video. We had one in brown. As well as being fun to drive and look at, they were easy to fix. Ours was stolen by some joyriders who trashed it and we managed to bring back to life and repair with scrapyard parts.
Yup, very easy to work on. I paid £60 for a 1979 Mini automatic in 1990, and it got slower & slower. So I bought a new cylinder head from a scrappie for £5, and fitted it myself in about an hour! It restored the power, as the old cylinder head valves had big holes in them LOL! Shortly afterwards the gearbox broke, so the whole car went to the scrappie :-(
Brilliant video and thanks for posting. I’ve learned a lot from your research. Thank you & can’t wait for the next one.
As always Ed, a meticulously researched and very engaging video detailing a period of BL’s history that I personally find fascinating - great job!
I genuinely appreciate your exposition of Mini history into the early/mid 1980’s. Every other video and website I’ve seen on Mini history seems to completely gloss this era over and ignore the car until the Cooper revival began in 1990 with the RSP cars and a retro-modern phase in its life began.
But I like the Mini as a car adapted for the ‘80s - especially in Mayfair form - as it embraced the necessary and then-fashionable plastic bits and technological improvements of the era.
Also, at what point were the estate, van, and pickup dropped? Did the estate ever revert to the round nose before it was canceled?
And you’re right. Its life in concurrence with the Metro allowed the Mini to be the Mini again and stand on its own rather than being seen as an aging car in an increasingly competitive segment.
Also, all you need as proof that this became the Mini’s lot post-Metro was the 1986 Moody Blues hit music video “Your Wildest Dreams,” where the camera pans from an early ‘60s Mini in black and white to a modern gray-bumpered Mini in the then-present day: ua-cam.com/video/kmmPFrkuPq0/v-deo.html
The Mini was allowed to be the Mini again, and endure as the singular car it was meant to be from the beginning.
Excelent content, very professional and well documented, congrats and thanks from Colombia.
I haven’t watched one of your videos in 2 years, have to say there’s been a transformation in that time! This was a really enjoyable look at the mini, well presented and researched
Always love your videos on Minis
A pleasure to watch! Thanks!
Thanks Ed. These days I forget just how popular the mini was in the 80s many of my friends had one.
A fantastic video. Excellent presentation and research. When I was a kid my parents always had some sort of a mini in the family. I was brought home from Hospital birth in a Cooper S. my Dad progressed on to company cars but mum kept on with the minis . When I was about 16 (1977) Mum bought a Toyota Corolla and never looked back. I taught my self to drive in her mini 1000 at age of 12 on our driveway and became quite good at handbrake turns in small areas.
This is information I didn't know I needed but it is most welcome!
Cheers as always Ed!🍷
Interesting!
I owned well used examples of a 1979 1000 and a 1990 `Racing Green' spec. The latter was much better in terms of quality.
I think that there were a few attempts to end Mini production in the 1980s and 1990s but it's a miraclethat is survived to 2000.
1987 to be precise, Austin rover MD Harold Musgrove wanted Mini cancelled as he felt it was poaching metro sales but a Xmas 1986 ad campaign 'minis have feelings too' reignited demand and nostalgia for it
@@sutherlandA1 I remember that advert!
I think that this Video is one of the bests you ever Made,
It is very informative!
This is excellent. A detailed and engaging narrative, high quality production topped with Twin Cam enthusiasm. Great work.
Haven't watched your videos for a while and pleased to see how professional and confident you've become in presenting. Well done!
Perfect Sunday afternoon viewing, thanks Ed 😊
I’m 1 year into owning a 1989 Mayfair. Never fails to put a smile on my face.
Another great video!
I can remember when I first drove the Metro and thinking "This is never going to work, it'll fail as everyone preferred the Mini". Guess I was right and wrong, the cult following is stronger but for some reason if I had to chose today, it would be a Metro, partly due to its practically and also, the rarerity.
Having driven both I would also say the legroom. There's only a tiny bit more room in the early metros but it's the difference between getting your knees under the steering wheel or having one leg either side of it. And I am a 31 inch leg so not exactly a giant.
Excellent. I'd rather watch Twin-Cam than Top Gear any day of the week! Thanks.
Great job Ed.
I remember my teacher at primary school having a blue one , 1978-1981. I think the registration was OLC 91P !
Excellent video, reminds me of the 80s all over again and making that tricky Mini or Metro buying decision. In the end, I went over to the Metro. I still miss both my Minis, though.
Another fine video, thank you. Really like the early '80s City, so faithful to the original car and devoid of unnecessary embellishments.
Seeing the two Minis together reminds me of the Christmas advert Minis have feelings too..
Brilliant video Edd -strange to think the Mini even outlasted the Metro-always loved the clubman nose -very successfull styling update.
Really interesting, thank you. I had no idea how much the Mini was improved at that time.
Another great automotive history lesson Ed. Well done
Very interesting video, thank you!
Fascinating and informative video, thank you!
I really do enjoy watching your content. There is an energy, Commitment, Enthusiasm and a certain style to the way you do them. and a hint of early TopGear with the cuts and pieces to camera. Now is all you need is to do a "Woollard" and end with a foot on the car. Awesome content. keep them coming.
I owned a Mini 1000 in the 80's, wonderful car that always brought a smile to my face. Sadly the Metro I replaced it with did exactly the opposite! Love your videos Twin Cam, better than the new so called Top Gear!
Brilliant as always Ed. I learnt to drive in a 1982 X reg mini and I always have to explain was a "classic mini" :-)
Very enjoyable, well done fella.
Very nice, I'm quite interested in the final years of the classic Mini.
And I love the two examples you found, Good job. 👍
Would be interesting to hear how it evolved into the 90s with multipoint fuel injection.
Great topic for you to cover. 🙂
Great video as always! Very informative too!👍
Hey man your content is really interesting for car lovers around the world.
The thing is your current camera is focus hunting a lot, I will definitely recommend you to either lock your auto focus, or get a Sony/Canon full frame mirrorless that has better tracking.
My grandfather liked them so much he has two as well as a Volvo 240.
One was a little wooden estate, the other the flat nosed later model.
Hi Ed,
Today we collected our (Dutch build) '18 Cooper convertible, but it's such a treat to see those eighties Mini's and hear some in depth information. Excellent!
One day, one day I need a classic Mini in my life. 😃😍
Well, take care mate, best wishes from the Netherlands my friend! 🇳🇱👍🏻
Great video, Ed. Love the mini. At 6'3, I'm even comfortable in one. Nervous but comfortable. It is so easy to forget just how TINY they truly are. They make my Volvo 240 Estate seem the size of a Rolls-Royce. The new 4 door Minis make the Mini look like a toy. I did really enjoy this, though. I remember when I could have walked into a BL showroom and driven out with a brand new one. Those were the days.
Brilliant video again Ed. Great stuff
Another brilliant video mate love the mini stuff.
If you keep up comments like that your wife will make you live in the garage 🤣. Do me a favour, share this video with our mate so that he knows what a Mini looks like 👍
My first Mini was a red 1983 Mayfair. Nice to see a blue one and hearing the backstory.
I now drive a MINI Paceman JCW as a family car.
Metallic paint of any color on a Mini just doesn't work.
What does work are your skills in editing and making essays both have improved greatly.
Cracking video Ed 👍 just sold our City.. I'll be in touch about that other mystery car (unrelated to Minis) you'll be featuring..
Good stuff mate. Looking forward to the Cooper vid.
Great little car, and great video!
In the 70s, when i was a kid, alot of moms in my neighborhood had one.
I would love to have one, beside my 1969 Alfa Romeo 1300 gt junior.
But here in Norway they skyrocketing in price.
I also think we can thank Rowan Atkinson for making the Mini famous for yonger people.
Another great video, as ever. Personally I would want an '84 on Mini with the disc brakes. Or if I were wealthy, do an original 60's Cooper S disc brake conversion.
Good video, just one little error, the 1275GT never came with alloy wheels as standard. It had steel wheels with wheel trims.
My first car was a 1982 Mini HL my Dad bought me for my 17th birthday. I always found it weird how the interior all looked like it had been stripped straight out of the Metro parts bin instead of looking like the older minis. First thing I did with it was pull off all the Austin Rover stuff and throw on chrome bumpers and grille and a set of alloys off an older Mini so let's just say the 1980s facelift wasn't too popular with a teenager in the 90s who was way more interested in making it look like it had just come out of the Italian Job.
Past my driving test in a 1982 Cinnabar Red Mini City similar to the blue one in November 1983 ( First Time Haha)
I LOVED my 1990 Mini Cooper John cooper special H153 WMB An absolute belter. Also check out the relative size on the aerial on the Mayfair! Hilarious.
Minis were and are great cars.
Lovely 80's Minis Ed
Loved the old minis (proper ones) the later 2001 ones are mmm o-k- the later bmw ones aren’t minis to me
I used to like the 1960 Minis the best, with small rear lights, and generally sober colours except red. There were the posh Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet models with the extended boot, and the 1980s Mayfair could be a more modern Elf/Hornet.
A rival to the Mini was the Hillman Imp, rear engined, built from 1963 to 1976. You will have to find an Imp and comment about its history.
Danke!
Love the Mini... what a car
There share the engine with the metro Great video keep up with the good work
My 1st memories of the mini was a ride in the back of a family friends. Even as an 8 year old boy the 80s mini felt cramped and interior very basic. Then it didnt want to start. Was a rainy day. Didn't like damp much. After about 20 attempts it finally burst into life. Was then obvious this had character and that characteristic gearbox whine and rorty sounding engine is responsible for quite a lot of it. It was certainly not comfortable, bounced around all over the place but it did feel fun in an unrefined kind of way and very nippy and easy to park. But I think you enjoy it more as a driver than a rear seat passenger. Compared to anything modern it is hilariously small. To even be able to seat 4 passengers in a car that size is impressive. There was probably more room in original as 80s had thicker seats.
The radiator being to the side was a major design flaw as there was nothing behind the front grille except the distributor cap. Mine only used to run on 3 cylinders in the wet until I got a marigold rubber love, cut the ends off the fingers and stuck it over the dizzy cap with the plug leads coming out of the fingers to keep the water out.
great cars 👍
Just plain fun to drive. Buggers to work on, though.
Ed, just started to watch the video and I am confident the content will be up to your usual high standard
Just noticed an issue with the footage as you open, the image zoom is fluctuating and I don't know if that is a post production issue or an issue with your cameras, just thought I'd point it out
Now onto the video!
Camera’s Autofocus! Impossible to do anything after the event, and impossible to detect while it’s happening.
@@TwinCam That's frustrating but anyway, the video was brilliant as always 🙂
I bought an '83 Mini City (bright orange) back in 1992. As a petrol head I felt I had to own a Mini at some point. But I didn't fall in love. Bus driver positioned steering wheel coupled with my 6ft frame struggling with the leg room killed any chance of that. They do have their charm of course, but not for me. I had a later Metro on an F reg.... far better car. Motor magazine's main problem back in '77 was the sound deadening. Which was not addressed until the imminent launch of the Metro. Pretty piss poor that, eh?
I would like to know what the yellow colour code is of the yellow mini seen on the production line shots. I'm restoring an 1980's mini 1000 automatic. And it looked like it whas sandglow, but it is realy faded. Thanks a lot if you could give me some information! (It is also shown in one of your video's about the cars catalog of 1976.)
That GT didn't have alloys, they were plastic wheel trims on its 12 inch wheels because the 1275GT had 8.4" disc brakes from 1976: before the Metro existed. They are the brakes they adopted across the range from '85.
Great video. I miss not having a Mini SOOOO much..!
And in Australia even a Rotten body without out Engine will fetch a $1000 AUD.
When I first got to Oz I was able to buy myself a Runner for $250 in 1980. Because No One wanted them..!
But with a couple of Kids and a Fussy wife.
I was forced to Sell it for a Ford Falcon 6 cylinder fuel Sucking Monster.
A few years later, Divorced & kids only now and Again..!
I wanted the Mini Leyland 1275.cc and had it until Some Twat T Boned me..!
And by then the Value was Climbing..!
So settled for the Ford Capri Convertible XR2 DOHC Turbo.
1600 cc 16 valves and fuel injection. Close enough..!
Kim in Oz. 😎
P.s Front wheel Drive too...!😎
In hindsight, BMC / BL lost all hope of being a viable concern in 1953 - that was the point at which a ruthless programme of rationalisation was needed. The only truly world class design in all their various marque ranges was the Minor - if they were serious about winning BMC would have invested massively into making it superior in competitiveness to the VW in all respects (let's face it, it already was by design.)
True faith in Issigonis' design, incremental improvements in quality and laser like focus would have made the Minor unbeatable. Same approach to the Mini would have ensured immortality for BMC.
Aw well, at least we have the cars we got...and what cars they are!
Drive one of these Minis on a winding road and if you're not grinning from ear to ear after the first mile then I'm afraid you're clinically dead !
PS i had a real Austin 1300 gt 4 Doors saloon engine 1275 cc with vinylroff and All the trimmlngs and Also a morris marina 1800 tc coupé souped it up awsome 150 hp a dangerous topspeed about 180 km ph so i know about bmc cars i AM a mecahnic bmc ret, i AM 70 years old and I love cars
If I remember rightly the 9X was a bit like the Metro.
Did you see a max power escort cab in the barn..rover colour
Been watching a UA-cam channel reviewing a classic mini but it been converted to a battery 🔋 what is it with that it's this guy as took the classic out of the car by putting a battery in a classic you can't beat the sound ot that mini engine glad those you review are still mint classic with a classic engine
I had a D reg City E and then an L reg Rover Mini Cooper. The City E seemed to always need work doing to it but this work was always cheap. The Cooper was great fun but the electrics were a joke, particularly the immobiliser (the sort with the plastic key you held to the steering column until the red light went out). I had an absolute hatred of Rover for seemingly wrecking this car for many years after I'd sold it and moved onto much more reliable cars.
Both of them are mannual not automatic, I've got one that's from 1996 with it's automatic gearbox only it has a mannual purpose such as one two three and D for Drive, don't get puzzled my mini has two pedals all you do is back off the exelerator pedal if you want to change gears, you might look at my films of the car as I did a few drives with it.
I don’t understand what you’re referring to?
@@TwinCam My 1996 Classic mini.
I swear, if the Mini is brought back - it will sell like hotcakes
@@barnbersonol To add to this, parking is getting more and more ridicilous with how large cars have gotten. The Mini is a near-perfect blend of practicality and phisycal size. In my country, most of the in-city speeds have been lowered to 50 km/h with regional roads topped at 80-100 km/h depending on the road. Motorways are still speedy, but invaded by tolls.
Mi piacciono tanto le auto piccole a misura di parcheggio, ma la mini era si bella ma troppo piccola. La metro la trovavo perfetta e la cosa che più mi piaceva era l'ampia superficie vetrata.
Wasn’t the first metro was sold as Mini metro ?
wasn't FIAT still banging out the 126 AND the Panda below the Uno at this stage? There is always a market for a cheap new motor - go ask Dacia
i wished id got a mayfait instead of the city x - in a city x you basically got nothing not even brakes.
In the eightys the mini should of had a fifth gear speed. So it could be more economical on fuel.
Younger people will no doubt be surprised when I say, when I was a child in the 80s, original mini as considered a banger car…not a status car…not desirable like the one in 2022.
The Metro (in its original form), tho even that was considered a bit “not sure”….was still rated better than a mini.
….that is how far behind or out of date mini was during the 1980s.