Anniversaries are a good time to look back. So let’s do just that. And let’s start in 1959. The British car designer Alec Issigonis sketched out the idea for the MINI on a napkin: a small, economical car that could still accommodate four people and their luggage. His solution was radical: front-wheel drive, the engine rotated by 90 degrees, the gearbox squeezed in beneath the engine, and smaller wheels. It was set to become the quintessential British small car. And there’s more: in the 1960s, John Cooper recognised the potential in the design and developed it into a rally car – which went on to win the Monte Carlo Rally. In fact, it won it three times: in 1964, 1965 and 1967.
This formed the basis for every MINI that was to follow. This was also the case in 2001, when BMW launched the modern MINI. The car is produced in Oxford, where the first MINI Classic rolled off the production line on 8 May 1959. It therefore makes perfect sense to name the anniversary edition marking the 25th birthday of the new model after its birthplace. The MINI Cooper Oxford Edition also celebrates its heritage with a roof design that’s impossible to miss – and which could hardly be more British.
