For many people, a vehicle is a tool with a job to perform. Only when specific needs are met do they consider other attributes. Sports cars may be beautiful, but if you need to transport heavy loads, they aren't very practical. That doesn't mean functional vehicles have to be an eyesore or lack in performance. Some people find the side cladding on Chevrolet's new Avalanche to be rather--to put it politely--unattractive. Yet love or hate the looks, this is a vehicle that sets new standards for versatility. It can be reconfigured into a pickup, an SUV, or both, and it offers a 4WD option, holds up to six people, and tows hefty trailers. This is a big truck that fits big needs.

          Perhaps most symbolically, the Mini also emerged as a British icon in the 1960s, the decade where Britain showed off the style embodied in its pop music and fashion industries, and apparently discarded many of its post-war, class-bound rigidities. Emblematic of the ‘Swinging Sixties’, along with the Beatles, the mini-skirt, and symbolic places such as Carnaby Street, the Mini was heralded as a cheap car available to a newly confident working class, but was simultaneously coveted by the fashionable rich. The car operated as a trendy acquisition, which offered status in various ways. Thus, in order to maintain forms of distinction, customizing the vehicle was a popular activity especially amongst its wealthier owners; also, its flexible affordability enabled it to be adapted as the Mini-Cooper, a sporting car which won rallies. The accretion of symbolic values was also reflected in the film the Italian Job (significantly featuring archetypal English actors from opposite ends of the class spectrum, Michael Caine and Noel Coward) where a ‘cheeky’ (a term also frequently applied to the Mini) gang of British criminals stage a successful bank robbery in Rome, using a fleet of minis as get-away cars because their small size and steering capabilities were well suited to the winding route used to escape.

          This mobilization of competitive Britishness is beautifully exemplified in the campaign to launch the vehicle, which utilized a spectacular aerial photo of 804 minis in Union Jack formation (see Golding, 1994). And the familiar national rivalry with Germany also emerged. Having created the Volkswagen ‘beetle’ as the German people's motor car during the Third Reich and later successfully exported it, before the advent of the Mini the lesser charms of the Bubble-car were foisted on the British market. This led one patriotic commentator to announce that ‘every engineer wanted to burst the bubble cars that were popping out of Germany’ (Scott, 1992: 10).

          It is interesting that while the ‘high’ cultural values of exclusive cars like the Rolls, the Jaguar and the Aston Martin conjure up a traditional Britain, the Mini offers a more democratic world which resonates with the efflorescence of British popular culture and its successful marketing – like the Mini – to overseas markets. Thus we see the reincorporation of a material object into a distinctive kind of national identity, which distinguishes itself from foreigners but draws on a wider range of gendered and class imagery to proffer a more inclusive identity. Building on its success in European markets, Mini (an independent international brand within the BMW group) is turning its attention to African markets. According to the company, a number of studies are underway and it seems likely that the car will shortly be introduced to selected North African markets.

          In designing the new Mini, the engineers gave particular attention to a relatively long wheelbase and a low centre of gravity. This is faithful to, and creates an echo of, that classic Mini styling pioneered by the legendary Alec Issogonis nearly half a century ago. Like its famous predecessor, these characteristics provide unique road-holding capabilities and fuel economy. Designed to be a 'real' Mini right from the outset, the new car is authentic in both its looks and many of its technical features. The design of the engine hood and the large round headlights are reminiscent of the original Mini's special character. The extremely short rear end - the side sections rising up steeply - and the assertive design of the rear lights give the new Mini a compact, muscular appearance. Even at rest, the new Mini has a dynamic quality.

          A motoring legend reborn, the new BMW designed and engineered Mini has won plaudits from just about every quarter for retaining classic Mini qualities - not least fuel economy and driver satisfaction - allied with cutting-edge technology. Is it a worthy successor to the original? Stephen Williams believes so, and takes his cap off to the Munich car maker with a round up of other offerings from the BMW stable.

BMW Mini in US

          Of these, the Mini is a curiosity in a market that worships big and powerful vehicles. The folks at BMW, however, think the Mini will make waves. Dealers are hot to have them. Mini franchises will be awarded to 70 BMW dealers in major metropolitan cities across the United States, including Detroit; Seattle; Boston; Portland, Ore.; San Francisco; Columbus, Ohio; and Minneapolis.

          Minis make sense in Europe, but in United States in the land of pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, the tiny transports seem in danger of becoming road-kill. But who knows, if the cost of gasoline keeps rising and the economy continues to fall, Minis could start looking mighty good. While the base vehicle will be available with a 1.6-liter, 115-horsepower engine, a supercharged 160-horsepower engine also will be offered. That ought to be enough screaming horses for this midget to keep from falling underfoot.

          Mini is different because BMW had to take a car which should have been pensioned off years ago and remix its characteristics with modern engineering. In silver with a black roof, the Mini Cooper looks the business. BMW continues the Cooper tradition and the combination sets off the car's lines beautifully. Mini keeps its wheels-in-the-corners look and enough of the old lines to ensure it couldn't be any other car. But now it has a sturdier and sportier profile. Some fans of the 20th-Century Mini hate it, yet most with an objective view see it as a winner. The interior has been executed with similar confidence. A big speedo was always in the centre of Mini's facia and still is. As soon as you get behind the wheel, you know you're in a Mini. Drive it, and you get a kick from the same handling feel as the original, except that it's now a more comfortable car.

          Everybody loved the original. It was the motorized marvel that summed up the second half of the 20th century. Well now there's no doubt about the success of the little beauty. In just over two years more than 500,000 Minis have been built at Cowley and around 75 per cent of them have been for export. Initial forecasts by the company predicted that the plant would build 100,000 Minis a year, but worldwide demand has brought the half-million milestone two years early.

          The States can't get enough of them. Nearly 80,000 have been shipped over the pond and demand isn't slackening. One who hadn't driven the Cooper version for a long time, and had honestly forgotten just how good it is. It looks great for a start with those muscular lines, low-slung road- hugging shape and wheel at each corner design. Then there's the interior. Unconventional to say the least.

          Retro meets modern with a huge silver- framed speedo - just like in the original Mini dominating the dash while the rev counter sits on the steering column, directly in the driver's vision. The speedometer also houses the fuel level gauge, clock, coolant temperature and tyre pressure warning indicator. Just the right amount of brushed aluminum appears in the door panels, on the fascia and around the dash, handbrake and gearstick base, while the switches operate toggle-style, like on an aircraft. Even tall drivers are catered for, as the long runners allow front seats to be slid right back till they're touching the rear cushion. But it's still a squeeze in the back with room only for kids or vertically-challenge adults.

          There's not much space in the tiny boot either - 150 litres - but this isn't a family car, especially the Cooper version which is most likely to be driven had by the same young owner most of the time. That's what the Mini is all about. It hugs the road like a go-kart thanks to a combination of the excellent chassis technology and a stiff body-shell. The driving experience, especially out on country roads is sheer enjoyment with superb steering characteristics, great feedback from the steering and a five-speed gearshift action which is both slick and accurate. The Cooper's 1.6 liter all-alloy engine kicks out 115 bhp which gives it lively performance, quick acceleration and good cruising capabilities.

          All models of the Mini have four disc brakes, ventilated at the front for extra stopping power. The system also has an anti-locking feature, electronic braking distribution and cornering brake control, which is designed to protect the over-enthusiastic driver. Minis are like bulldogs: Squat, blocky and cute. They've got distinctive round eyes, headlights and the wheels are pushed to the four corners for more space and better handling. The car's star turn in last year's "The Italian Job" sparked interest in this racy little number less than 12 feet long.

          The Mini dates to 1956, when a fuel crisis prompted the Brits to design a gas-friendly car. Sales spiked after the queen got behind the wheel of one. The car is named for legendary British racer John Cooper, who beefed Minis up for the track in 1961. Today's sportier Mini tops out at 135 mph, but critics have dinged the base model for wimpiness under the hood and - surprise, surprise - scarce room for passengers and cargo.

          Still, the Mini is comparatively cheap starting at $17,000 to $20,000, and it's a "fingerprint type of car" different for each owner, said George Stanley, general sales manager of Rasmussen BMW/Mini in Portland, Oregon's sole Mini dealership. You can design your Mini virtually from scratch on the company Web site, adding the options that you want - paint jobs, wheel styles, cruise control, roof decals, etc. - without being forced to buy a "package" with options you don't want. Nowhere is the Mini owner's flourish for individuality more evident than on the roof: People are painting everything from Union Jacks to skull-and-crossbones to rocker David Bowie up there.

References

Golding, R. (1994) Mini: 35 Years On, Bath: Bath Press.

Scott, G. (1992) Mini: A Celebration of the World's Ultimate Small Car, London: Hamlyn.

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