Mini celebrates 60 years of production

Firm’s factory holds anniversary event bringing together a vehicle from each year since it was first launched in 1959

Car brand Mini has celebrated its 60th anniversary by bringing together a car from each year of production.

The first production car – built in May 1959 and simply known by its registration 621 AOK – led the event at the Mini factory in Cowley, Oxford.

At the other end of the firm’s timeline is the ten millionth Mini car produced globally, which rolled off the assembly line last month and also took part in the event.

Designed by Sir Alex Issigonis, Minis were born out of a demand for affordable motoring.

They became popular in the 1960s, featuring as getaway cars in movie The Italian Job and being driven by pop stars and fashion legends.

Cheap, easy to manoeuvre and with an unusual shape, demand for the cars has continued for six decades.

In July, the first fully electric Mini was unveiled in Cowley.

The zero-emission vehicle will be fully integrated into the production process, running down the same lines as conventionally-fuelled models.

Peter Weber, managing director of the Mini plants at Oxford and Swindon, said: “As we celebrate 60 years of our iconic brand and look towards an electric future, I would like to thank everyone who has made Mini such a global success, from my team here to the loyal customers and fans around the world.

“To see the ten millionth Mini roll of the production line here at Oxford was a moment of great pride for the whole team, a number of whom have relatives who were here building the very first Minis in 1959.

“This is a wonderful chapter in the Mini story and proof of the passion that our customers have for this very special British car.”

The plant’s longest serving employee, maintenance engineer Mick Fisher, said it was a “huge honour” to drive the ten millionth car out of the factory gates.

The 70-year-old, who began working there in 1984, added: “The Mini brand has come a long way since it launched, but one thing that hasn’t changed is its iconic appeal to drivers around the world.”

This is a wonderful chapter in the Mini story. PETER WEBER

Pictures: PA. Clockwise, from top: Noel Edmonds joins staff in 1986 to celebrate the production of 5,000,000 cars; A new Morris Mini-Minor, about to set off on a round-the-Mediterranean trial run in 1959; The assembly line at the British Motor Corporation’s Longbridge site in Birmingham as production of the Mini first began in 1959.