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A mini love
affair Having no great
liking for things British, it came as a great surprise when I myself
was pleasantly inflicted with the mini virus to become forever diseased
with the mini mania! The mini is
somewhat of a cult car. Tastes, fancies and a friendly toot when
you spot another provide the link between its many owners. The history
of the mini (car) is as complicated as the fancies of its owners.
Popularly known as the Mini Minor, it came in two brand names the
Austin seven and the Morris mini, both manufactured by the British
Motor Corporation. Some time later came the Mini Cooper and then
came along a whole heap of designs. And the company kept changing
as well. Finally, the mini, an utterly British car was taken over
by BMW, the German car-manufacturing giant. Since the original
mini - 'the classic mini' finally stopped production, the interest
in the car seems to have sky rocketed in Sri Lanka and many parts
of the world. Even the Americans with their affections for all things
big have taken to the little mini. The Japanese, champions of the
modern motorcar find the old fashioned mini irrepressible - from
souvenirs to spares they make them all. The front is
so small, it's amazing that an engine could be manipulated in to
such an undersized space - one of the amazing feats of the designer
Alec Issigonis. So the front really resembles a snout, with two
big round head lamps accommodated within the curves of the body,
as eyes. The front grille' gives it a cheeky look. What some call
'cute'. The rear is
as curvy and looks as good as the front! The bigger rear lights
of the later models, is a definite improvement on the looks. The car is
appealing to both the young and the not so young. Some go for the
very original car- factory specification maintained for generations,
while others prefer the countryman - the mini wagon, or the clubman
- an attempt and modifying the mini front that was later abandoned. And then there
is the mini moke, the mini jeep, a rare acquisition for any mini
enthusiast. The new Mini
is a lovely car but definitely not the same. (Including the price!) What people
have done to minis is beyond imagination but still plain to see!
Fog lamps, front grilles of different colours, wheels spaced out
and ballooned, turned into convertibles and even chopped and used
as trailers! You'll have to be blessed to see an original mini.
And that's part of the appeal of this versatile car - whatever you
do to it: it just looks better! Every mini
owner considered himself a bit of a mechanic. There is something
of pride involved in tinkering around your mini. The "do it
yourself" culture is an old and well-established one, browse
the Internet and you'll be surprised! Although made
for a maximum of four people, the mini is at its best with two or
even better, with only you in it. It's a handy car in those tight
traffic situations and has very good accelerating abilities; even
though things change drastically as the load increases. It was originally
designed with a 950cc engine, which the manufactures thought was
too fast for a small car! So came along the 850cc engine of the
first minis and later the 1000cc and then the monstrous 1275cc. While the mini
was originally intended as an economy car during the Suez Canal
crisis in the mid 1950's the place of the mini in rally is legendary.
Ever since John Cooper, the mini has been the choice of car in its
category for many. The Cooper S class was the best designed for
races with 1275 GT meant to be the clubman equivalent. What does it
feel like driving one of these things? Very real, from the moment
the engine turns on, you can feel and hear the vibes. And if the
road is a bit bumpy, you'll feel a good number of them. Unlike modern
cars, there is very little to dampen the engine vibes and the innovative
suspension that allows the car to be so low is not as good at softening
the ride (some models have a slightly different type of suspension).
Plus there's bound to be a bit of good old metal rattling somewhere.
So what's so
special about the mini, the unbelieving ask. It is both a beast
of burden if you want it to, economical and a good looker. And it
sure is a lot more fun in a mini! |
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