For example to begin with the Austin Mini – in its various forms is credited widely as being the inspiration for the global block buster car seller – the Honda Civic, which in itself set the basis and backbone for many of the current automobile models that we consider today as our basic standards. To start with the mini was a runt – no more than ten feet long between its bumpers – when automobiles on the roads and highways of the USA were boats and behemoths. On top of that compared to similar vehicles on the road, it had less than half the horsepower. Top that with an actual starter motor button on the floor back of the manual stick shift, located back (towards the rear window) of the floor mounted, through a hole in the floorboards, manual transmission stick.

Initially the car was released in two almost identical variations – an Austin badged product , and an identical product introduced into the marketplace as a “Mini Minor”. It seems that the two products were produced at two different factories and divisions in the U.K. – the Austin and Morris automotive factories. Part of this decision were production allotments – some centered on consumer marketing preferences. Just as in Canada and in the US where similar products from different automotive divisions of the same manufacturers had downright die hard fans and loyalists. In the same way that some auto buyers and consumers were die-hard Ford or Mercury “men”, while others preferred similar Pontiac products over Chevy branded autos – auto enthusiasts might swear by their nearly identical Austin Se7en’s or Morris Mini-Minors.

Yet this little mutant of a car not only had a low cost and external size, it held an innovative design that even though tiny in size it could seat 4 adults and perhaps 5. The secret was an adoption of front wheel drive with a transversely mounted engine and transmission. Now held as the standard, at that point in automobile history most autos were “rear wheel driven” with a large drive train running down the middle of the floor of the vehicle taking up passenger space and adding weight. Rear engine vehicles are simpler to build and maintain and less expensive to design, engineer and install at the factory level. Yet the heavy drive train not only adds weight to the vehicle, requiring a larger and heavier engine, it also takes away from interior passenger space. So the innovative design of the Austin Mini had great merit in allowing for a smaller vehicle, with a smaller engine that had a reasonable interior seating space, and had reasonable pickup all with less cost, and overall auto owner and motorist’s driving costs and budget.

Hence it is no accident that the Austin Mini became such a favored and revered role model for future designs and implementations along the path of the development of smaller and more fuel efficient vehicles.

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