llanody: Mini Cooper Convertible 2011

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The Mini was originally a car model of British Motor Corporation, which in 1966 became part of British Motor Holdings. British Motor Holdings merged with Leyland Motors in 1968 to form British Leyland. Mini became a marque in its own right in 1969. In the 1980s British Leyland was broken-up and in 1988 Rover Group, including Mini, was acquired by British Aerospace. In 1994, Rover Group was acquired by BMW. In 2000 Rover Group was broken-up by BMW, with BMW retaining the Mini brand.

Mini Cooper Convertible

2011 Mini Cooper Convertible
The Mini Hatch/Hardtop, Clubman and Convertible are assembled at Plant Oxford in Cowley, United Kingdom, and the Countryman is assembled by Magna Steyr in Austria.

2011 MINI Cooper Convertible

The original two-door Mini was a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors from 1959 until 2000. It is considered an icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout (which allowed 80% of the area of the car's floorpan to be used for passengers and luggage) influenced a generation of car-makers. The vehicle is in some ways considered the British equivalent to its German contemporary, the Volkswagen Beetle, which enjoyed similar popularity in North America. In 1999 the Mini was voted the second most influential car of the 20th Century, behind the Ford Model T.

2005 Mini Cooper Convertible

This distinctive two-door car was designed for BMC by Sir Alec Issigonis. It was manufactured at the Longbridge and Cowley plants in England, the Victoria Park / Zetland British Motor Corporation (Australia) factory in Sydney, Australia, and later also in Spain (Authi), Belgium, Chile, Italy (Innocenti), Portugal, South Africa, Uruguay, Venezuela and Yugoslavia. The Mini Mark I had three major UK updates: the Mark II, the Clubman and the Mark III. Within these was a series of variations including an estate car, a pickup truck, a van and the Mini Moke—a jeep-like buggy. The Mini Cooper and Cooper "S" were sportier versions that were successful as rally cars, winning the Monte Carlo Rally four times from 1964 through to 1967, although in 1966 the Mini was disqualified after the finish, along with six other British entrants, which included the first four cars to finish, under a questionable ruling that the cars had used an illegal combination of headlamps and spotlights. Initially Minis were marketed under the Austin and Morris names, as the Austin Seven and Morris Mini Minor, until Mini became a marque in its own right in 1969. The Mini was again marketed under the Austin name in the 1980s.

2011 MINI Cooper Convertible

Mini Cooper 2011 Convertible

In the 1990s, BMW was looking to broaden its model range with the addition of a compact car and SUVs. This sparked a series of compact, concept vehicles during the early 1990s. The first were the E1 and Z13, powered by an electric motor and a rear mounted 1100cc BMW motorcycle engine, respectively.

2011 MINI Cooper Convertible

2011 Mini Cooper Roadster

2011 MINI Cooper Convertible
In early 1994, BMW purchased the Rover Group from British Aerospace, which amongst other brands, Mini. BMW insisted that even a compact model must feature iconic BMW characteristics (such as rear wheel drive) to uphold the brand's standards and image. The "MINI" brand, however, did not have any standards and BMW saw this as an opportunity to create a competitively priced, yet premium, compact car. This formed BMW's plan to launch the premium BMW 1 Series and the mid-range Mini.

Photo: 2011 MINI Cooper S

2011 mini cooper convertible

It was at around this time that Rover, too, was working on a successor the original Mini. Its first concept was the ACV30 which was unveiled at the 1997 Monte Carlo Rally. The name was partially an acronym of Anniversary Concept Vehicle, whilst the '30' represented the 30 years that had passed since a Mini first won the Monte Carlo Rally. The vehicle itself was a 2-door coupe powered by a rear-mounted MG F engine.