MINI celebrates its 60th anniversary with the rollout of its 10 millionth vehicle, a MINI 60 Years Anniversary edition, from the company’s facility in Oxford. To celebrate this special occasion, MINI reached out to 60 car owners and featured one MINI from each year of production.
The classic MINI, designed by Alec Issigonis was launched in 1959. The vehicle revolutionised the automotive world and it was produced at Oxford until 1968, before moving to Longbridge, near Birmingham, where it continued to be built until October 2000. Between 1959 and 2000 more than 5.3 classic Minis were built. The brand grew strong post-2001 under the BMW ownership. The company claims that last year nearly 400,000 MINIs were sold in 110 countries across the globe. Daily output at Oxford has grown from around 300 cars a day in 2001 to around 1,000 today. The 4,500 member workforce at Oxford produces one new MINI every 67-seconds.
Speaking on the occasion, Peter Weber, managing director, MINI Plant 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 10 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.”
Since 2000, over £2 billion has been invested by BMW Group in its UK manufacturing sites and, at Oxford this has included an extension to the plant's body shop and new facilities in the paint shop and final assembly areas. In November 2019 the MINI Electric will begin production at Oxford and mark the beginning of a new era for the brand. The current car models built at Oxford include the three and five-door MINI Hatch and MINI Clubman. Around 80 per cent of MINIs built in Oxford is exported. The Convertible and Countryman models are built in the Netherlands.
