Introduced in 2002, the MINI Cooper was actually a recreation of a small, fuel-efficient, innovative car that first appeared in the late 1950s in Great Britain. The original Mini was built in response to the Suez Canal Crisis of 1957, which sent gas prices soaring in England. Alec Issigonis, an engineer with the Morris Company, was given the challenge of building a small, fuel-effient, innovative, and affordable car.
The result was the Mini, which was launched in 1959, gained popularity in the 1960s, and remained popular with British and European drivers into the 1990s. However, after the late 1960s the car was not sold in the United States due to emissions regulations.
In 1999, the original Mini was named the European Car of the Century. That same year, BMW, which had purchased the Mini's parent company in the mid-1900s, introduced its concept of a new MINI at the Paris Auto Show. That became the basis for the new MINI production car, which first appeared in showrooms in 2002.
The new MINI (now all in caps) retained the same basic looks of its iconic ancestor, with a boxy cabin and the wheels pushed all the way out to the sides to create more interior room, although the new MINI was larger and more powerful than its predecessor. Design elements, such as the taillights, fender, and roofline, all mimicked similar elements in the 1960s-era Minis, while interior components such as the center console, instrument panel, switches, and air vents all drew inspiration from the classic Minis.
The new MINI Cooper was a front-wheel-drive, two-door hatchback. In its first few of years, it was available in both Standard (Base) and S trim packages, with the S-designation models powered by a supercharged 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine that produced 163 horsepower.
In 2005, the MINI lineup was enlarged with the introduction of the convertible MINI, which like the hatchback model was available in both Standard and S versions. The convertible MINI was equipped with a powered soft-top roof that opened fully in just 15 seconds, or could be opened partially over the front seats like a sunroof.
In 2007, the MINI hatchback models (but not the convertibles) received a complete redesign, and grew slightly in size (for safety reasons). However, the MINI was still the shortest car in the U.S., but also one of the widest. The manufacturer calls this a bulldog stance -- short and wide, with the wheels pushed all the way out to the corners. And it's this short, wide stance that gave the MINI its nimble, go-cart-like handling and impressive stability over the road.
Although the new design of the 2007 MINI hardtop resembled the models of the previous years, every exterior panel was updated and reshaped, according to the manufacturer. The 2007 MINI was a little more than two inches longer than previous models, with a new grille, hood, headlights, and taillights, as well as higher shoulders and a reshaped roof designed to improve aerodynamics. A redesign of the MINI convertible is planned for a later year.
