I had a conversation with my ( older) cousin last night and we talked about why Mini couldn't make its sale in the US 1960'S. He siad because the US block the import but I read somewhere that the American people do not like this small car becuase of the small engine and NO Power.

Anyone know about this ?

 

>>I had a conversation with my ( older) cousin last night and we talked about why Mini couldn't make its sale in the US 1960'S. He siad because the US block the import but I read somewhere that the American people do not like this small car becuase of the small engine and NO Power.
>>
>>Anyone know about this ?

Think Lucas Electrics. According to Patrick Paternie, in his book
MINI, reliability issues killed the car here. The VW Bug was much more reliable, and it was also a small car with no power. They just made the last Bug a couple of weeks ago in Mexico.

 

I thought a lot of it was saftey issues also? Either way, the Mini is just not a car that's made for americian style roads....

Rocketboy_X

 

There were many factors, safety, reliability etc. Also the 1960's was the hey day of the muscle cars in the US, why would you want a little mini cooper when you could get a low priced domestic car with lots of power. Its true the mini wouldnt do well on our huge freeways and highways, the mini was made for cities with small roads and very little room.

 

 

I was RIGHT!

Oops that was Ray!

 

My understanding is that the sales were low because of the small engine in the muscle car era. The reason BMC stopped exporting to the US was that in 66 (?), the US brought in a bunch of new safety and emissions regulations that BMC decided it would be cost probitive to meet.

 

Good Job Ray! *pats self on back*

 

>>My understanding is that the sales were low because of the small engine in the muscle car era. The reason BMC stopped exporting to the US was that in 66 (?), the US brought in a bunch of new safety and emissions regulations that BMC decided it would be cost probitive to meet.
>>
Then my understanding was right. The Mini at that time not match w/ the big street in US. American people like big car not becasue of your government band to protect domestic car.
But this time new MINI make a debut in US, V fall in love in the character and new power, right?
Stability this time, U think it's because of BMW engineering?

 

I dunno about BMW engineering, never owned a BMW, but the new MINI is no more stable or nimble than a classic Mini. More power, yes. More weight to drag around with the increased power, also yes. More length, width, height, yes, yes, yes.
In my opinion, handling is very slightly worse in a MINI than a Mini (with the old 10" Minilite mag wheels of course).

 

1967 was the last import year for many British cars (A-H 3000 and Sprite, Mini, etc) because of emissions, safety and bumper/headlight height regs.

In 1968 they jacked up the poor MGB a couple of inches and put black bumpers on to comply, but it looked ridiculous.

And, most young guys wanted muscle cars, not great handling little Brits that were not especially cut out for the Interstates.

My 1966 Mini "S" (bought used) was problem free, a very sturdy, reliable car. But with all the deViles and Buick 225's rolling around, you had to pay attention! Now the big boats have been replaced with SUV's.

Regards,
Red

 

Give Red and a couple others cigars! They hit it on the head. It wasn't cost effective for the English companies to try to comply with the safety/emission standards the US put into place. The few cars they tried it on were ruined by the changes. Sales declined to the point they pulled them out of the market.

Up until that point sales in the US market were actually on the increase as more Americans found out the joys to be had owning one of the cars.

 

There were several reasons the original Mini failed to cartch on in the 1960's. I had a 1964 1071 Cooper S, and when it ran it was a great car.

Reliability: It was only fair, and parts were often difficult to find. There was, of course, no internet, no UPS, and not all that many dealers. When common parts like the SU electric fuel pump failed, a Sprite, Midget, or MGB pump could be fitted. Same for lost gas caps, etc. But when a Spicer joint failed (constant velocity joint that connects the drive halfshaft to the front wheel hub), it took over 8 months for the local dealer to get one from England! Rust was common, rustproofing was rare.

Competition: There were a lot of small and micro car makers in the late 50's, early 60's. Cars smaller than the Corvair or Falcon were indeed oddities in the US, and the main reasons are stated above. Americans just plain didnt need tiny, fuel-efficient cars, and they didnt sell except to enthusiasts and misers! I was a college student, and an enthusiast, but I sure liked getting 25+ mpg.

Jan. 1, 1968 and the advent of the new US safety regs ended (or neutered) a lot of good Euro cars importation to the US, including Mini. :???:

 

Not many of the comments address specifically why VW could be successful with the bug and the mini was not. I doubt if the full market for small cars was entirely satisfied by the VW bug... but at least the VW had a reputation for reliability and was extraordinarily easy to fix. I am *constantly* amazed at how well VWs are engineered from a home mechanics point of view. Until 1993+ Vws came along, almost everything on those cars could be done with a reasonable set of tools.

I was reading the history of the mini in the showroom the other day and they specifically mention that the new US DOT regulations in the late 60s as the specific reason for the end of the mini in the US.

 

Being old enough to have been around then and in the import car business then also, there were MANY reasons.
#1 Austin lost money on every Mini they sold back then!!! Yes, its true.
#2 Small and variable quality BMC dealer network in US. Most were Mom & Pop shops or adjuncts to US dealers. Hard to find parts & service. There weren't many people who worked on ferr'n cars. were the hell would you get 10" tires????
#3 The Bug was huge compared to a Mini, comparably priced ($1,200) and built like a little tank then. Mom & Dad felt kids would be safer in the bug. Honda, Datsun & Toyota were just in their infancy, BTW and were as rare (except CA) as the Mini in the mid 60's. The Honda 600 wasn't around til 70 or so. The Civic maybe 72? ALL *** cars were absolute rust buckets then! As was the Mini.
#4 Gas was $0.25-0.30/gallon who cared about economy????
#5 1968 was the first year of safety stds (glass, seat belts, collapsible steering columns, etc.) and EPA smog systems.Too costly to fit to a car you're already losing money on.
#6 1974 marked the bumper stds (blech) and further tightening of EPA regs
#7 The Mini was ill suited to freeways & long distance trips by American stds.

Had a 60 Morris Mini Minor & a 74 Mini 1000.