By Pete Ridgard
It has to be said that Great Britain don't manufacture many mass-produced automobiles anymore, which is a great shame as some of the greatest names and brands in automotive history have been dreamt of and founded on these fair Isles. Amongst this pantheon of names are Rolls Royce, Bentley and Jaguar; all now either bought or outsourced by overseas companies in Germany and India. However, amongst the great lost prestige British car manufacturers of the past lies a rather cheaper jewel in the crown that won't be forgotten in a hurry. I speak of the Mini Cooper.
Now the Mini brand is owned by German manufacturer BMW, who have retained the original Mini's sense of fun and adventure. What has been lost is the affordability, which used to be the crowning glory of the Mini Cooper's name. Due to BMW's magic prestige touch, the Mini has been transformed from the young driver's first car of choice, to more of an upmarket 'yuppie-ish' mode of transport. With the basic models starting around the £10,000 ($16,000 USD approximately) mark, this really isn't a great opening price for the first time car owner.
What can be surmised by this is that BMW have altered the Mini brand from being a cute, fun and cheap car for British teenagers, to the cool, suave and upmarket runabout for the country's executives and estate agents. Whilst this may not be an entirely bad thing for the Mini brand, I do feel like some of what I loved about the original Mini has been lost in translation by the Germans.
You can still find the occasional BMW Mini bargain by checking the Used MINI market, but short of buying an ancient original Mini Cooper, you will struggle to find a good condition model for an affordable first-time buyer's price.
It has to be said that Great Britain don't manufacture many mass-produced automobiles anymore, which is a great shame as some of the greatest names and brands in automotive history have been dreamt of and founded on these fair Isles. Amongst this pantheon of names are Rolls Royce, Bentley and Jaguar; all now either bought or outsourced by overseas companies in Germany and India. However, amongst the great lost prestige British car manufacturers of the past lies a rather cheaper jewel in the crown that won't be forgotten in a hurry. I speak of the Mini Cooper.
Now the Mini brand is owned by German manufacturer BMW, who have retained the original Mini's sense of fun and adventure. What has been lost is the affordability, which used to be the crowning glory of the Mini Cooper's name. Due to BMW's magic prestige touch, the Mini has been transformed from the young driver's first car of choice, to more of an upmarket 'yuppie-ish' mode of transport. With the basic models starting around the £10,000 ($16,000 USD approximately) mark, this really isn't a great opening price for the first time car owner.
What can be surmised by this is that BMW have altered the Mini brand from being a cute, fun and cheap car for British teenagers, to the cool, suave and upmarket runabout for the country's executives and estate agents. Whilst this may not be an entirely bad thing for the Mini brand, I do feel like some of what I loved about the original Mini has been lost in translation by the Germans.
You can still find the occasional BMW Mini bargain by checking the Used MINI market, but short of buying an ancient original Mini Cooper, you will struggle to find a good condition model for an affordable first-time buyer's price.
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