Morris Minor

This article is about the motor car manufactured by Morris Motors Limited from 1948 until 1971. For the Morris Minor manufactured by Morris Motors Limited from 1928 to 1933, see Morris Minor (1928).

Morris Minor
Morris Minor 1000 4-door saloon
Overview
ManufacturerMorris Motors (1948–1952)
British Motor Corporation (1952–1968)
British Leyland (1968–1971)
Thai Motor Corporation (1968–1971)
Production1948–1971
1,619,958 produced [1]
AssemblyUnited Kingdom: Cowley, Oxford, England
Malaysia
Thailand
Malta
Australia[2]
New Zealand[3]
South Africa[4]
DesignerSir Alec Issigonis
Body and chassis
ClassEconomy car[5]
LayoutFR layout
Dimensions
Wheelbase86 in (2,184 mm)[6]
Length148 in (3,759 mm)
Width60 in (1,524 mm)
Height60 in (1,524 mm)
Kerb weight1,708 lb (775 kg) (four-door saloon)
Chronology
PredecessorMorris Eight
SuccessorMorris Marina

The Morris Minor is an economy car produced by British marque Morris Motors between 1948 and 1971.[7] It made its debut at the Earls Court Motor Show, London, in October 1948.[8] Designed under the leadership of Alec Issigonis, more than 1.6 million were manufactured in three series: the Series MM (1948 to 1953), the Series II (1952 to 1956), and the 1000 series (1956 to 1971).

Initially available as a two-door saloon and tourer (convertible), the range was expanded to include a four-door saloon from September 1950. An estate car with a wooden frame (the Traveller) was produced from October 1953 and panel van and pick-up truck variants from May 1953.[9] It was the first British car to sell over a million units,[10] and is considered a classic example of automotive design,[11] as well as typifying "Englishness".[12][13][14][15]

Although Morris launched a new model with a similar name and a similar market positioning, the Morris Mini in 1959, the Minor remained in production for more than a decade after that, and in early 2020, its 23-year production run was counted as the twenty-eighth most long-lived single generation car in history by Autocar magazine, who called it: "... a primary way Britain got back on the road after the Second World War."[16]

  1. ^ Newell (1993) p.79
  2. ^ Davis, Pedr (1986), The Macquarie Dictionary of Motoring, Dee Why, N.S.W., Australia: Macquarie Library, p. 337, ISBN 0949757357, OCLC 27630877
  3. ^ Webster, Mark (2002), Assembly: New Zealand Car Production 1921–98, Birkenhead, Auckland, New Zealand: Reed, p. 1, ISBN 0-7900-0846-7
  4. ^ "The History Of The Morris Minor". The Morris Minor. MMOC South Africa. 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2024. In South Africa, the assembly of these CKD kits took place at the Motor Assemblies Limited plant in Durban. In addition a few hundred "Minors" were assembled at the BMC plant at Blackheath in the Western Cape. (Local South African figures suggest that some 33 333 vehicles were produced at these two plants).
  5. ^ Boddy, Bill (July 1957). "Trial of the Morris Minor 1,000". Motor Sport magazine. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  6. ^ Cardew, Basil (1966). "Review of the 1966 Motor Show". Daily Express. London: Beaverbrook Newspapers.
  7. ^ "Morris Minor (1948–1971)". honestjohn.co.uk. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  8. ^ "60th Birthday Celebration at British Motor Industry Heritage Centre, Gaydon". UK: Morris Minor OC. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
  9. ^ Paul Skilleter's book "The world's supreme small car Morris Minor"
  10. ^ Willson, Quentin (1995). The Ultimate Classic Car Book. DK Publishing, Inc. ISBN 0-7894-0159-2.
  11. ^ Nominate England's greatest icon, (from BBC news.com) Quote: "Design classics like Alex Issigonis' Morris Minor car could be competing alongside great artworks like Constable's Haywain and pieces by JMW Turner"
  12. ^ Pender, Karen (1995). The Secret Life of the Morris Minor. Goldmanstone, Dorset, UK: Veloce Publishing. p. 7. ISBN 1-874105-55-3.
  13. ^ The Morris Minor: A British miracle Strange to say for something that acquired a reputation for essential Englishness Telegraph.co.uk
  14. ^ Kathryn Hughes The Guardian, Saturday 6 December 2008 Article history quote: But if the Morris has a tendency to diminish physically as the years progress, culturally it has been busy laying down rich stores of fat. Indeed, so identified has the car become with a particular reading of Englishness
  15. ^ Prince Frederick (29 December 2009). "Fifty-one, but still a Baby". The Hindu. Morris Minor models, believed to "typify Englishness", were in the ascendant
  16. ^ Survivors: The world’s longest-living cars – AutoCar