MINI
The Mini is a small economy car
made by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors from 1959 until
2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s.
Its space-saving front-wheel
drive layout – allowing 80 per cent of the area of the car's floorpan to be
used for passengers and luggage – influenced a generation of car makers. The
vehicle is in some ways considered the British equivalent of its German contemporary
the Volkswagen Beetle, which enjoyed similar popularity in North America. In
1999 the Mini was voted the second most influential car of the 20th century,
behind the Ford Model T.
This distinctive two-door car was
designed for BMC by Sir Alec Issigonis. It was manufactured at the Longbridge
and Cowley plants in England, the Victoria Park / Zetland British Motor
Corporation (Australia) factory in Sydney, Australia, and later also in Spain
(Authi), Belgium, Chile, Italy (Innocenti), Malta, Portugal, South Africa, Uruguay,
Venezuela and Yugoslavia.
The Mini Mark I had three major
UK updates – the Mark II, the Clubman and the Mark III. Within these was a
series of variations, including an estate car, a pick-up truck, a van and the
Mini Moke – a jeep-like buggy. The Mini Cooper and Cooper "S" were
sportier versions that were successful as rally cars, winning the Monte Carlo
Rally four times from 1964 through to 1967, although in 1966 the Mini was
disqualified after the finish, along with six other British entrants, which
included the first four cars to finish, under a questionable ruling that the
cars had used an illegal combination of headlamps and spotlights.
On introduction in August 1959
the Mini was marketed under the Austin and Morris names, as the Austin Seven
and Morris Mini-Minor. The Austin Seven was renamed to Austin Mini in January
1962 and Mini became a marque in its own right in 1969. In 1980 it once again
became the Austin Mini and in 1988 the Rover Mini.
1.-True or False:
a) The Mini
was first made in 1960.
b) It was
manufactured only in England.
2.- Questions:
a) Who was the
distinctive two-door car designer?
b) What year was
the Mini voted the second most influential car of the 20th century in?
3.-Synonyms:
a) car (paragraph 2)
b) made (paragraph 3)
c) finish (paragraph 4)
d) renamed (paragraph 5)
