(from Mini Press
Release) From 1964 to 1967 Mini dominated the Monte Carlo
Rally, setting the foundation for its legendary reputation as a
highly agile and nimble sports car. Now, commemorating the 100th
birthday of Sir Alec Issigonis, the creator of Mini in the year
2006, and as a re¬minder of the outstanding victories scored by the
Mini brand some 40 years ago, MINI Concept Geneva offers an
up-to-date interpretation of the small British racer in its great
days. In particular, this new concept model presents the core idea
of the Mini Traveller, Mini Countryman, and Mini Clubman Estate in a
highly progressive new model variant.
Powerful and elegant looks.
The overall impression
conveyed by MINI Concept Geneva is one of strength and muscle, with
particular emphasis on individual details such as the car’s wheel
arches, its shoulder line and powerdome. MINI Concept Geneva
is a clear statement – the car has stance, looks strong and
powerful, but is also elegant at the same time.
Cleverness typical of MINI in this
special concept.
One of the fundamental
ideas in developing MINI Concept Geneva was to make the entire car
easy to enter and load. Accordingly, the driver’s/front passenger’s
and rear doors all come on special mounts with parallelogram
kinematics swivelling in one single movement to the side and to the
front and thus offering maximum access to the interior. The rear
side sliding windows open electrically.
Cargobox in the luggage
compartment.
The luggage compartment
of MINI Concept Geneva features a flexible Cargobox with its lid
extending out to the rear whenever required to assist the user in
loading cargo. The transparent cover on top of the Cargobox also
swivels up whenever required, acting as a partition between the
passenger compartment and the luggage area.
Sports Utility Box as a
multi-purpose storage compartment.
The Sports Utility Box
is a multi-functional, additional storage compartment clipped on to
the opened rear side window. It features flaps on either side
facilitating the process of loading and unloading the Utility Box
both from outside and from the passenger compartment, and allowing
the driver or passengers to pass through objects transported very
practically from one side to the other.
Satellite Silver metallic
paintwork and neoprene contours.
MINI Concept Geneva
stands out in its beautiful silver paintwork in the light, all
points not directly in the beholder’s line of vision being kept in a
more discreet grey. Red highlights, in turn, give MINI Concept
Geneva a particularly dynamic touch. Soft, resilient neoprene is
featured on the black side band so characteristic of the car,
extending along the side sills and wheel cutouts.
“Floating Elements” characterising
the car’s interior design. Rotating seats for easy access to the
rear.
The “Floating Elements”
concept offers a supreme impression of generosity and open space
right from the start. The seats are suspended in “hovering”
arrangement on the centre tunnel, and the free-standing dashboard
with its Center Speedo as a swivelling central instrument with both
a digital and analogue display further supports and enhances this
impression.
Four persons have adequate space in MINI Concept Geneva, with access
to the rear facilitated by the front seats swivelling round to the
side. After being tilted down, the rear-seat backrests form a
flat surface merging directly into the floor of the luggage
compartment.
Leather, chrome and aluminium as
the principal materials.
Throughout the interior,
white leather on various surfaces underlines the impression of
modern style and generous space, adding a strong touch of
sophisticated class and stylish flair. An aluminium-coated glass-fibre
structure, in turn, accentuates the door panels and linings inside
the car, while a special carbon-fibre look highlights the foot area
in combination with nylon texture carpeting.
Forty-six years of the Mini
Traveller.
This special MINI
concept made is debut in September 1960 in the guise of the Austin
Seven Countryman and Morris Mini Traveller. The term “Traveller”
alone made it clear from the start that this par¬ticular Mini was
conceived from the beginning for an active target group of
connoisseurs and individuals. Total sales between 1960 and 1982
amounted to more than 400,000 units, including the Mini Clubman
launched in 1969.
2006: commemorating the 100th
birthday of Alec Issigonis, the creator of Mini.
Alexander Arnold
Constantine Issigonis was born on 18 November 1906 as the son of a
Greek father and a German mother in a region that now belongs to
Turkey. After studying engineering in London, he later became one of
the most successful automotive engineers and designers in
Great Britain.
Mini and the Monte Carlo Rally.
In winter 1964 a small
red David with a white roof proudly showed its tail lights to all
the powerful Goliaths, clinching Mini’s first overall win in the
Monte Carlo Rally. Virtually overnight the small sub-compact from
Britain had become a genuine legend.
