Munich. For automotive fans with manual skills, the
premises in the London suburb of Surbiton must have been a paradise.
Scrap metal everywhere, car parts, tyres and a dedicated father
screwing on cars and bikes in a garage. And in the middle of it, a
certain John Cooper, who created the basis for an extraordinary career
as an engineer of racing cars right there immediately after the end of
the Second World War. To this day, his name is not only associated
with great successes in Formula One, but also with the particularly
sporty models of the MINI brand. It was thanks to John Cooper’s
commitment that a more powerful model variant of the revolutionary
small car came onto the market just two years after the classic Mini
was introduced in 1959. The Mini Cooper immediately impressed with its
spirited power delivery and high agility. Even 60 years later, the
names of the tradition-steeped British car manufacturer and the
legendary sports car engineer are remarkably often mentioned in the
same context when it comes to maximum driving fun with minimal
external dimensions.
The basis for this connection is the truly authentic sporting spirit.
In Great Britain, the desire to race reawakened soon after the end of
the war. All over the country, tracks were marked out and competitions
held. John Cooper had the talent and ambition to make his mark on this
scene. He was just 23 years old when he and his father Charles founded
the Cooper Car Company in 1946, which soon developed and built
successful Formula 3 and Formula 2 racing cars. The son’s inventive
spirit culminated in the construction of a new type of Formula 1
racing car in which the engine did not work in front of the driver, as
was customary at the time, but behind him. Cooper celebrated his first
victories with it in 1958. In 1959 and 1960, Jack Brabham even became
world champion on Cooper. And the revolutionary mid-engine principle
established itself permanently in Grand Prix racing. Cooper’s team
remained active in Formula 1 until the end of the 1960s. Among the
most famous pilots, besides Jack Brabham, were Sir Stirling Moss,
Bruce McLaren and Jochen Rindt.
While his groundbreaking Formula 1 racing cars have long been
history, John Cooper’s influence on the sporting driving experience in
production vehicles lives on until today. In this field, too, it all
began with a revolutionary design. While John Cooper was busy making
his mark on formula racing, engineer Alec Issigonis had developed a
new small car for the British Motor Corporation. With an exterior
length of just over three metres, the classic Mini offered an
astonishing amount of space for four passengers and their luggage.
Issigonis had arranged the engine transversely at the front, with the
gearbox directly below. Wheels positioned far out and short overhangs
did the rest. With its transversely positioned four-cylinder engine
and front-wheel drive, the classic Mini provided the basis for a
design for small and compact cars that was completely new at the time
and is still in use today.
The classic Mini started with an engine output of 34 hp, but it was
light and exhibited strikingly agile cornering performance thanks to
front-wheel drive, a wide track and a torsionally rigid body. While
Issigonis primarily had a low-priced and economical vehicle for
everyone in mind, John Cooper immediately recognised the sporting
potential of the classic Mini. The two ingenious engineers had already
met during joint racing activities, later also cultivated business
relations and developed an intimate friendship over time.
Nevertheless, it took a lot of persuasion to raise the sporting
temperament of the classic Mini. With the blessing of the BMC
management, John Cooper therefore initially had a small series of
1,000 vehicles built, whose modified engine, expanded in displacement
to just under 1.0 litres, generated 55 hp, which was enough for a top
speed of 135 km/h. Cooper also provided a closer-ratio gearbox, a
better-guided gear lever, disc brakes on the front wheels and wider
tyres. In addition, the roof was colour-contrasted and the interior
was two-tone. Thus, the first Mini Cooper came onto the market in
September 1961.
The reactions were euphoric and left only one wish unfulfilled: even
more power. Cooper and Issigonis, who had become convinced of the
sporting talent of the classic Mini, increased the engine capacity to
1071 cubic centimetres. This increased the output to 70 hp. The
chassis technology provided another important boost for the classic
Mini’s sporting career: Issigonis had also broken new ground in the
areas of steering and wheel suspension, thus laying the foundation for
the go-kart feeling that is still famous today. Homokinetic universal
joints reduced the influence of the drive on the steering, a subframe
to which the rear wheels were also attached improved directional
stability, a rubber suspension and small telescopic shock absorbers
ensured fine response and progressive spring action.
The Mini Cooper was immediately successful on racetracks and rally
tracks. It became a legend with its appearances at the Monte Carlo
Rally. In 1963, the Finn Rauno Aaltonen achieved the first class
victory. In addition to trophies, the Mini Cooper gained more and more
popularity year after year during its appearances. Its success in
competition with numerous much larger and more powerful rivals made it
a favourite with the public. The acclaimed highlights were the overall
victories achieved with the Mini Cooper S at the Monte Carlo Rally in
1964, 1965 and 1967. Only then did the rally career of the classic
Mini draw to a close.
On the road, the Mini Cooper thrilled its fans from 1961 to 1971,
during which time its model designation became synonymous with
passionate driving fun. The name John Cooper remained consistently
present among fans of the classic Mini. The tuning kits developed by
Cooper for Mini production vehicles met with great demand in the 1970s
and 1980s. In 1990, the Mini Cooper returned to the model range. The
1.3-litre four-cylinder engine with initially 61 hp now worked under
the short bonnet. Thus, fans once again conquered the hairpin bends
and serpentines of this world with an agile and sporty Mini Cooper.
This version with 63 hp was built until autumn 2000. The successor was
already ready for take-off at that time.
The takeover of the Rover Group by BMW at the beginning of 1994
opened up completely new perspectives for the MINI brand. At the
International Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt in 1997, the study of a
MINI Cooper was presented, which offered the prospect of a new edition
of the unique British small car. As a modern interpretation of the
traditional vehicle concept, it combined the classic values of its
predecessor with the requirements of a modern automobile on the
threshold of the 21st century. Thus, in 2001, the new MINI saw the
streetlight of the world.
The new MINI was bigger, chicer, more colourful and, of course,
technically up to date. And it also transferred the typical go-kart
feeling of the classic Mini into the modern era. At the same time, the
MINI produced in Oxford, England, presented itself as the first
premium vehicle in the small car segment. Unlike the classic one, the
MINI Cooper was now immediately part of the starting line-up. With a
maximum output of 85 kW/115 hp, it lived up to its name. Engine and
chassis design immediately formed a harmonious alliance for maximum
driving pleasure. The four-cylinder engine, once again mounted
transversely at the front, now had a displacement of 1.6 litres. Its
power enabled the MINI Cooper to sprint from standstill to 100 km/h in
9.2 seconds and to reach a top speed of 197 km/h. The high-quality
chassis technology of the MINI Cooper included McPherson struts on the
front axle, axle shafts of equal length and a multi-link rear axle
unique in the small car segment, disc brakes on all four wheels as
well as the DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) driving stability system.
The desire for even more power was also fulfilled with the modern
MINI. The 120 kW/163 hp MINI Cooper S followed as early as autumn 2001.
In November 2006, the new edition of the modern MINI was launched
with an evolutionary design development and a fundamental technical
overhaul. “From the Original to the Original”, the MINI’s
visual appearance, which has received the highest marks of approval,
was refined in numerous details, which in particular emphasised the
sporting virtues of the compact curve artist even more clearly. The
MINI Cooper with 88 kW/120 hp and the MINI Cooper S with 128 kW/175
hp, which were available at the time of their market launch,
immediately impressed with their enhanced performance and
significantly reduced fuel consumption and emissions. Two years later,
the sporty characteristics of a Mini Cooper could also be experienced
for the first time with a highly efficient diesel engine. In the MINI
Cooper D, 81 kW/110 hp, and in the Mini Cooper SD, which was
introduced shortly afterwards, 125 kW/170 hp provided a powerful drive.
When developing the modern MINI around the turn of the millennium,
Mike Cooper had already brought the know-how gathered in his family
into the project. John Cooper’s son was passionately committed to
particularly sporty versions of the MINI. In the following years, the
tradition-steeped connection became even closer. At the beginning of
2007, the BMW Group acquired the brand rights of John Cooper Garages.
As a result of this arrangement, the John Cooper Works brand has been
an official part of the MINI brand since 2008. Since then, the
extremely sporty John Cooper Works models have represented the maximum
power and performance that can be experienced in a MINI.
Even in the current model generation, the MINI Cooper is the epitome
of an extra portion of driving fun, which is now realised in a wide
variety of forms. With a three-cylinder petrol engine under the
bonnet, it now produces 100 kW/136 hp. In addition, the Cooper name is
anchored in the entire range of the current model programme. The
brand’s first all-electric model is called the MINI Cooper SE (power
consumption combined: 17.6 – 15.2 kWh/100 km according to WLTP; CO2
emissions combined: 0 g/km). Powered by a 135 kW/184 hp electric
motor, it combines sustainable mobility with characteristic driving
pleasure, expressive design and premium quality. On the other side of
the spectrum is the new MINI John Cooper Works GP (fuel consumption
combined: 7.3 l/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 167 g/km according to
WLTP). It is powered by a 225 kW/306 hp four-cylinder turbo engine,
making it the fastest MINI ever registered for the road. Whether
locally emission-free in everyday urban traffic or with the
irrepressible urge to take to the racetrack: every MINI with the
Cooper name in the model designation carries the unique British
sporting spirit of an association that has existed for 60 years.
In case of queries, please contact:
Corporate Communications
Julian Kisch, Press Spokesperson Product Communications MINI
Tel.: +49-89-382-38072
E-mail: julian.kisch@mini.com
Andreas Lampka, Head of Communications MINI
Tel.: +49-89-382-23662
E-mail: andreas.lampka@mini.com
Jennifer Treiber-Ruckenbrod, Head of Communications MINI and BMW Motorrad
Tel.: +49-89-382-35108
E-mail: jennifer.ruckenbrod@bmwgroup.com
The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the
BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles
and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility
services. The BMW Group production network comprises 31 production
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In 2020, the BMW Group sold over 2.3 million passenger vehicles
and more than 169,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax
in the financial year 2020 was € 5.222 billion on revenues amounting
to € 98.990 billion. As of 31 December 2020, the BMW Group had a
workforce of 120,726 employees.
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from the supply chain through production to the end of the use phase
of all products.
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