The revolutionary 2001 "R51" MINI
In November 2001, I bought a British Racing Green "R51" Mini Cooper and it rocked my world! I was fairly obsessed with it, and am still something of a subject matter expert on this car, and can tell what option packs are fitted just by looking at one. I think its a clever design, which I still appreciate to this day, and I am sad about how ugly and ridiculous MINI cars became in subsequent generations.
People may forget, but the MINI was a huge deal when launched. People stopped and stared, pointed, came over to talk to you, wanted a shot, or wanted to sit inside it. It was an incredible time.
Spec :- British Racing Green, Sports Suspension Plus, Air-conditioning, Pepper Pack, White wheel
Problems Encountered : Front seat recall (they could fully recline when driving....), air-conditioning failed twice, rear wiper would miss the window, and eventually a full breakdown due to a crankshaft sensor failure.
It was replaced in September 2004 by a facelifted Cooper with the Getrag gearbox. This was a far more reliable car, and still great fun, but somehow the sparkle and excitement of that first car was missing, as well as the purity of the design in a few small ways, so its always going to be the 2001 to 2004 (pre facelift) cars that are going to interest me most.
People may forget, but the MINI was a huge deal when launched. People stopped and stared, pointed, came over to talk to you, wanted a shot, or wanted to sit inside it. It was an incredible time.
Spec :- British Racing Green, Sports Suspension Plus, Air-conditioning, Pepper Pack, White wheel
Problems Encountered : Front seat recall (they could fully recline when driving....), air-conditioning failed twice, rear wiper would miss the window, and eventually a full breakdown due to a crankshaft sensor failure.
It was replaced in September 2004 by a facelifted Cooper with the Getrag gearbox. This was a far more reliable car, and still great fun, but somehow the sparkle and excitement of that first car was missing, as well as the purity of the design in a few small ways, so its always going to be the 2001 to 2004 (pre facelift) cars that are going to interest me most.
Delivery Day - November 2001 - Henry Brothers, Glasgow
Pepper Pack interior with brilliant silver trim. This was an exciting interior at the time, there had been nothing like it before
At the Corgi model car show at the SECC in Glasgow, December 2001
At the Corgi model car show at the SECC in Glasgow, December 2001
At the Corgi model car show at the SECC in Glasgow, December 2001
At the Corgi model car show at the SECC in Glasgow, December 2001
Either a MINI2.com Scotland or a "NewMiniScotland" Run - early on, when these runs drew lots of attention
My MINI with none other than THE QE2 in Queensferry in 2003
