In September 2013 the flag-bearer of the German sports car fraternity, the Porsche 911, will celebrate its 50th birthday. And among the hoards of well-wishers will be MINI, not least because its model history also includes in the classic Mini a similarly compelling work of art characterised by a similar reluctance to abandon the exuberance of youth.
It may be the fundamental differences between the two cars (e.g. the Mini has its engine in the front, the 911 at the rear) that dominate at first glance. But there are also a number of factors over and above their shared cult status that lend particular empathy to MINIs birthday greetings.
Only a handful of cars can claim to have endured over such lengthy time spans, retaining their unmistakable identities despite all the nips, tucks and updates along the way.
When major landmarks like a 50th come into view, its traditional to look back over the birthday boys childhood. Although the Mini and Porsche 911 may not be cars you would instinctively compare, there are one or two striking aspects of their history that have brought them together over time a less than straightforward christening, for example. The 911 came into the world in 1963 initially as the Porsche 901. However, the rights to using a zero in the middle of a three-digit car designation had already been snapped up by French manufacturer Peugeot. Which meant that when this legendary-sports car-to-be eventually arrived on the scene a year later, it was as the Porsche 911. It is unlikely the use of the number one to fill the gap was a coincidence. Fittingly, it remains the no. 1 in its class to this day; now in its seventh generation, the 911 has sold over 800,000 units a figure beyond the reach of any segment rival.
The Mini, by contrast, saw the light of day as twins. On 26 August 1959 the British Motor Corporation (BMC) unveiled the fruits of its endeavours to develop a revolutionary new small car introducing the public to not one but two new models: the Morris Mini-Minor and Austin Seven. Everyone now knows which name ultimately made the cut. As for the classic Minis sales figures: by 2000, when the curtain came down on production, 5.3 million units of Britains best-selling car had found homes.
Its tempting to wonder how different history would have been without the creators of these two successful cars. Neither Sir Alec Issigonis nor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche had any inkling that their designs would come to be considered immortal icons of modern times. Indeed, you would have needed a very clear crystal ball to see that Porsche had just dreamt up the most successful sports car of all time and Issigonis the worlds only cool small car.
Motorsport occupies a key chapter in the histories of both Porsche and Mini. The 911 in its track-tuned permutations is the most successful racing car ever built. Practically every race of any note has been won by a 911 on one occasion or other. And no memory of the 1960s can be complete without images of the Mini Cooper S roaring into view. The darling of the sixties avant-garde was not only something of a phenomenon on the road, its class victory in the 1963 Monte Carlo Rally in the hands of Finnish driver Rauno Aaltonen kicked off a peerless run of success on the motor sport scene that reached its pinnacle with three overall wins in the Monte in 1964, 1965 and 1967.
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MotoringFile Archive The Classic Mini says “Happy Birthday” to the Porsche 911
