87 replies to this topic

[adam_93rio]

i think the reason they didnt put a square front on the so called 'clubman' is that it would look like a bmw estate with a mini badge on the back

to be fair to them, i think theyve got it backwards, the 'clubman' they have produced (which are stupidly available as coopers, park lane's, mayfiars etc) is more like what a countryman was, basically an estate version with the standard front

i think that would tie in a lot better. this way, they wouldnt of created that 4x4 abomination

[taffy1967]

Thank you Taffy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ill put all the pills back in the bottle...

A real countryman there....

No B** s**t th*re..

Dont understand what i wrote there sorry

What pills would they be and do they do this: -

XPub1c0hbKI

If so I'd be quite obliged.

[cooperdan]

was that video already moving like that with diffrent colours or is it just me?

Taffy i havnt any left...

[taffy1967]

was that video already moving like that with diffrent colours or is it just me?

Taffy i havnt any left...

I usually find it's both with me and don't worry I've got a pack of smarties in the cupboard.

[cooperdan]

was that video already moving like that with diffrent colours or is it just me?

Taffy i havnt any left...

I usually find it's both with me and don't worry I've got a pack of smarties in the cupboard.

How ironic the colours in the video would probably match the colours of the smarties....

[taffy1967]

was that video already moving like that with diffrent colours or is it just me?

Taffy i havnt any left...

I usually find it's both with me and don't worry I've got a pack of smarties in the cupboard.

How ironic the colours in the video would probably match the colours of the smarties....

Very true, but they don't have smiley faces though.

[cooperdan]

[steble]

basically like the new mini clubman this car shouldn't be allowed because again like the new mini clubman it hasn't even tried to be the car its meant to be

[Ethel]

The name seems obvious and logical enough to me: countryman - countryside = 4x4

Since 4x4 was pretty much reserved for Landrover's agricultural utility vehicles when the original was made it wasn't even a consideration back then. You have to wonder if MINI's success hasn't caught them on the wrong foot and wishing they'd hung on to more of Rover's brands. Maxi or Ant for anyone?


'n play nice - suggesting torching any cars isn't very friendly, even if you don't mean it literally, and casual interweb browsers that read it might get the wrong impression about the nice folk of TMF.

[cooperdan]

Hmmm

[mab01uk]

The name seems obvious and logical enough to me: countryman - countryside = 4x4

Thank you Ethel, pretty logical if you think about it.

There are no firm rules for naming cars which demand the replacement must be an exact match to its predecessor...................there would have been no point in putting the 1970's Clubman square front on a modern Mini as it would not appeal to todays car buyer and was only a cheap stop gap measure by BL to try to quickly update the original roundnose Mini to a squared off 1970's style at the time. The original Mini Clubman design was also NOT approved of by Alec Issigonis and was carried out by an ex-Ford Designer Roy Haynes which is why it looks like the front end of a Mk2 Ford Cortina.......which he also designed!

Austin, BMC, BL, etc freely used many of their names like Countryman, Mayfair, on other cars and models completely unrelated to Mini's like the Austin Montego Countryman below and Metro Mayfair, Austin A35, A40, A60, 1100/1300 all as available as Countrymans over the years.................

http://www.austinwor...html#Countryman

http://commons.wikim..._Countryman.jpg

http://www.motorbase...icle/by-id/287/

http://www.carandcla...word=Countryman

http://www.parkers.c....aspx?deriv=428

http://clunkbucket.c...ntryman-estate/

1984 Austin Montego Countryman

Edited by mab01uk, 03 April 2010 - 09:56 AM.

[taffy1967]

Yes but I don't think Alec Issigonis was a fan of any changes to his Mini? He wasn't fussed on the Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet and I bet he didn't want it stretched to make Estates or commercial vehicles either.

He wasn't even keen on a Mini Cooper being developed, until it started to win everything and brought lots of attention to him and his creation. Plus he didn't like the names City and Mayfair and he'd rather them be replaced with Super Deluxe.

So the new Mini Clubman range of 1969 was far more relevant than many give it credit for, including many of those 1980's Mini After X amount of Years type books or 1980's Mini buying guides.

The Mini Clubman wore the then current corporate face and fitted in with the likes of the Austin Maxi.

Okay it was a cop out and Issigonis wanted his radical project 9x to be the new Mini of the 1970's. But BL played it safe and kept all the motoring journalists happy who although were fans of the Mini, they'd been crying out for better trim levels for years and the Clubman range was the answer.

Although most Minis sold during the 1970's were either the basic round fronted Mini 850 & 1000 or the commercial vehicles, but that's no surprise as it had pretty much been the same story during the 1960's with the basic Mini as opposed to the Elf and Hornet and the Mini Cooper.

Edited by taffy1967, 03 April 2010 - 01:28 PM.

[Sam14]

It reminds me of that new ford 4x4 thing out.

Now thats bad :|

The person who came up with this bright none spark of an idea should be hard slapped

Every re make of an old classic ALWAYS fails.

[taffy1967]

It reminds me of that new ford 4x4 thing out.

Now thats bad :|

The person who came up with this bright none spark of an idea should be hard slapped

Every re make of an old classic ALWAYS fails.

Hard slapped?

Severely flogged more like.

[miRon]

what does this even matter?
its about as relevent as if ford were to bring out a new escort....