BL launched the 'Quiet Mini' in the Summer of 1980. It incorporated extensive sound-deadening in the floorpan, front bulkhead, dashboard, roof and boot, plus a new headlining material. The effect was to produce what could more accurately be called a 'quieter Mini'. Over the years it was slowly reduced under cost reductions and in the front floorpan area it seemed to promote rust by trapping the water leaks.
Motor Magazine - July 5th 1980
From Somerfords website:
"The higher diff ratio came in for the next and ultimately more successful, anti-noise campaign that took place during the development of the 1997 on Minis. One of the forthcoming European regulations that had to be passed if the Mini was to stay in production after 1997 was the drive-by noise limit - i.e. the aural impact the car would have on its immediate environment. Once again, sound deadening material was beefed up, but it still required exhaust modifications, the repositioning of the radiator to the front of the car and the raising of the final drive ratio (so the engine wasn't running so fast) plus a host of other changes to get the Mini quiet enough to pass the tests. It did pass, obviously, and the 1997 on Minis are genuinely noticeably quieter both from the outside and inside. Only one other Rover Group product had to turn similar engineering cartwheels to pass the drive-by noise test: the Land Rover Defender. Says it all, really..."
Edited by mab01uk, 22 April 2023 - 12:14 PM.
