The Rover Mini was once before ... or the other M1
12/23/2022
Of course, we all remember the RoverMini , meaning the continuation of the Austin/Morris Seven/Mini success story that began in 1959. Towards the end of production, the Mini finally became part of the Rover family, which in turn was taken over by BMW. However, we are not referring to this Mini here, but to a much earlier Mini. And that was called the Rover M1.
After the Second World War, Rover had moved to Solihull and needed an affordable, compact car for new and less affluent buyers all over the world. The M1 was developed. The 3.45 m long car had a wheelbase of just 1.96 m and was powered by a front-mounted four-cylinder petrol engine with a displacement of 699 cm3 and 28 hp (BHP).
The prototype had a trunk accessible from the outside, which was not commonplace at the time. And the cockpit was quite richly equipped and even had a rev counter.
The design was somewhat reminiscent of the Topolino, but the Rover clearly lacked the southern charm and it is doubtful whether it would have been a great success. The company management obviously felt the same way at the time and the decision was made to develop larger models aimed at the middle class. This was the Rover P4, which was finally launched on the market in 1949.
More pictures of the somewhat curious-looking prototype M1 can be found in the Zwischengas photo archive.
