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Mini concept cars AI simulator
(@Mini concept cars_simulator)
Hub AI
Mini concept cars AI simulator
(@Mini concept cars_simulator)
Mini concept cars
There have been a number of Mini concept cars, produced to show future ideas and forthcoming models at international motorshows.
From 1967 to 1979, Alec Issigonis worked on designing a replacement for the Mini in the form of an experimental model called the 9X. The 9X was itself developed from the remains of a previous project in 1966 when Innocenti requested a smaller Mini for the Italian market, known as Mini-Mini and later on the Innocenti 750 - with a new in-sump gearbox and powered by an ultra-compact engine stretchable between 750-1000cc. However market research at BMC doubted there would be a market for such a car outside of Italy where it would be unable to compete with the Fiat 500 on price, its engine and gearbox though would be carried over to the 9X. Due to politicking inside British Leyland (which had now been formed by the merger of BMC's parent company British Motor Holdings and the Leyland Motor Corporation), the car never reached production.
The 9X addressed many of the engineering flaws in Issigonis' original design- namely its complexity, its harsh ride and its poor mechanical refinement caused by the gearbox-in-sump layout. The first fully engineered prototype had a shorter wheelbase than the Mini but was four inches shorter overall. It was also slightly wider and offered significantly more interior space plus a hatchback body. The separate subframes of the Mini were removed and the body frame construction greatly simplified- the 9X required less than half the number of individual parts to build than a Mini.
The power unit was an all-new four-cylinder design with a belt-driven overhead camshaft. The crankcase and cylinder head were made from aluminium alloy while the block was of cast iron, with all three sections being held together by long through-bolts. This was identical construction to the original Austin Seven's engine and similar ideas would be revisited in the 1980s for the Rover K-Series engine. Capacity in the prototype was 1000cc with versions as low as 750cc possible, as well as six-cylinder versions which would still be compact enough to install transversely. Power output was 60 horsepower per litre (as opposed to around 40 hp/litre for the existing A-Series engine) and the new engine was also significantly lighter. To reduce maintenance and the number of parts the engine's alternator was incorporated into the flywheel (a common practice on motorcycles).
The gearbox was mounted behind and below the engine in a separate casing, rather than sharing the engine's sump oil. This reduced noise levels caused by the Mini's transmission transfer gears and allowed better control of drivetrain shunt and vibration.
The Hydrolastic suspension system developed by Alex Moulton was rejected in favour of a more conventional system with MacPherson struts at the front and a torsion beam axle at the back. This reduced production costs, potentially reduced warranty claim rates and allowed a more comfortable ride.
The 9X was, in essence, identical in concept to later European superminis such as the Fiat 127, the Peugeot 104, the Renault 5 and the Volkswagen Polo, but was conceived several years before the first of these cars was launched. Issigonis also drew up plans for a larger five-door 9X known as 10X on a 90-inch (2286mm) or 96-inch (2438mm) wheelbase against the three-door 80-inch (2036mm) wheelbase of the second built 9X prototype. This enlarged 10X version shared many structural, suspension and drivetrain parts with the 'Mini-sized' 9X and was Issigonis' proposal to succeed his own ADO16 design. Issigonis would also draw up comparisons based around an extended 9X measuring at 10ft 6-inches.
Project Ant ran parallel to Issigonis' 9X and was a plan to keep the same space efficiency but be cheaper to manufacture, less complex and cut down on labour hours on either an eighty or eighty-four inch wheelbase. The project was cancelled in 1968; however, it would still be part of a later design competition conducted between it and what became ADO74 (then known as Project Ladybird) between 1972 and 1974. Where though Project Ant gave a good account of itself, especially when fitted with Allegro rear suspension, it was eventually decided - though not unanimously - that what was needed was a supermini rather than a new Mini.
Mini concept cars
There have been a number of Mini concept cars, produced to show future ideas and forthcoming models at international motorshows.
From 1967 to 1979, Alec Issigonis worked on designing a replacement for the Mini in the form of an experimental model called the 9X. The 9X was itself developed from the remains of a previous project in 1966 when Innocenti requested a smaller Mini for the Italian market, known as Mini-Mini and later on the Innocenti 750 - with a new in-sump gearbox and powered by an ultra-compact engine stretchable between 750-1000cc. However market research at BMC doubted there would be a market for such a car outside of Italy where it would be unable to compete with the Fiat 500 on price, its engine and gearbox though would be carried over to the 9X. Due to politicking inside British Leyland (which had now been formed by the merger of BMC's parent company British Motor Holdings and the Leyland Motor Corporation), the car never reached production.
The 9X addressed many of the engineering flaws in Issigonis' original design- namely its complexity, its harsh ride and its poor mechanical refinement caused by the gearbox-in-sump layout. The first fully engineered prototype had a shorter wheelbase than the Mini but was four inches shorter overall. It was also slightly wider and offered significantly more interior space plus a hatchback body. The separate subframes of the Mini were removed and the body frame construction greatly simplified- the 9X required less than half the number of individual parts to build than a Mini.
The power unit was an all-new four-cylinder design with a belt-driven overhead camshaft. The crankcase and cylinder head were made from aluminium alloy while the block was of cast iron, with all three sections being held together by long through-bolts. This was identical construction to the original Austin Seven's engine and similar ideas would be revisited in the 1980s for the Rover K-Series engine. Capacity in the prototype was 1000cc with versions as low as 750cc possible, as well as six-cylinder versions which would still be compact enough to install transversely. Power output was 60 horsepower per litre (as opposed to around 40 hp/litre for the existing A-Series engine) and the new engine was also significantly lighter. To reduce maintenance and the number of parts the engine's alternator was incorporated into the flywheel (a common practice on motorcycles).
The gearbox was mounted behind and below the engine in a separate casing, rather than sharing the engine's sump oil. This reduced noise levels caused by the Mini's transmission transfer gears and allowed better control of drivetrain shunt and vibration.
The Hydrolastic suspension system developed by Alex Moulton was rejected in favour of a more conventional system with MacPherson struts at the front and a torsion beam axle at the back. This reduced production costs, potentially reduced warranty claim rates and allowed a more comfortable ride.
The 9X was, in essence, identical in concept to later European superminis such as the Fiat 127, the Peugeot 104, the Renault 5 and the Volkswagen Polo, but was conceived several years before the first of these cars was launched. Issigonis also drew up plans for a larger five-door 9X known as 10X on a 90-inch (2286mm) or 96-inch (2438mm) wheelbase against the three-door 80-inch (2036mm) wheelbase of the second built 9X prototype. This enlarged 10X version shared many structural, suspension and drivetrain parts with the 'Mini-sized' 9X and was Issigonis' proposal to succeed his own ADO16 design. Issigonis would also draw up comparisons based around an extended 9X measuring at 10ft 6-inches.
Project Ant ran parallel to Issigonis' 9X and was a plan to keep the same space efficiency but be cheaper to manufacture, less complex and cut down on labour hours on either an eighty or eighty-four inch wheelbase. The project was cancelled in 1968; however, it would still be part of a later design competition conducted between it and what became ADO74 (then known as Project Ladybird) between 1972 and 1974. Where though Project Ant gave a good account of itself, especially when fitted with Allegro rear suspension, it was eventually decided - though not unanimously - that what was needed was a supermini rather than a new Mini.