The TRUTH about... The Morris Minor
With a million sold by 1961, the Morris Minor was the most successful British car ever at that time and the first to sell in seven figures. The Minor remained on the UK market for another 10 years after passing the million milestone, and by the time all production had ended over 1.6 million had been produced, including two and four-door saloons, Tourers (cabriolets), Travellers (estate cars), vans and pickups. It was ubiquitous in the UK, and in unlikely places such as Sri Lanka (previously known as Ceylon).
The Minor is widely viewed as a great design and an excellent classic car. Specialists have been rebuilding the Minor for decades, and the type is well supported by parts and expertise. From a purely British perspective, it was a huge success and it’s hard to find anyone of my generation who hasn’t had something to do with Morris’ rather friendly little car. I’ve had three, and many of the friends of my youth had one. The same cannot be said of the Beetle, at least in the UK. And yet by 1961, 4.3 million Volkswagen Type 1s had been sold. Admittedly the Beetle was produced from 1945, but only 20,000 had been completed
