22 replies to this topic

[classicminidriver]

I have a July Built 59 was registered October 1959

Nice one, what date in july? Plus how many of the production line?

[mab01uk]

The two oldest Minis in existence are in Japan in full working order.

This has become a myth based on chassis numbers. The oldest Mini is actually the one that even Issigonis has been photographed standing next to with a sign clearly saying Mini no.1 - 621 AOK at the Gaydon museum. You would think Issigonis might actually know. Mini Magazine did an article a couple of years ago proving this on the evidence of a man actually involved in building it.

So, was 621 AOK the first Mini?
The exact chronology of Mini production has been distorted through the passage of time which has resulted in a series of half truths becoming the accepted story. For a long time it has been accepted that 621 AOK, now at the BMH Gaydon museum, was the first production Mini. The truth is as follows. The first production Mini with the chassis number 101 was an Austin Mini Seven built at Longbridge on 3 April 1959. 101 Has long since disappeared into the great scrapyard in the sky, but 102 built the same day amazingly survives. Registered 627 HUE, in 1965 this car was bought by Donald Healey and transformed into a convertible two seater, apparently with the blessing of Alec Issigonis. 627 HUE is now owned by a Japanese Mini collector. Both Minis 101 and 102/627 HUE were delivered to one Alec Issigonis. The initial Austin production was as follows. Austin chassis 103 also survives, registered KEG 77, it was exported to Japan in 1996.
Austin 101 and 102 built 3 April
Austin 103 and 104 built 4 May
Austin 105 built 5 May
It was on 8 May 1959 that Mini production began at Cowley when Morris chassis numbers 101,102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110, 111, 112 were all built. Bizarrely 104 and 109 were built a few days later. Morris Mini Minor chassis 101 was registered as 621 AOK. So why the confusion ? One can only assume that in February 1965, when the millionth Mini was produced in the aftermath of the second Monte Carlo rally win, that BMC’s PR machine simply made the understandable mistake of assuming Morris 101/621 AOK was the first car of all and it and Alec Issigonis posed outside Longbridge with a 1965 model for PR photographs that have appeared in the printed media ever since. In fact Morris 101/621 AOK was the sixth production Mini. By the time the error was realised it was too late to backtrack and Morris 101/621 AOK has now become the official first Mini.
However Jeff Ruggles of MINI magazine was told an alternative story. According to retired BMC engineer Peter Tothill, who was responsible for the design and supervision of the Mini production line at Cowley and performed rectification work on Mini prototypes, 621 AOK was the first production Mini. Peter Tothill’s story is that four employees – Bob Moore, Tony Monk, Bob Hollis and Peter Tothill himself – built 621 AOK over the weekend of Good Friday 27 March to Easter Monday 30 March 1959.
‘There is absolutely no doubt in my mind, because on the Wednesday of that week, Les Ford (chief planning engineer) said to me, “We want you to build the first ADO15 over the Easter weekend when there will be no-one in the factory, and I want you there.” I had recently got married and we had planned to go away for the weekend, so I had to tell my wife that the trip was off! The car was loaded onto a truck, sheeted up and delivered to Longbridge on the Tuesday, ready for the directors to view on the Wednesday. Tuesday was a holiday in Birmingham because they always worked on Good Friday.’
This version of the Mini story has it that 621 AOK was used as the reference for Longbridge foreman Albert Green to build the first Austin Minis. Peter Tothill reckoned it was impossible for Cowley to pilot build ten ADO15s in one day and that these cars were built in the preceding weeks with records commencing on 8 May 1959.
More from AROnline:
https://www.aronline...opment-story-1/

 

Edited by mab01uk, 30 May 2025 - 05:11 PM.

[clivemk1mini]

I have a July Built 59 was registered October 1959

Nice one, what date in july? Plus how many of the production line?

Think it was about 29th July but registered 24 October just waiting for my heritage certificate :)

[Black.Ghost]

If I owned 621 AOK, I would drive it everywhere. I'd also employ an armed guard for if I ever left it anywhere in public.

[Jakeclubby]

Mines a 1980 clubman so not the oldest but certainly not the youngest

[mk3 Cooper S]

The two oldest Minis in existence are in Japan in full working order.

This has become a myth based on chassis numbers. The oldest Mini is actually the one that even Issigonis has been photographed standing next to with a sign clearly saying Mini no.1 - 621 AOK at the Gaydon museum. You would think Issigonis might actually know. Mini Magazine did an article a couple of years ago proving this on the evidence of a man actually involved in building it.

So, was 621 AOK the first Mini?
The exact chronology of Mini production has been distorted through the passage of time which has resulted in a series of half truths becoming the accepted story. For a long time it has been accepted that 621 AOK, now at the BMH Gaydon museum, was the first production Mini. The truth is as follows. The first production Mini with the chassis number 101 was an Austin Mini Seven built at Longbridge on 3 April 1959. 101 Has long since disappeared into the great scrapyard in the sky, but 102 built the same day amazingly survives. Registered 627 HUE, in 1965 this car was bought by Donald Healey and transformed into a convertible two seater, apparently with the blessing of Alec Issigonis. 627 HUE is now owned by a Japanese Mini collector. Both Minis 101 and 102/627 HUE were delivered to one Alec Issigonis. The initial Austin production was as follows. Austin chassis 103 also survives, registered KEG 77, it was exported to Japan in 1996.
Austin 101 and 102 built 3 April
Austin 103 and 104 built 4 May
Austin 105 built 5 May
It was on 8 May 1959 that Mini production began at Cowley when Morris chassis numbers 101,102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110, 111, 112 were all built. Bizarrely 104 and 109 were built a few days later. Morris Mini Minor chassis 101 was registered as 621 AOK. So why the confusion ? One can only assume that in February 1965, when the millionth Mini was produced in the aftermath of the second Monte Carlo rally win, that BMC’s PR machine simply made the understandable mistake of assuming Morris 101/621 AOK was the first car of all and it and Alec Issigonis posed outside Longbridge with a 1965 model for PR photographs that have appeared in the printed media ever since. In fact Morris 101/621 AOK was the sixth production Mini. By the time the error was realised it was too late to backtrack and Morris 101/621 AOK has now become the official first Mini.
However Jeff Ruggles of MINI magazine was told an alternative story. According to retired BMC engineer Peter Tothill, who was responsible for the design and supervision of the Mini production line at Cowley and performed rectification work on Mini prototypes, 621 AOK was the first production Mini. Peter Tothill’s story is that four employees – Bob Moore, Tony Monk, Bob Hollis and Peter Tothill himself – built 621 AOK over the weekend of Good Friday 27 March to Easter Monday 30 March 1959.
‘There is absolutely no doubt in my mind, because on the Wednesday of that week, Les Ford (chief planning engineer) said to me, “We want you to build the first ADO15 over the Easter weekend when there will be no-one in the factory, and I want you there.” I had recently got married and we had planned to go away for the weekend, so I had to tell my wife that the trip was off! The car was loaded onto a truck, sheeted up and delivered to Longbridge on the Tuesday, ready for the directors to view on the Wednesday. Tuesday was a holiday in Birmingham because they always worked on Good Friday.’
This version of the Mini story has it that 621 AOK was used as the reference for Longbridge foreman Albert Green to build the first Austin Minis. Peter Tothill reckoned it was impossible for Cowley to pilot build ten ADO15s in one day and that these cars were built in the preceding weeks with records commencing on 8 May 1959.
More from AROnline:
http://www.aronline....history-part-1/

Yes. That is my understanding. The latter story just seems more convincing to me. I also think Sir Alec must have known the true story and would have corrected any errors if the PR machine had made a mistake.

I think you may have presumed incorrectly the Engineering and PR know what each other is doing!!! lol

[mini63]

So.....wandering thru this thread (3 years on). What is the accepted fate/survival of the pilot morris cars after 621AOK? 102-112?