20 years of the modern MINI.

Over the past two decades MINI has built over 5 million cars in the UK. Plant Oxford currently builds the MINI 3-Door Hatch, MINI 5-Door Hatch, MINI Clubman and the MINI Electric, all on the same production line.

BMW Group Chairman of the Board of Management Oliver Zipse was in charge of manufacturing at MINI Plant Oxford from 2007-2008; he said: “Congratulations to everyone at MINI Plants Oxford and Swindon for reaching such a great manufacturing milestone. I still have very fond memories of my time at Oxford. It was a real pleasure to work at the home and heart of the MINI brand with such engaging and passionate people, nearly one quarter of whom have dedicated these 20-years or more to building our cars.”

MINI Plants Oxford and Swindon employ over 4,500 highly-skilled employees, including 130 apprentices, who all keep production moving to build 1000 MINI a day - one every 67 seconds.

Peter Weber, Managing Director of Plants Oxford and Swindon (2019 – present) said: “I am extremely proud of our teams at Oxford and Swindon and the incredible job they do. Their continued commitment and passion over the past 20 years has helped to strengthen MINI’s reputation around the world."

Plants Oxford and Swindon have been at the heart of their communities for a very long time – 108 and 65 years respectively. In recent years, Plant Oxford has become a must-see tourist destination with 26,000 MINI fans enjoying the award-winning Plant Tours.

With the MINI Electric going into production in 2020, Plant Oxford is already electrified and in the early 2030s, MINI will be the first BMW Group brand to go fully electric.  Plants Oxford and Swindon have played a pivotal role in making MINI production more sustainable over the past 20 years and are vital to the BMW Group’s strategy to further reduce emissions.

MINI brand and UK manufacturing: 20 highlights from 20 years.

2001      April 26 – Start of MINI Production at Plant Oxford
             
              July 7 -  New MINI Hatch is launched in the UK (First Generation)

2004      The BMW Group announces £40 million investment at Plant Swindon
             
              The first MINI Convertible is revealed (produced at Plant Oxford, UK)

2006      Plant Hams Hall produces new engine family and supplies Oxford for MINI production, creating the UK MINI Production Triangle

2007      July – MINI Plant Oxford pioneers innovative paint  technology. Plant Oxford is the first BMW Group manufacturing site to use IPP (Integrated Paint Process). This highly innovative system brings energy savings and emissions reductions of well over 10 per cent in the painting of body shells. As well as enhancing the efficiency of the entire paint process, IPP also supports BMW Group's environmental objectives by dispensing with a solvent-based primer-surfacer.

2008      New MINI Clubman revealed for the first time (to be built in Oxford)

2009      September – The first MINI John Cooper Works GP is revealed

2009      MINI E trial begins , backed by UK Government
BMW Group’s major UK field trial with MINI E model to evaluate the technical and social aspects of living with an all-electric vehicle in a real world environment. Over 250,000 miles were driven on UK roads in one year.

2010      The brand’s first SUV the MINI Countryman is revealed (produced in Graz, Austria)

2011      MINI Coupé revealed

2012      MINI Roadster revealed

2013      MINI Paceman revealed

2014      The brand’s first MINI 5-Door Hatch is revealed

2014       One of the UK’s largest roof-mounted solar farms is installed at MINI Plant Oxford. On the roof of the bodyshop, the solar farm has more than 11,500 panels, covering 20,000 square metres (five football pitches). It generates enough electricity to power the equivalent of 850 households (over 3 megawatts).  This allows Plant Oxford to reduce its carbon footprint by approximately 1,500 tonnes of CO² per year.

2019       MINI Plant Oxford builds its 10 millionth MINI and is awarded “Best Told Story” from the official tourism agency for England, Visit England (won again in 2020). Plant Oxford opened its doors to public tours in 2008, and they have been a roaring success ever since

2019       The two bookends of the brand are announced – the third MINI John Cooper Works GP (3,000 units globally) and the brand’s first all-electric production car, the MINI Electric

2020        January – MINI Electric customer production begins at Plant Oxford. The MINI Electric is fully integrated into the production process at Plant Oxford, making it the first BMW Group Plant to have electric running down the same line as the combustion engine models, allowing flexibility in production according to global demand.
By the end of 2020, a total of 17,580 were sold and delivered to customers around the world, 3,385 of which in the UK.
               
                October 27 – MINI reveals future product plans and new strategy focusing on electromobility, crossovers and production of models in China from 2023

2021        March 17 – MINI confirms its last combustion engine model will be launched in 2025 and the brand will become electric only from the early 2030s

See here for the full 2001-2021 timeline.

Ends

The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. The BMW Group production network comprises 31 production and assembly facilities in 15 countries; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2020, the BMW Group sold over 2.3 million passenger vehicles and more than 169,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2019 was € 7.118 billion on revenues amounting to € 104.210 billion. As of 31 December 2020, the BMW Group had a workforce of 120,726 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment
to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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MINI Press Office Contacts:

Aisling Brogan

Corporate Communications & Events Manager

Tel: +353 86 014 6474

Email: aisling.brogan@bmw.ie

Media website:

www.press.bmwgroup.ie

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