AutoCult MG Mini Coupé ADO35 (RHD) (1960) (Great Britain)

About the Original

Special Version of a Milestone

When the first copy of the Mini left the assembly line on August 18, 1959 in Austin, no one could have guessed that this was the bigging of the success story of perhaps Britain’s most popular car. Even today, it is easy to imagine how surprised the management of BMC – British Motor Corporation – was when it quickly became apparent that the cuddly car hit the nerve of the British population.

Within the factory, the decision was quickly made to transfer the basic concept of the small car with its distinctive 10-inch wheels to other variants. As early as 1960, the order was placed to develop an offshoot as a coupe. According to the in-house register, in which the developments were recorded under the abbreviation ADO, the coupe got the number 35. Presumably, the technicians left the entire arrangement of the engine and chassis untouched and just focused on the design of the car body. For the design BMC did not rely on the skills of its own people, but awarded the contract to renowned hands – Pininfarina’s design studio.

Even though the Italians created a pleasing design and at least one prototype was produced in Great Britain, the coupe version did not find a blessing from the management.