Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Small Wonder: Mini Cooper growing into a giant in retro culture

Gary Pasquale wanted to buy a car. Not just any car, mind you, but the Mini Cooper, a new take on a classic ride that's turning heads on the road for its sporty and compact appearance.

It also happens to be the hottest vehicle on the road.

Which was just Pasquale's luck. He wanted the car as a surprise gift for his wife, who has been bugging him about buying her a Mini Cooper for months.

But there were no deals to be made.

Desert MINI of Las Vegas, which is the only Mini Cooper dealership in the state, already sells about 40 to 50 cars a month at sticker price, and is even back-ordered on the Mini Cooper S, the sportier 163 horsepower compared to 115 and slightly more expensive model.

At the moment, the price range is about $16,500 for the base-model Mini to $25,000 for a fully loaded Mini S.

Pasquale said he offered $18,000 cash for a $21,000 Mini Cooper.

The salesman didn't budge.

"They're probably a lot of fun to drive," Pasquale said. "But right now they're holding their value ... they're very popular."

Classic Cooper

The Mini Cooper's popularity is nothing new. The impossible-not-to-notice cars have been turning heads and developing a fanatical following since they were rolled out in 1959 in England.

Sir Alec Issigonis created the Mini as an answer to combat the European gas crisis of the late '50s, producing a car that was 10 feet long, 4 feet wide and 4 feet high that would hold four passengers and luggage.

In an era of big and bigger, the compact car was quite a novelty. Besides its size, the car also featured an engine turned sideways and transmission mounted underneath to create more passenger room -- a method still employed by other car makers.

With its light frame and tight handling abilities, the car was perfect for racing. Race car builder John Cooper was loaned a production car in 1959 and two years later unveiled the Mini Cooper. The Mini Cooper won numerous races, including triple Monte Carlo victories in 1964-'67.

The car became Great Britain's best-selling vehicle of all time, as it morphed from a family-oriented car to a celebrity fashion statement, used by The Beatles, Petter Sellers, Graham Hill and Enzo Ferrari, among others.

The Mini Cooper was first introduced in the United States around 1960. In 1967 the company quit selling cars in the U.S.

While the '60s proved to be the apex of the Mini Cooper, the '70s saw it nearly disappear, as the car's sales plummeted amid lackluster sales. All told, about 10,000 Mini Coopers were sold in the United States, compared to sales of 5 million for the Volkswagen Beetle.

In 1980 a new manufacturer, Rover, in a desperate attempt to keep the Mini Cooper alive, unveiled themed special editions of the car -- 40 in all -- until 2000, when production of the car halted.

The lapse in production was brief, however, as BMW launched a new version of the Mini Cooper in 2001.

All told, nearly 5.5 million of the classic Mini Coopers were produced -- helping it earn the title of European Car of the Year, as named by a panel of 130 journalists.

Car fans

While many classic Mini Cooper owners are not fans of the newer versions, Mickie Lindquist likes them well enough.

Still, she prefers her two classic Minis, one of which was left behind from her son after he was killed in a racing accident; the other she's holding onto for her daughter.

She keeps them in her garage: a '67 Mini Moke, a Jeep-style vehicle used in the British military that's since been custom-painted with zebra stripes, and a very rare, milk-white '67 Mini Cooper S Panel Van.

Lindquist takes the cars out occasionally for friends and also to keep them running.

"Mainly in the fall and spring when the weather's not too hot or cold since there's no air-conditioning or heater in the cars," she said.

She has had numerous offers to buy the cars, even while she's taking them out for a spin. But Lindquist politely declines the requests.

"(My son) put so much time and effort into them that I can't give them up," she said.

Lindquist also gets requests from filmmakers to include them in movies.

"They're using them more and more, both old and new."

Including popcorn flick "The Italian Job."

A cops-and-robbers heist flick with such marquee names as Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron and Edward Norton, it's the Mini Cooper that steals the show.

As several film critics have noted, the movie at times plays out as nothing more than a car commercial.

It was similar for last year's "The Bourne Identity." A chase scene involving an original Mini Cooper through the streets and narrow alleyways of Paris arguably proved to be the highlight of the film.

John Chaisson doesn't mind the extra publicity.

The Mini Cooper sales manager for Desert BMW, Chaisson has latched onto the popularity of the films. His store features small yellow balls for the antenna with "The Italian Job" written in black, along with stickers from the movie.

He even arranged a screening of the film for Mini car owners the night before the film premiered.

The dealership began offering the Mini Coopers in March 2002.

"We had a waiting list at the beginning because people had heard so much about them," Chaisson said.

A little style

Among the most popular styles are electric blue metallic with white tops and white stripes as well as the dark silver. Both looks are only available in the Mini Cooper S model.

Also offered at the dealership are decals of flags -- U.S., British, Canadian -- to put on the roof of the car for an additional $500.

"A lot of people like to do that to individualize their car," Chaisson said.

Already popular is the Cooper Works Kit, a $49.95 engine expansion that boosts a Cooper S's engine to nearly 200 horsepower. There's a waiting list at the dealership, even though the kit hasn't been released.

While the car's small size is drawing attention, it would seem to have noticeable drawbacks. But Chaisson said he has sold Mini Coopers to customers 5 feet 2 inches tall up to 6 feet 5 inches tall. And the car's appeal knows no age range.

Cameron Cooper recently purchased a Mini Cooper, and he's 81.

Cooper, who has owned two classic Coopers, said the newer version was actually his "dream car."

After buying the car a few months ago, he took it for a lengthy test drive to the Nevada-Arizona state line.

"I just love the car," Cooper said. "It's well built -- they did a hell of a job."

He said other than a minor problem with his seat getting stuck in the recline mode, he's had no mechanical issues with his Mini Cooper.

The primary complaint of Mini owners in America is the small cup holders. Other than a soda can, most cups will not fit. (Mini has heard the complaints and responded -- each Mini owner has been sent a coffee cup designed to fit into the holder.)

The only real problem with the cars, it seems, is with their availability -- or lack thereof.

With only 70 dealers in the United States, BMW at first said it was going to limit its run of the Mini Cooper to test the market, limiting each dealership to 25 to 30 a month.

"That seemed like a lot to me," Chaisson said. "But now that they're here, I'm selling every one I can get my hands on."

But at least one customer, Gary Pasquale, has yet to buy one.

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