With the all-new Mini Hatch revealed, it is time for the previous generation model to clear production space. Mini ’s Oxford plant has built the last of the current hatch, of which over 1 million units were built since the model went on sale in 2006.
More precisely, 1,041,412 units of the outgoing Mini Hatch left the Oxford plant since 2006, while overall, 1,863,289 Mini Hatches have been built at the facility beginning with the first-generation model in 2001, when BMW re-launched the brand.
When it was released in 2006, the second-generation Mini Hatch brought turbocharged engines and suspension enhancements, with fuel-saving technologies and an infotainment system following later.
The Oxford plant’s overall production has reached more than 2.4 million Mini vehicles since 2001. The carmaker said that 14 percent of all cars built in the UK last year were Minis, with the brand also accounting for 14 percent of all UK vehicle exports in 2012.
Mini hopes the all-new model will help it achieve even better results. The car’s UK launch is in spring 2014, but production will begin sooner following a £750 million investment (€901 million) across three of BMW Group’s UK manufacturing facilities: Plant Oxford (assembly), Plant Swindon (body pressings, sub-assemblies) and Hams Hall (engines).
By Dan Mihalascu
