When the various models of Minis were sold in the USA up until 1967, who sold them? Was there a specific Dealer or perhaps an actual Mini Dealer at that time?
The dealers usually carried a whole line of cars - MG, Jag, Mini and so on....there were two here in KC. But they stopped importing minis in 68, most of the others carried on - some till 1980, some later - some still do (Jaguar) Most of the Triumph dealers didn't sell MGs, even tho eventually they were all under the same British Leyland banner
Thanks Dave.. was simply curious as to the name/banner
A few examples.....
You rock Dave!!
I know in St. Louis in the 1960s the big dealer was Continental Cars - they sold BMC models, so MGs (MG-Bs, Midgets, MG 1100s), Austin Healeys (big Healeys and Sprites), Morris Minors, Minis. I believe they could special order other models from the BMC catalog too, for example Morris Minor vans, or Mini Mokes.
When the Mini (and the Healey 3000) were no longer imported starting in 1968, they sold MG-Cs for those that wanted a 6-cylinder sports car, and the Austin America (an Americanized version of the Morris 1100) for those that wanted a front-drive economy car. Sadly, a new Cooper S was gone from the US at that point.
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Cool! Nice to see that. In the 1970s, by the time I started buying Mini parts, Continental Cars moved locations and they were selling all the British Leyland offerings: V12 Jag E-types, TR6s, Spitfires, Austin Marinas, MGBs, and Midgets. Dealer greed was high, and they routinely fitted all their sports cars with ANSA exhausts systems right off the transport truck. If you wanted a car, you had the get the aftermarket exhaust system. Funny thing is, the angle of the tailpipes pointed in the vicinity of the ugly rubber bumpers on the MGs and the hot fumes soon melted the plasticized bumper rubber.
One of our local dealers.....Joe Egle had a british car store till they quit importing in the early 80's. He attended all our Brit car shows, and had some interesting cars he'd owmed since new, like a Morris Minor pickup, his daughter's owned from new Bugeye and several others. He died just last year at age 94.
Thanks Gents, In researching the origins of my '64 Cooper which has turned out to be a legit US Market Mini, I have been trying to find out more about the US market itself. Out o the pictures posted here, only one has a Mini that I can see.. quite fascinating..
In the years they were sold here, late 1959 to 1967, just 10,000 Minis were said to have been sold here. That averages less than 1,500 Minis per year. In a land area about 40 times bigger than the UK, you can understand how sparse they were (and still are) on the ground. So not too surprising how they are not showing up in the photos.
Here you go then.....
Thanks Dave!