Innocenti Mini (Bertone)
| Innocenti | |
|---|---|
 Innocenti Mini 90
|
|
| Mini | |
| Production period: | 1975-1993 |
| Class : | Small car |
| Body versions : | Station wagon |
| Engines: |
Otto engines : 0.5–1.3 liters (23–53 kW) Diesel engines : 1.0 liters (27 kW) |
| Length: | 3135-3375 mm |
| Width: | 1520-1530 mm |
| Height: | 1375 mm |
| Wheelbase : | 2040-2206 mm |
| Empty weight : | 650-740 kg |
| Previous model | Innocenti Mini |
The Innocenti Mini was a small Italian car produced by the Milan-based car manufacturer Innocenti from 1975 . The car was technically based on the Mini from British Leyland , but had an independent body designed by Bertone , which made it appear much more modern. Equipped with 0.9 or 1.2 liter four-cylinder engines, it was initially sold under the names Mini 90 and Mini 120. Other engines and model names were added later. From 1982 the Italian small car emancipated itself from its British roots. It received Japanese drive technology and has been revised several times. At this time he also dropped the name "Mini". The cars were then named after the size of their cubic capacity. After Fiat had acquired the majority stake in Innocenti in 1991, production of the small car ran out; The last Innocenti Mini was produced in 1993.
history
Innocenti, which was founded in 1931, has been producing various British Leyland models under license since the 1950s. They were primarily intended for the Italian market. After the company's founder died in 1966, British Leyland took over the business. Since then, Innocenti has mainly produced the Innocenti Mini under license, which initially sold well. However, when more modern designed competitors such as the Autobianchi A112 or the Fiat 127 came onto the market at the end of the 1960s , the competitiveness of the Italian Mini declined. With the so-called ADO 74, British Leyland developed a somewhat larger and more modern successor to the Mini, on which Innocenti had high hopes; but a few months before British Leyland went bankrupt in 1974, work on this project was discontinued without replacement.
When the failure of the ADO 74 project became apparent in 1974, Innocenti began redesigning the Mini on its own responsibility. British Leyland supported the development work, but decided against selling the car in Great Britain as early as the concept phase. The new Innocenti Mini was shown to the public for the first time at the Turin Motor Show in autumn 1974; Series production began a few months later. After British Leyland became insolvent and nationalized, the British company sold its Innocenti shares except for a remainder of 6% to the Italian entrepreneur Alejandro de Tomaso , who, in addition to the sports car manufacturer named after him, already owned Benelli and shortly afterwards the traditional company Maserati should acquire. After Innocenti had temporarily stopped the production of new vehicles in 1975, De Tomaso continued the production of the small car in 1976. In the following years, the company initially continued to source technical components from Great Britain. In 1981 the alliance between de Tomaso and British Leyland broke up. De Tomaso then had the Mini revised.
The car received a new suspension for the 1982 model year and was no longer equipped with British engines, but with Daihatsu engines . This change led to a significant increase in sales on the Italian market.
From 1975 to 1993 Innocenti produced 232,387 Mini vehicles.
construction
The basic technical structure of the Innocenti Mini initially largely corresponded to that of the British Mini. The dimensions hardly differed from each other: the wheelbases of both cars were identical (2040 mm); the Innocenti was one cm longer and ten cm wider than Leyland's Mini, and in weight it exceeded the basic version by 55 kg. Later there was a series with the designation Innocenti 990 lengthened by 160 mm. Innocenti used the same subframe as the British Mini on the front end. the rear construction, on the other hand, was independent: Innocenti had developed its own subframe here, which was wider than the British construction. It made a larger gas tank possible. The spare wheel was stored horizontally on the Innocenti, and the battery - unlike the original Mini - was in the engine compartment. This increased the volume of the trunk. The rubber suspension of the Mini remained unchanged in the first few years. With the revision of the Innocenti, a new, conventional suspension was introduced in 1982. The engines, too, initially came from British Leyland, and from 1982 they were purchased from Japan.
The body of the Innocenti Mini was completely independent. It was designed by Bertone in 1974. In contrast to the British Mini, it was straight and smooth. A special feature was the large, upward swinging tailgate, which made the trunk easily accessible. One advantage of the Innocenti was the foldable rear bench seat, which also increased the trunk volume.
Individual models
The individual versions of the Innocenti Mini differ primarily in the drive technology used and - in the later versions - in the wheelbase. Between 1975 and 1981, the Innocenti Mini were closely related to the British Leyland Mini; from 1982, however, the cars had a technical reference to Daihatsu.
British Leyland era
In the early years of production, Innocenti used British Leyland engines and transmissions. During this time, three versions of the Italian small car were created.
Innocenti Mini 90 and Mini Mille
The basic version was the Innocenti Mini 90 presented in 1974 . He used a 0.9 liter four-cylinder engine with initially 43, later 48 hp. The top speed was 134 km / h. From 1980 a technically unchanged version of this vehicle was offered as the Innocenti Mini Mille . It featured redesigned plastic bumpers.
Innocenti Mini 120
The Mini 120 was the more powerful variant of the Innocenti. The 1275 cc four-cylinder developed 65 hp, 10 hp more than the same engine in the Mini 1275 GT.
Innocenti De Tomaso
The Innocenti De Tomaso , presented in 1976, was a revised version of the Mini 120, which differed from the 120 mainly in appearance. The De Tomaso version had wide plastic bumpers with a front spoiler, aluminum rims, integrated fog lights and an air scoop on the bonnet. The engine was taken over unchanged from the 120, the engine output increased to 70 hp by a modified intake manifold and exhaust. The top speed was 160 km / h. Production of the Innocenti De Tomaso ended in 1983. Its successor was the Innocenti Turbo De Tomaso presented in 1985.
Daihatsu era
From 1982 onwards, Innocenti mainly used Japanese components for engines and power transmissions, which were obtained from the small car specialist Daihatsu. During this time, a large number of different versions were created, which differed in terms of the engine, but above all the length of the wheelbase. In the early years of the Daihatsu era, the Innocenti retained the wheelbase of the Leyland Mini. With the introduction of the 990 series in 1986, the wheelbase of the volume models was stretched by 160 mm; the base model, which was temporarily given a two-cylinder engine, and the most powerfully motorized model retained the short wheelbase.
Conventional wheelbase
Innocenti Tre
After breaking away from British Leyland, Innocenti presented the Innocenti Tre model (for tre Cilindri = three cylinders) as the basic version of the small city car in 1982 . It was later named Innocenti SE. The car had a 1.0 liter three-cylinder Daihatsu engine with an output of 52 hp. The manual five-speed gearbox was also obtained from Japan. The top speed was 145 km / h. With the introduction of the 990 series in the 1986 model year, production of the Tre was discontinued.
Innocenti 650 and 500 iS
1986 appeared on the conventional short wheelbase as a new basic version of the Innocenti 650 with a 0.6 liter two-cylinder engine. The engine output was 31 hp; the maximum speed was given as 120 km / h. Its production was stopped again in 1988.
It was replaced in 1989 by the Innocenti 500 iS , which was powered by a 0.5 liter three-cylinder engine with 31 hp. The model was produced until 1993.
Innocenti Turbo De Tomaso
The sport version was the Innocenti Turbo De Tomaso , whose engine was charged and delivered 72 hp. The Turbo De Tomaso presented in 1985 was the most powerful version of the Innocenti Mini. Its top speed was 165 km / h.
Extended wheelbase: the 990 series
The Innocenti 990 was introduced in 1986. Compared to the earlier model versions, the wheelbase was lengthened by 160 mm; accordingly, the total length of the car grew to 3375 mm. This series is based on a study that the Italian supplier Embo developed in 1982. Different engines, each with a cubic capacity of 993 cm³ and three cylinders, served as drive.
- A 1.0 liter gasoline engine with 53 hp represented the basic engine of the 990 series.
- The most economical version was the 990 diesel with a 993 cm³ three-cylinder diesel engine. The engine developed 37 hp and the top speed was 125 km / h. At times the diesel was also offered with a turbocharger.
distribution
The Innocenti Mini were sold through the network of British Leyland dealers in most European countries until 1981. In the UK, however, the car was not officially available; only in 1979 a free dealer imported some models to Great Britain. According to official reports, the car did not fit into the British Leyland model range. Outside observers, however, assume that British Leyland feared for the success of its own, outdated models. The Leyland dealers also sold the Innocenti Mini in Germany until 1981; later a free importer took over the distribution.
Competitors
The Innocenti Mini competed primarily with small Italian cars. Since the 1980s it has been noticeably more expensive than its competitors. The company tried to make up for the price disadvantage with high-quality standard equipment.
From Italy
From other European countries
From Japan
In the 1970s and 1980s, numerous Japanese automobile manufacturers produced their own products in the so-called kei-car class; Daihatsu and Suzuki were particularly well represented in this market. Most of these small vehicles were reserved for the domestic market. Only the Daihatsu Cuore was exported to Europe in large numbers .
literature
- Georg Amtmann, Halwart Schrader: Italian sports cars. From Abarth and Alfa Romeo to Vignale and Zagato; Brands, history, technology, data. 1st edition. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1999, ISBN 3-613-01988-4 .
- Jon Pressnell: Was British Leyland wrong not to give us the Inni Minni? Model history of the Innocenti Mini in: Classic & Sports Car, issue 6/2011, p. 184 ff.
Web links
- Model history of the Innocenti Mini
- www.detomasobybertone.com - Private website about the Innocenti Mini De Tomaso
- German-language sales brochure of the Innocenti Mini from 1978
- German club and blog about the Innocenti De Tomaso
Individual evidence
- ↑ For the history of the later Austin Metro unrelated project ADO 74 s. Treatise on the website www.aronline.co.uk ( Memento of the original from May 24, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed June 10, 2011).
- ↑ For the background cf. Classic & Sports Car issue 6/2011, p. 186.
- ↑ Auto Catalog No. 26 (1982/83), p. 104.
- ↑ Data quoted from Auto Catalog No. 25 (1981/82), 222, 228.
- ↑ For the technical details cf. Classic & Sports Car issue 6/2011, p. 186.
- ↑ Overview of the models of the 990 series on the website www.aronline.co.uk ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed June 10, 2011).
- ↑ Model history of the Innocenti Mini on the website www.aronline.co.uk ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed June 10, 2011).
- ↑ For the technical details cf. Classic & Sports Car issue 6/2011, p. 186.
- ^ Auto Catalog No. 3 (1979/1980), p. 94.
- ↑ Auto Catalog No. 30 (1986/87), p. 142.
