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TAKEN FROM WWW.MINORMILLION.CO.UK
A MOTORING MILESTONE-
PRODUCTION OF THE MILLIONTH MORRIS MINOR
The Morris Minor has been often been described, as Britain’s best loved small car. It certainly holds a place in many people’s hearts, and most families in Britain have owned one at sometime. During its 23-year production run, over 1.5 million cars were produced in saloon, convertible, traveller, van and pick-up forms. Now 36 years since production ceased, there are estimated to be over 100,000 minors still on the road worldwide today, proof, if needed of the Minor’s durability. Gone is the Vicar and the District Nurse image of the late 60’s and the Minor is now a popular classless car, loved by millions and still a very practical everyday transport.
Design of the Minor started in the early 1940’s led by the brilliant Alec Issigonis, later to mastermind the BMC Mini. Production started in 1948 and the car was launched at the motor show in October that year. Lord Nuffield was not thrilled with the Minor, describing it as a ‘poached egg’ , but the public were very impressed with the car which was way ahead of its time in design standards.
By the end of the next decade it was clear that BMC was going to achieve a new world record-the first ever British car to sell a million units. The feat was actually achieved on 22 December 1960 when the millionth car rolled of the Cowley production line.
Such an achievement could not pass unnoticed and BMC aimed to get the maximum publicity benefit. So the idea of a limited number of special edition cars was formed and the Minor 1000000 was created.
The first Minor Million was made between 22 and 25 Nov 1960 when a 2 door saloon car with chassis number 881386 was taken out of normal production to be turned into a prototype special car.
The interior sported creamy white leather facing, with black piping and black carpets. Outside the distinctive lilac paint work( see paint article web page), 1000000 badges and chrome wheel embellishers set the Million apart, but otherwise all 350 Millions were standard 948 cc two door saloons.
The Millions were given special chassis numbers out of sequence with other cars to take into account the separate numbering system for commercial vehicles. Car numbers 1000001 to 100349 were made between 13 & 22 December with the prototype being re-numbered 1000330 in this sequence.
30 Minor Millions were made LHD spec. 20 went to North America and the other 10 to dealers in Europe. The remaining 320 RHD cars were sent to dealers all over the UK with BMC’s aim being to get one in every showroom for the launch date.
The official launch was on 4th Jan 1961 and a publicity brochure “ A Million Morris Minors” told the world how wonderful the car was and in real terms, cheaper to buy in 1961 than when the car was launched in 1948.
At the same time, BMC held a competition to trace the earliest Minor. The first production car was found and the owner Mr Cyril Swift of Carr Road in Walkley, Sheffield was presented with a new Minor Million in exchange (reg 5599 WA, sadly no longer around). His original car is now on display at BMIHT at Gaydon.
Millions hit the country far & wide. Stewart & Arden, the largest BMC dealer took 32 so they were certainly all over Greater London, and others went everywhere from Cornwall and the Channel Island to the Outer Hebrides and Shetland. It appears they did not sell very fast- perhaps the British public wasn’t ready for lilac in 1961! The last million to be sold was in mid July, 6 months after the launch, in the Isle of Skye.
Arguably, the 2 most interesting millions are still in existence. The Millionth car & the Prototype Million. The prototype Million was sold in Stranraer in Scotland and has been restored by the Morris Minors Owners Dorset Branch.
It is thought that in total 50 to 70 ‘Millions’ have survived to this day. A 1 in 5 survival rate which few models could boast !
Andrew Dyer
A very rough guide where they live with one in Aussie,NZ,Japan,Denmark,Holland and several in the USA
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A GREAT WEEKEND ONCE AGAIN WITH BRILLIANT SUNSHINE . A FEW MORE PHOTOS OF THE TRIP IN THE GALLERY SECTION. THANKS ONCE AGAIN TO SEAN DOHENY
“LOOK AT THAT FOR A BLUE SKY”
THE HAPPY TRAVELLERS
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The Thurles & District Vintage Club was formed after the millenium celebrations in 2001.It’s aim is to promote the collection and restoration of all types of vehicles and memorabilia of times past, to display and demonstrate how items work at rallies to which all proceeds go to charity. When we started in 2001 we had only three members but now to date in 2010 we have approximately 83 from all over North Tipperary, Limerick and Laois.
Each year we organise different events some of which are for charity and more of which are for fun days out. The highlight of our year is our vintage rally which normally takes place in Corbally Thurles, at which we have raised large sums of money for North Tipperary Hospice. At this event we would have a lot of volunteers and helpers, their help is very much appreciated.
We also hold a number of vintage road runs every year. Every Sunday the members would travel different parts of the country to support other rallies and road runs. We normally have a meeting once a month to discuss how things are going. New members are always welcome. Our club is affiliated to the Irish Vintage Engine and Tractor Association. This year we have the honour of hosting the I.V.E.T.A. National Rally.
Thank you for visiting our site. Jim Fogarty Chairman
www.tdvintage.com
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WWW.ROVERCLUBIRELAND.COM
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| Classic Cars Ireland is the first Classic Car dealership in Ireland that specialises in Sourcing and Importing Classic Cars from the Continent and the UK. We have access to a network of excellent and reputable Classic Car specialists offerering high quality cars for excellent prices, and also a wealth of individual private sellers on the continent, allowing us to select some very rare and unusual cars against very competitive prices. Since not everyone has the ability and the expertise, or indeed the wish to check out a car abroad and deal with organising the transport and importation, this is where we can take the sting out of purchasing a Classic Car for you.
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According to Irish legislation, a car is deemed a “Classic” when according to its Date of First Registration, the car is older than 30 years. The year and date of manufacture will only be taken into consideration, when there is no paperwork at hand or when the Date of First registration is for some a lot later than the normal. When a car has the Classic Car or “Vintage” status, it benefits from the following:
• No VRT duty on imports
• Only 48 euro Annual Road Tax
• Cheap Insurance
• Exempt from compulsory NCT test
(only pre 1-1-1980 cars)
• Classic Cars retain their value
No VRT duty on imports
VRT is the tax that you have to pay when you import a car into Ireland. Ireland is one of the very few countries in Europe that is still hanging on to this excruciatingly high tax, which makes importing a new or 2nd hand car from outside the state, a very expensive operation.
In 2008 there have been some changes to VRT legislation in that the rate of VRT is now calculated on the basis of CO2 emissions and rates have been updated. Generaly on older cars, there is no CO2 footprint available, which means the tax office is entitled to charge the maximum VRT rate of 36% of the Open Market Selling Price of the vehicle, with a minimum of 720 euro’s!
More details about the VRT regulations can be found on
Guide to Vehicle Registration Tax
As you can imagine this tax means a substantial increase in the purchase price of any car imported from abroad! However, if according to the date of first registration, the car is older than 30 years, the car is exempt from VRT, whereby only small registration fee of 50 euros is payable. This suddenly makes importing a Classic Car a great way to find a good deal, and this is why we at Classic Cars Ireland tend to mainly focus on cars that are 30 years and older.
There is however one thing to keep in mind with the above, and that is that regardless of wether the car is older than 30 years, if the car is brought in from Outside the EU Union (for example countries like the US, South Africa, Australia, Japan, but also Switzerland!!) you will be liable to paying VAT @ 21% and Customs and Excise duties. This can sometimes push the seemingly bargain priced classic in the US into a different light and makes sourcing a car within the EU all the more interesting.
Only 48 euro’s Annual Road Tax
As of 2008 motor tax is now based on CO2 emissions instead of engine capacity. However, cars registered before 2008 will still be classed according to engine capacity, with the maximum engine capacity of 3.0 litre and over taxed at 1,566 euro’s per annum. However, if your car is 30 years or older, it would be exempt from Road Tax, and you would only have to pay 48 euros per annum, regardless whether your engine capacity is 1 litre or 6.7 litres.
The choice is yours!
Cheap Insurance
There are a number of Insurance companies in Ireland that offer reduced rates for Classic Cars on limited mileages. This would make sense, as Classic Car owners are known to really care for their car, and the car would almost certainly be used much less than the regular Vectra’s and Mondeo’s.
However, there are a couple of criteria that most insurance companies will follow, before you are eligible for a Classic Car scheme.
Age of the driver: minimum 25 years
Full licence required
Age of the car: minimum 20-25 years
Most companies will insist on the insurer having another motor policy as their main driver
Some companies require the car to be garaged
Some companies require an alarm fitted, etc.
The rule of thumb is to shop around and compare prices to get the best deal.
Exempt from compulsory NCT test for pre 1-1-1980 cars
In January 2000, the long awaited (and dreaded) compulsory testing of every vehicle older than 3 years has come into effect. This procedure is already commonplace in all other European countries, but Ireland had been able to ward of this type of compulsory testing, year after year. Designed to make the roads safer, it has great impact on the standard of the cars on the road. It will however mean greater costs for owners of older cars. Another benefit for Classic Car Owners is, that if your car is older than 1-1-1980 (and this is where the regulation deviates from the standard “30 year and older” guideline, with NCT, the ‘buck’ stops at 1980!), it will be exempt from the compulsory testing scheme.
This doesn’t mean however, that any old car will do, as we firmly believe that NO car should be passed on to you as a potential buyer, if it is not strictly Safe and Roadworthy! We will make sure of that, before we buy it
Classic Cars retain their value
When you buy a new car, the moment you drive it out of the Showroom, thousands of euros will be wiped off the value of your car. Not a nice thought when you are supposed to be happy about the purchase of your new car.
It’s a different story with Classic Cars. Prices for classic cars remain at a certain level and the cars are generally not subject to the sort of depreciation you will see with modern cars. It all depends how well you care for your Classic Car, but if you keep it in good condition throughout, you will certainly NOT loose any money on it.
Now where can you get a deal like that in a mainstream car dealership?
www.classiccarireland.eu
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At Classic Cars Ireland we tend to focus on the individual needs of the client. If you haven’t settled on a specific Classic Car that you would like to purchase, we will help you determine the best possible car for you. If you DO know exactly what you want, we will start with evaluating if this car would indeed be suitable for what you are intending it for. It is important to us to determine if the car you are pursuing is right for you, because nothing is as bad as getting your ‘dream car’ only to find out it is not what you had expected it to be. Part of our service is therefore to give as much advice as possible on the cars, the practicality, the projected maintenance and the resale values. It has happened we had to ‘educate’ clients in their choice of cars and offer advice as to potentially more suitable candidates that would better fit the budget or the requirements of the client.