We’ve just finished digging through Mini’s latest 2500-word press release trumpeting a new special-edition Mini Seven. It’s touted as an “exclusive design” model, available for Mini Hardtop and Hardtop 4-Door models. Actually, though, it amounts to a special badge, silver trim for the roof and door mirrors, some brown interior bits, and 17-inch wheels of slightly different design. That’s it. Not exactly the most impactful way of honoring the Austin Seven for its role as historic ancestor to the Mini.
Blame the standard Mini’s wide range of customization options, which essentially allow you to re-create the Mini Seven’s look on your own. For instance, each of the four exterior colors available for the special edition?Lapisluxury Blue, Pepper White, British Racing Green, and Midnight Black?is also offered for the standard Mini Hardtop two-door and four-door models, as are the silver hood stripes and the Piano Black dashboard trim.
The “Seven” badges that adorn the front fenders and doorsills are meant to hark back to the Austin Seven, which was a twin model to the classic Morris Mini-Minor when it made its debut in 1959. It was a carryover name back then, paying tribute to the original 1922?1939 Austin Seven, a tiny machine on a 75-inch wheelbase. Of course, today’s Mini doesn’t have all that much in common with its iconic roots, as it’s ballooned in size and is now made by BMW rather than t...