The Mini Moke is a small, front-wheel-drive utility and recreational convertible, conceived and manufactured as a lightweight military vehicle by British Motor Corporation (BMC), and subsequently marketed for civilian use under the Austin, Morris, Leyland, and Moke brands. The name "Mini Moke" combines mini with moke, an archaic term for a mule.[7][8][9][10] The Moke is known for its simple, straightforward, doorless design; and for its adaptability.
BMC's Cowley plant started building Mokes in January 1964, with 14,518 produced in the UK between 1964 and 1968; 26,000 were manufactured in Australia between 1966 and 1981; and 10,000 in Portugal between 1980 and 1993 when, after a nearly 30-year run, production ended.[11][12][13][14]
In 2013, in a joint venture with Jaguar Land Rover, Chinese automaker Chery Automobile started production in China of a new car called Moke.[15][16] This evocation of the design is assembled and distributed by a number of companies in several countries including England, France, and the US, although ownership of the Moke trademark is disputed.[17]
History
The original Moke was designed by Sir Alec Issigonis[18] and John Sheppard.[19] When Issigonis designed the Mini, he planned another vehicle to share the Mini's mechanical parts, but with a more rugged body shell. This was an attempt to take a portion of the military vehicle business from Land Rover. Issigonis had previously designed the Nuffield Guppy in a failed attempt to break into that market. By 1959, BMC had working prototypes of what was codenamed "The Buckboard", later to become the Mini Moke. These prototypes were shown to the British Army as a parachute-droppable vehicle, but poor ground clearance and a low-powered engine did not meet the most basic requirements for an off-road vehicle. Only the Royal Navy showed any interest in the Buckboard, as a vehicle for use on the decks of aircraft carriers.[11]
Early promotional material made much of the lightness of the vehicle, showing four soldiers travelling in the Moke off-road, then picking it up by its tubular bumpers and carrying it when (inevitably) its low ground-clearance proved inadequate.[citation needed]
In a further attempt to make a viable military vehicle, a few four-wheel drive Mokes were made. This was accomplished by the addition of a second engine and transmission at the back of the vehicle with linked clutches and gear shifters,[20] which did nothing for the ground-clearance problems. This vehicle was called "The Twini" and was shown to the US Army—again with no success.[8] The added mechanical complexity and lack of interest by the military discouraged development beyond the prototype stage.[21][22]
Three of these vehicles were used by the Brazilian Army after being captured during the 1969 Rupununi Rebellion from Guyanese rebels, who had crossed the border into Brazil.[23]
Originally prototyped using the engine, transmission and suspension parts from the Mini Van,[21][22] the design's small wheels and low ground clearance made it unsuitable as an off-road military vehicle. The design was subsequently adapted and sold globally for general use as a low-cost, easily maintained, lightweight recreational and utility vehicle.
1965 Austin Mini Moke BMC UK for the North American market
When BMC gave up on the idea of selling the Moke to the military, in 1963 they marketed it as a civilian vehicle, targeting farmers and light commercial applications. Several prototypes were built in 1963, one of which is still known to exist in Pinner just outside London, England. The Moke was launched onto the British market in 1964. The British Customs and Excise department decided that the Moke should be classified as a passenger car rather than as a commercial vehicle, which meant that it attracted purchase tax, reducing sales in its intended commercial market.[24]
British-made Mokes were fitted with a low-end 848cc transverse inline-four engine, detuned to use low-octane fuel. They used the same suspension, gearbox and 10inch wheels as the standard Mini.[25] Originally, passenger seats, grab handles, heater, windscreen washer and a removable canvas top were optional equipment, installed by the owner.[21] The base price was £ 405.[26] The "Mk I" Mokes had a single windscreen wiper and a floor-mounted headlight dip switch, and the only colour available was "Spruce Green". In 1967, the "Mk II" Moke added a passenger-side wiper. Horn and headlight controls were moved onto the indicator stalk. These later British Mokes were also available in white.[27]
The John Player & Sons cigarette company ran a team of Mokes in autocross competitions on grass tracks through 1968.[9] These vehicles were equipped with rollover protection and used the Mini Cooper S 1275cc engine.
Despite the lack of success in selling the Mini Moke to the British Armed Forces, an unknown number (unlikely to have been more than a handful) of examples were apparently used by Land Forces Falkland Islands during the Falklands War and its immediate aftermath; the source of these vehicles is unclear. At least one commandeered civilian Mini Moke was also used by the Argentinian Forces during their occupation of the islands.
The original Moke was made in Britain until 1968.[11]
Australian Mokes
Starting in 1966 the Moke was built in Australia where it was originally marketed as the Morris Mini Moke, and from 1973 as the Leyland Moke.[28] Initially Australian Mokes had the same 10-inch wheels as British Mokes and Mini saloons but in 1968 these were replaced by 13-inch wheels with longer rear trailing arms, which made them more practical for gentle off-road or beach use than the British version. There was also a widening piece welded to the wheel arches, front and rear to allow for wider tyres and rims. The solid metal seats of the British Mokes were replaced with tubular-framed "deck-chair" seats.[27] This variant started with a 998cc engine, which was switched mid-production to 1,098cc. In 1976, with the advent of new anti-pollution requirements (Australian Design Rule 27A), the locally manufactured 1,098cc motor was replaced by an imported version of the 998cc motor with an air pump and exhaust gas recirculation, which had been developed to meet UK (US?)[citation needed] anti-pollution requirements.
For a brief period around 1971, Leyland Australia produced a variant referred to in Leyland literature as "Moke, special export", but commonly called a "Californian", which had a 1,275cc engine and was fitted with side marker lamps and different rear lights to conform to US FMVSS standards. The fuel tank from the Austin Sprite or MG Midget was fitted beneath the rear load area, replacing the standard tank mounted in the left sidebox. The export Californian was readily recognisable by its roof and seats, trimmed in "Op-pop verve" black and white tiger-striped vinyl or "Orange Bali" vinyl, which looked rather like a fruit salad,[29] and was briefly marketed to the "flower power" culture in the United States.
Leyand Mini Moke "Californian"
The name "Californian" and the 1275cc motor were resurrected in 1977 for Australian market Mokes with denim seat covers, more comfortable seats (which concealed the same basic frame within), spoked wheels[22] and complex tubular bumpers (known as "roo bars").[27]
Australian Mokes were exported to many countries and pioneered large-scale exports of Australian-made vehicles. Leyland Australia made much of these exports in its advertising. The use of Australian-made Mokes by the Israeli Army (complete with a machine-gun tripod mounted in the rear) attracted controversy and media attention.[11][21]
From 1975, a pickup version of the Moke was produced, with a 1.45x1.50metre (55x59in) drop-sided bed which protruded behind the back of the vehicle, and a cloth top over the cab area.[22]
Leyland Moke pick-up with after-market wheels
At least two four-wheel drive Moke prototypes were manufactured by Leyland Australia in the late 1970s, but unlike the British version, these used just one engine. Leyland were planning to market this version, but Moke production in Australia ended in 1981 and all that remains of the project is one of the prototypes which is now owned by an enthusiast in Western Australia[21][22] and a modified differential crownwheel with gearteeth cut in the side to drive the rear tailshaft, in the personal collection of a Melbourne Mini specialist.
In 1977 a 1275cc Cooper S-engined Moke (sponsored by Coca-Cola) was entered into the Singapore AirlinesLondon-Sydney Marathon. The car was driven over 30,000km (19,000 miles) over 30 days and finished in 35th place.[8]
Australian production of the Moke ended in 1981.[11]
Portuguese Mokes
As Australian Moke production wound down, manufacturing was transferred to British Leyland's subsidiary in Portugal, which made 8,500 of the "Californian" Mokes in the Setúbal IMA plant between 1980 and 1984. In 1984 production was transferred to the Vendas Novas plant. Initially these Mokes were identical to late-model Australian Mokes; very soon, however, they were altered to use then-current British production Mini saloon components, including the standard-length Mini rear trailing arms and the 12–in wheels with modern low-profile tyres, which the saloon had acquired during the Moke's absence from Europe.
In April 1990, British Leyland (by then called Rover Group) sold the "Moke" name to Cagiva, a motorcycle manufacturer in Bologna, Italy.[30] Production continued in Portugal under Cagiva's auspices until 1993, when Cagiva transferred the tooling to their own factory in Varese, Italy with the intention of restarting production there in 1995 — which they never did, although some unfinished cars were assembled in Italy. Cagiva was made to pay a considerably higher price for the Rover-made parts than had BL's Portuguese subsidiary, and the enterprise never made financial sense.[30] The Cagiva-built Mokes have a new top with C-shaped openings, as well as plastic curve handles at the rear longitudinal elements of the rollover bar. Since Cagiva did not own the "Mini" name, the 2071 cars they built were sold simply as "Mokes".[11][21] This brought the total production run of Mokes and Moke derivatives to about 50,000.
1984 British Leyland Moke, still using the Australian design with 13-inch wheels
1989 Austin Rover Moke 25, a limited edition of 250 cars celebrating the Mini Moke's 25th anniversary
In 2012 MOKE International teamed up with designer Michael Young, Chery Automobile, and Sicar Engineering[15] to design a new version of the Moke, styled MOKE, with the intention of releasing the car in Thailand, Australia, the Caribbean, the Seychelles and Mauritius, and Egypt by 2016.[31] In 2013, Chery Automobile began manufacturing the reimagined Moke in China.[15] The 2020 MOKE has a 1,083cc four-cylinder fuel injected petrol engine with either manual or automatic transmission and was also made in France.[32][33] An electric version based on this design has been manufactured in Britain since 2021.[34][35] The Moke brand was acquired by EV Technology Group[36] in 2022.[37][38]
Mokes retain their cult status, and there are many enthusiastic restorers.
The Moke's construction is simple. The body mainly consists of two box-section "pontoons" or "sideboxes" running between the front and rear wheels and includes solid extensions running from the back of the car to the front. These are connected by the floor pan, the firewall and a sturdy lateral torque box that runs under the front seats and stiffens the body in torsion. The left-hand pontoon contains the fuel tank; the right-hand has a compartment for the battery and a small lockable storage area. The 1972 "Moke, Special Export", commonly referred to as a "Californian" Moke, has an Austin Sprite/MG Midget type fuel tank fitted beneath the rear floor area to meet the American FMVSS safety requirements of the time. Standard Mokes of the same period and later Californian Mokes use the conventional tank mounted in the left sidebox. Later Portuguese Mokes have additional lockable storage space at the rear of the vehicle. The optional cloth canopy has plastic side windows and is held up by a thin tubular structure that can easily be removed when not needed. In later versions this was replaced with a more solid roll cage. The windscreen can easily be unbolted and removed if not needed. There are just three curved panels in the Moke, the bonnet, the firewall and the floor, each of which is only curved in one direction. This makes it relatively straightforward to reproduce and replace Moke body components without access to sophisticated machine tools.[39]
Because the Moke's A-Series engine, manual gearbox and suspension are identical to those of a standard Mini (which was still in production up to October 2000), most spare parts are still readily available. The Moke has no chassis, so the wheels, brake assemblies and suspension are attached to front and rear subframes bolted straight onto the monocoque shell, just as with a standard Mini. Mokes tend to require much structural maintenance if they are to stay in good running order.[39]
The true Mini Moke was never available as a kit car, however as the basic Mini parts were easily available, many companies have assembled and marketed look-alikes, hybrid copies, and custom versions of the vehicle with names such as the Andersen "Mini-Cub", "Comet", Del Tech "Nomad", "Gecko", "Hobo", "Hustler", "Jimini", "Mini-Scout", "MPV" (a 6-wheeler), "Mule", "Navajo", "Ranger", "Mini Scamp", "Stimson", "Warrior", and the "Yak".[27] Unusual one-off custom versions of the Mini Moke have also been created inspired by the original design, including a 454hp Maserati V-8 powered example built by Lazareth Auto-Moto[fr], and a three axle six-wheeler.[40][41]
Island Mokes
The Mini Moke is a popular rental car in the Seychelles, Barbados, Mauritius and many other tropical countries.
The Moke gained much popularity as a beach buggy and was often rented to tourists in tropical island resorts such as Mauritius and Barbados.
The car also found a market in Macau, where it became the official transport for the local police; the Happy-Rent-a-Car company also owned 43 of the vehicles, which were made available for hire until February 2006 when they were outlawed by new car safety laws.[11][42] The Macau branch of the car rental company Avis ran a fleet of Moke look-alike "CUBs" until July 2007. The CUB, although it resembled the Moke, was designed by Charles Andersen of Liverpool, England and used a 1275 cc version of the A-Series engine.[43]
On Magnetic Island, off Australia's Queensland coast, Moke Magnetic still operate a large fleet of Australian-made Mokes for hire to tourists.[44]
The Mini Moke can still be seen around the town of Victoria, Seychelles, as it is still a popular mode of transport for tourists and can seat four people in relative comfort.
In the early 1970s, a Mini Moke was the first motor vehicle to be driven on Pitcairn Island and thereby became the most remote vehicle on Earth. It was chosen because it was the only off-road vehicle that could be lifted by the island's only crane—there being no dock or airstrip at Pitcairn. However, the rough terrain and heavy rainfall proved too much for the Moke and it soon broke down. Eventually, a second and later a third Moke were sent to the island, and by cannibalising the three for spares, the island's sole vehicle remained running until at least 1988.[22]
George E Moss and Co (trading as GEMCO) developed a road-rail system based on a Western Australian Government Railways design which was fitted to at least two Mokes: one used by the District Engineer, Perth, and the other by the District Engineer, Northam.[48]
Electric Mokes
Electromoke on static display at the Museum of Vehicle Evolution
The Moke America eMoke by Chery/MOKE International/Cruise Car
A new design inspired by the Mini Moke was developed by Chery subsidiary Sicar Engineering and MOKE International in around 2007. This Chinese-manufactured design is assembled and distributed by various small companies in France, England, and United States.
Future Mokes
While BMW-owned Mini has discussed other vehicles named after the Moke, no production has ever taken place.[51][52] A concept car called the MINI Beachcomber, which draws heavily on Moke styling, was used to build interest for the upcoming Mini Countryman.[53]
The Moke met with renewed success in the 1980s after French actress and model Brigitte Bardot was pictured driving a Moke with her dogs in St. Tropez, France.[61][62][60]
In 1982 the Seychelles issued a commemorative "Transportation" postage stamp featuring the Mini Moke.
In 2016 the Moke was included in an exhibition titled "AL(L) Projects with Aluminum", curated by Maria Cristina Didero at the Grand-Hornu in Belgium. The show explored experimentation with aluminium in art, design, and industry.[63]
A "Panorama Mokes" event was held In October 2016 which brought together a group of Mini Mokes alongside their "tin top" cousins the "Classic Minis" which met at Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia. Alongside the Minis, the MOKE also celebrated 50 years since production in Australia and participated in a four-day event with everyone arriving on cue to the 2016 Supercheap AutoBathurst 1000.[64]
In 2021 the Moke that featured in The Prisoner sold at auction for £69,750.[65] The last petrol powered Moke revival was sold at the Blenheim Palace Ball auction in 2022. The proceeds of the event were donated to the charity Starlight UK.[66]
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 until 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during five, from the last year of the 1950s into the last year of the 20th century, over a single generation, as fastbacks, estates, and convertibles.
Morris Motors Limited was a British privately owned motor vehicle manufacturing company formed in 1919 to take over the assets of William Morris's WRM Motors Limited and continue production of the same vehicles. By 1926 its production represented 42 per cent of British car manufacture—a remarkable expansion rate attributed to William Morris's practice of buying in major as well as minor components and assembling them in his own factory. Largely self-financed through his enormous profits, Morris did borrow some money from the public in 1926, and later shared some of Morris Motors' ownership with the public in 1936. The new capital was then used by Morris Motors to buy many of his other privately held businesses.
Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis was a British-Greek automotive designer. He designed the Mini, launched by the British Motor Corporation in 1959, and voted the second most influential car of the 20th century in 1999.
The British Motor Corporation Limited (BMC) was a UK-based vehicle manufacturer, formed in early 1952 to give effect to an agreed merger of the Morris and Austin businesses.
The Morris Marina is a front-engined, rear-wheel-drive small family car that was manufactured by the Austin-Morris division of British Leyland from 1971 until 1980. It served to replace the Morris Minor in the Morris product line, which had first been built in 1948. The Marina was also sold in some markets as the Austin Marina, the Leyland Marina and the Morris 1700.
The Austin Motor Company Limited was an English manufacturer of motor vehicles, founded in 1905 by Herbert Austin in Longbridge. In 1952 it was merged with Morris Motors Limited in the new holding company British Motor Corporation (BMC) Limited, keeping its separate identity. The marque Austin was used until 1987 by BMC's successors British Leyland and Rover Group. The trademark is currently owned by the Chinese firm SAIC Motor, after being transferred from bankrupt subsidiary Nanjing Automotive which had acquired it with MG Rover Group in July 2005.
British Leyland was a British automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partly nationalised in 1975, when the UK government created a holding company called British Leyland, later renamed BL in 1978. It incorporated much of the British-owned motor vehicle industry, which in 1968 had a 40% share of the UK car market, with its history going back to 1895. Despite containing profitable marques such as Jaguar, Rover, and Land Rover, as well as the best-selling Mini, BLMC had a troubled history, leading to its eventual collapse in 1975 and subsequent part-nationalisation.
The Leyland P76 is a large car that was produced by Leyland Australia, the Australian subsidiary of British Leyland. Featuring what was described at the time as the "standard Australian wheelbase of 111 inches", it was intended to provide the company with a genuine rival to large local models like the Ford Falcon, the Holden Kingswood, and the Chrysler Valiant. But, due to the first real fuel crisis and demand far exceeding the supply, Leyland rushed the assembly process with the first of the P76s to come off the assembly line, resulting in poor build quality and some reliability problems. The combination of the rushed assembly, fuel crisis and strikes at the component manufacturers' factories, resulted in the Leyland P76 being labelled a lemon, despite being named Wheels Car of the Year in 1973. By 1974, sales of the P76 had slumped and BMC decided to end the production of the P76. Although the P76 has been labelled a lemon in Australian motoring history, it is viewed by some as an iconic Australian car and has a loyal following.
The Morris Minor is an economy car produced by British marque Morris Motors between 1948 and 1971. It made its debut at the Earls Court Motor Show, London, in October 1948. Designed under the leadership of Alec Issigonis, more than 1.6 million were manufactured in three series: the Series MM, the Series II, and the 1000 series.
BMC ADO17 is the model code used by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) for a range of cars in the European 'D' market-segment of larger family cars, manufactured from September 1964 to 1975. The car was initially sold under the Austin marque as the Austin 1800, then by Morris as the Morris 1800, and by Wolseley as the Wolseley 18/85. Later, with a 2.2 L engine, also as the Austin 2200, Morris 2200 and Wolseley Six. Informally, because of the car's exceptional width and overall appearance, these cars became widely known under the nickname "landcrab"
The BMC ADO16 is a range of small family cars built by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and, later, British Leyland. Launched in 1962, it was Britain's best-selling car from 1963 to 1966 and from 1968 to 1971. The ADO16 was marketed under various make and model names; however, the Austin 1100 and Morris 1100 were the most prolific of all the ADO16 variants. The car's ubiquity at the height of its popularity led to it simply being known as the 1100 (eleven-hundred) in its home market. Also made with a 1275cc engine, it was then typically called 1300.
A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the direction of travel. Many modern front-wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration. Most rear-wheel drive vehicles use a longitudinal engine configuration, where the engine's crankshaft axis is parallel with the direction of travel, except for some rear-mid engine vehicles, which use a transverse engine and transaxle mounted in the rear instead of the front. Despite typically being used in light vehicles, it is not restricted to such designs and has also been used on armoured fighting vehicles to save interior space.
The BMC E-series engine is a line of straight-4 and straight-6 overhead camshaft automobile petrol engines from the British Motor Corporation (BMC). It displaced 1.5 L or 1.8 L in four-cylinder form, and 2.2 L or 2.6 L as a six-cylinder. The company's native United Kingdom market did not use the 2.6 L version, which was used in vehicles of Australian and South African manufacture. Although designed when the parent company was BMC, by the time the engine was launched the company had become British Leyland (BL), and so the engine is commonly referred to as the British Leyland E-series engine.
The Mark I Mini (1959–1967) was the first version of British Motor Corporation's Mini model. It is characterised by its sliding windows, external door hinges and "moustache" grille. In the United Kingdom the Mark I was produced between 1959 and 1967 at the Longbridge Plant near BMC's headquarters, with production in Australia continuing until 1970. The Mini Mark I was sold under both Austin and Morris marque names.
Hydrolastic is a type of space-efficient automotive suspension system used in many cars produced by British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successor companies.
The Morris Nomad is a car that was produced in Australia by British Leyland Motor Corporation of Australia from 1969 to 1972. It is a hatchback version of the Morris 1500 sedan, itself a locally produced variant of the British BMC ADO16 design with a larger 1500 cc engine.
The Austin Kimberley and Austin Tasman "X6" models are a pair of Leyland Australia-designed front-wheel-drive sedans based on the Austin 1800 (ADO17) platform, that were produced from 1970 to 1972 and sold by Austin. At the time of the X6 being launched onto the Australian market it was quite an advanced design in comparison to the other competitors from Ford, Holden and Chrysler, whose rear-wheel drive, conventionally sprung underpinnings dominated the market at the time.
British Motor Corporation (Australia) was a motor manufacturing company formed in Australia in 1954 by the merger of the Austin Motor Company (Australia) and Nuffield (Australia). This followed the merger in 1952 of the Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Group in the United Kingdom to form the British Motor Corporation. Following further corporate changes in the UK in the late 1960s, BMC Australia was absorbed into the newly established British Leyland Motor Corporation of Australia, the name of which became Leyland Motor Corporation of Australia in 1972, and then JRA Limited in March 1983.
There have been a number of Mini concept cars, produced to show future ideas and forthcoming models at international motorshows.
The MOKE is a recreational vehicle manufactured by Chery Automobile in China since 2013 and assembled by a variety of companies in the United States, United Kingdom, France, and others. The design, by British industrial designer Michael Young, evokes the classic Mini Moke built from 1964 until 1993. The name "Mini Moke" combines Mini with Moke, an archaic term for mule. The new version is simply called "MOKE".
↑ Mainland, Keith (31 July 2015). Classic Mini Specials and Moke. Ramsbury, Wiltshire: Crowood. ISBN9781785000027. Retrieved 19 July 2023. The first batch of ten Mokes was built in January 1964, badged Austin and sent to Papua New Guinea and Singapore. The next batch of Austin Mokes was built in June and Morris-badged Mokes first appeared in July.
↑ Chapman, Giles (30 April 2019). "A World of Different Minis". Mini: 60 Years. Beverly, Massachusetts: Motorbooks. p.73. ISBN9780760363997. Retrieved 19 July 2023. In October 1968, British manufacture ended after 14,518 had been built (all but 1,467 exported), and the entire Moke tooling was shipped to Sydney, Australia.
1 2 Staton-Bevan, William Norman (1968). The book of the B.M.C. Minis: Austin and Morris Minis, Wolseley Hornet, Riley Elf, Cooper and Cooper "S" Models and the Mini-Moke. Pitman's Motorist's Library. ISBN0-273-40695-7.
†Rover, Land Rover, and Triumph were not part of British Motor Holdings but became part of British Leyland in 1968.
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