International MINI Meeting plays host to birthday celebrations for MINI fans

Thousands of MINI fans from all over the world came together at the English port city of Bristol in order to celebrate the 60^th anniversary of the British heritage brand. Once again, the International Mini Meeting 2019 was the diary highlight for the MINI community and more than ever before the event created a bridge spanning the past, present and future of the brand. The cars at the celebration include the first classic Mini ever built dating from the year 1959, the MINI 60 Years Edition produced in this current anniversary year and the MINI Cooper SE as the ambassador for local zero-emission driving fun of the future.

The International Mini Meeting was launched in 1978 by German fans of the classic Mini. Since then it has developed into the world's biggest annual event for the organised club scene and many others who express their passion for the original British small car at this gathering of like-minded enthusiasts.

The unique mix of vehicle show, spare-parts and accessories market, driving activities, and festival atmosphere with live music and entertaining competitions reflects the close-knit community spirit of the event held in a different European country every year and its cosmopolitan flair.

No journey is too far for the fans and many of them travel hundreds or even thousands of kilometres in their own vehicle. At each venue, lovingly maintained classic Minis are presented side by side with individually designed MINIs. At intervals of five years, the brand's British homeland is the showplace for the International Mini Meeting - and this is also the case in the anniversary year, which reached another climax at the end of the meeting with the big Birthday Party.

The year 2019 is an occasion for MINI to look backwards, while at the same time acting as the springboard into a new era. The MINI 60 Years Edition has been available for a few months now and once again this model highlights awareness for the long tradition of the brand alongside its British heritage. The exclusive design and equipment attributes of the Edition model define appealing accents for individual style, premium quality and athletic performance.

In November 2019, production will get under way for the first all-electric powered model of the brand. The new MINI Cooper SE takes the go-cart feeling that is so typical of the brand to a new level, with an electric motor that generates 178bhp and the high-voltage battery positioned low in the floor of the vehicle.

At the International Mini Meeting 2019, the MINI Community had its first opportunity to get to know the model developed on the basis of the MINI 3-door car, which is scheduled for production at the MINI Plant Oxford in the near future.

The MINI Plant Oxford was also the starting point for the scintillating convoy of vehicles that arrived punctually to mark the beginning of the Mini Meeting 2019 in Bristol. The unique parade was headed by the first classic Mini ever built, followed by a convoy of unique vehicles from each production year, and with a model of the MINI 60 Years Edition bringing up in the rear. The procession provided an awesome spectacle for all the fans - or in the highest form of praise by a Bristolian for anything expressed in their inimitable dialect, "gert lush!" - meaning 'very nice!'