.: History of the mighty Mini Moke
The Mini Moke was motoring at its most basic - a box-sided
tray on wheels with a windscreen and the simplest of seats. In a warm climate it
was great fun for taking down to the beach, a sort of four wheeled motorbike,
but it was very draughty in the cold and wet with the "rag top" up and it did
not offer much protection when mixing it with semi-trailers on the freeway.
The Moke was born in response to the British Army's search for air transportable
vehicles. It was certainly light and compact, particularly with the windscreen
down, but the front wheel drive, small wheels and low ground clearance cannot
have given sufficient mobility, although experimental four wheel drive Mokes
were built - with two engines and transmissions, power at each end! The general
idea was to design a utility version of the Mini- a lighter weight Land Rover to
be capable of packing in crates to be dropped from the sky with a parachute or
lowered by helicopter (if you look carefully at a Moke, you can see how with the
windscreen removed, they do stack on top of each other, the wheels on the top
one fitting nicely on the wings underneath). The big military orders fell
through but the Moke went on to become a cult, a real classic car.
A few years later Leyland decided to transfer
production to Australia. The Australian army liked them so did the Australian
Public, well they did after increasing wheel size, ground clearance, engine size
etc. Eventually after the Australian Public had their fun, the Portuguese (Cagiva)
had a short attempt, later the Italians (Cagiva still) who made the final slight
modifications and the final few Mokes. there is a hint of starting production
again we'll wait and see.
1960,
Austin investigate a light weight minimalist vehicle suitable for air transport
for the British Army.
1963, Mini Moke prototype built but the Army abandons interest.
1964 August, civilian Mini Moke released, based on the front wheel drive Minicar
with an 850cc engine transversely mounted.
1966, Moke production transferred to Australia.
1968, larger 13" wheels raise ground clearance to 8", 1100c engine fitted.
1972, Californian Mokes produced with 1275cc motor for the US market.
1981 November, Leyland Australia stops building Mokes but production is
transferred to Portugal.
1992, Moke production stops in Portugal. Tooling sold
to Cagiva of Italy who built 1500 Mokes
These dates are courtesy of the Moke Owners Association.
Thankyou to John Taylor
http://home.wxs.nl/~amoke/p07.htm
for this info.
.: Pre-Production/Prototype Mokes:
The Moke was initially developed during the '50s to meet a
need in the British Army, and went through a number of different prototypes,
including a twin-engined 4WD "Twinni-Moke". The British Army didn't like the
Moke much and decided to use Citroen 2CV pickups instead, but some Mokes did end
up in military service. Mokes were also trialed by the U.S. Army and several
Commonwealth nations including Australia and New Zealand. These early vehicles
differ from the later production models, having features like hinged
windscreens, different body-shells, wheel-bases, etc.
One of the early Moke prototypes of around 1960-61. This one
appears destined for the United States (note that it's left-hand drive) or
possibly North Africa (?). The sides show the original open "buckboard" design,
but it has a side-mounted fuel tank like the production models. The front- and
rear-end styling is very similar to the production Mokes apart from the large
cut-aways on the bottom corners.
.: "Little-wheeler" Mini Mokes
The Moke went into civilian production in 1964 and was
available as either an Austin or Morris, depending on the dealer. It was
produced for only 4 years and 14,518 were built, only about 10% of which stayed
in England. It was extremely basic having a seat for the driver, one wiper blade
and little else. Front and rear passenger seats, heater, side screens,
sump-guard, etc. were all additional cost extras! Spruce Green was the only
colour available, and they were fitted with 10" wheels and the 848cc engine as
per the Mini. Production was transferred in its entirety to Australia in 1968,
although it was already in production there since 1966. The early Australian
Mokes were fitted with a larger 998cc engine, and remained unchanged until 1969.
The
little-wheeler Mini-Mokes suffered from poor ground clearance due to the 10"
wheels, but were still agile performers. The side boxes house the battery and
fuel tank and provide some storage space.
.: Australian Mokes
The Moke started production in Australia in 1966, when
the first civilian "little wheelers" were released. Many changes were made
to the original design, including the fitting of larger engines (998, 1100
and eventually the 1275cc), stronger sump guard, parcel shelves, better
seats and hood, re-routing of cabling and brake/fuel pipes for greater
protection, etc. In an attempt to overcome the Moke's ground clearance
problems, 13" wheels were fitted which required special rear trailing arms
and wheel arch extensions to cope with the larger wheels. The up-market
"Californian" version of the Moke was produced to cater for the growing
recreation market. It featured bull/kangaroo bars front and rear, wider
spoked wheels, better seats, and rubber floor linings. A utility/pick-up
version of the Moke was also produced. Production of the Australian Mokes
stopped in 1982 (the assembly lines were used to build more profitable
Peugeots!)
The up-market Californian Moke originally featured a
floral/paisley hood (right), but the later version had blue "denim" seats and
hood. Spoked wheels, 'roo bars and interior upgrades improved the Moke's looks,
but it could never be called luxurious!
The Australian "standard" and utility/pick-up versions of the Moke. The ones
shown appear to be early-mid 70's models, having clip-on side screens and
tubular steel seats with separate headrests.
.: Portuguese and Cagiva Mokes
Two years after the Moke stopped production in Australia,
British Leyland Portugal Automotives started building the "Californian" Moke.
This initial run was short-lived due to serious production difficulties. Jim
Lambert was sent in by Austin Rover to sort things out, and through his efforts
the 1986 Moke was born. This Moke shared many standard Mini parts which cut the
costs and allowed the return of the original flat-backed styling as seen on the
English ("little-wheeler") Mokes. It was fitted with a 998cc A+ engine and 12"
wheels, and the hood and interior trim were excellent. Portuguese Moke
production stopped in 1989 after which the Italian company Cagiva produced it
for a while. The Cagiva Moke was like the Portuguese Moke, but had the radiator
mounted at the front of the engine bay, instead of at the side like the Mini and
earlier Mokes. It had some other minor improvements too, such as a hinged,
locking battery box cover.
The Portuguese production Moke. A roll-cage was fitted as standard,
providing the mounting for the retractable lap-sash seat-belts and a clever
means of supporting the hood. It shows many similarities with the Australian
"Californian" Moke (eg. the front and rear bull bars) and some with the
early "little-wheeler" Moke (eg. the original flat back design of the rear
wheel-arches)
Quoting from Mini Moke 1964-1989, by Tim Nuttall of the
Mini Moke Club of England - "The Mini Moke was conceived and designed in the
late 50's at the same time as the Mini Saloon. Developed to meet a need in the
British Army it went through a number of different prototype models over a
period of five years, in B.M.C's attempts to persuade the army to take it."
Quoting from The Motor, February 21, 1962 - "Considerable interest was aroused
last week by reports in the Press of a "Mini Moke," the military version of
those highly successful B.M.C. twins, the Austin Mini and the Morris
Mini-Minor."
It was, in fact, the brilliant idea of one Alec Issigonis, designer of the
famous Mini. Mr. Issigonis later became Sir Alec. We Moke owners like to believe
the title was bestowed solely due to the design of the Moke!!
What he designed was the most enjoyable little car ever to be driven, In any
event, the Army turned the Moke down and the rest of the world continues to get
the thrill behind the wheel!
Above is the Mini Moke Gold Portfolio. A must
for all Moke Enthusiasts
Above is an old advert for the Moke. Not quite
new generation any more though.
This book is also a good
little asset to all Moke enthusiasts.
The photos on this page came from two sources:
- BRTB
-
Mini Moke 1964-1989 - Brookland Road Test Books
(ISBN: 1 870642 945). This contains an excellent compilation of Moke
articles covering the earliest prototypes through to the Portuguese produced
Mokes. It's a pity that it only contains black-and-white photographs, but it
is a must-have for Moke enthusiasts!
- MSS
-
Mini Minor Downunder Including Mini-Cooper and Moke
- Marque Spotlight Series #1 (ISBN: 0 947079 10 6). This book deals with the
Australian produced Minis and Mokes, mainly concentrating on the Mini. Most
of the photographs are black-and-white, but there are some colour plates
too, and includes some great racing photos, and Mini/Moke kit and prototype
cars. Worth checking out if you can find a copy.
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