The MINI Moke is basically an original MINI’s brother as they share a majority of the same mechanical parts. Interestingly, the MINI Moke was designed to be a cheap, lightweight alternative to the Land Rover for the Royal Military. They even built a twin engined MINI Moke (one for the front wheels – one for the rear) to showcase as a lightweight military truck. Due to the low ground clearance and low power, the MINI Moke never made it as a military vehicles… with one exception: the Royal Navy used a few on aircraft carriers.
Here’s where the MINI Moke truck was declassified to car: “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” – Wikipedia
Still, it was a very utilitarian truck-let spawning many copycats. It was popular world-wide and was frequently used as a cheap rental on island holiday. The MINI Moke was built as late as 1993 in Portugal.
Imagine MINI building one today.
Speaking of small, front-wheel drive-based trucks…
