Mini Clubman ends production after 17 years

The Mini Clubman has gone out of production after 17 years as Mini makes way for the introduction of the electric Aceman, its indirect replacement.

The Clubman first went on sale in 2007 as an estate-bodied version of the Mini hatchback, complete with a novel vertically split tailgate.

It was assembled at the brand’s Plant Oxford facility in Cowley since it first went on sale as part of Mini’s revival of its entire range.

It has now bowed out to make space for the Aceman crossover and petrol versions of the new Cooper (in three-door, five-door and convertible forms).

These will be produced until 2030, when the plant will switch to 100% EV production following a combined £600 million investment from parent firm BMW and the UK government.

Mini told Autocar the money will chiefly fund an extension of the body shop, the construction of a new area for battery installation and new logistics facilities in Oxford and Swindon.

The Mini estate was initially launched as the Traveller in 1960, before being updated as the Clubman and then renamed as the 1000HL. After being axed in 1970, it wouldn’t return until 2007.

The reborn Clubman was updated in 2015 for a second generation. It adopted Mini’s signature circular daytime running lights, a feature still seen today, and ditched the unusual rear doors for a more conventional set-up, while a John Cooper Works version was introduced with 302bhp.

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