Editing Austin Maxi (section)

==History==
[[File:Austin Maxi 1500 MkI and Austin Maxi MkII 1750.jpg|left|thumb|Austin Maxi MkI (left) and MkII (right)]]
The Maxi (code name ADO14) was the last car designed under the [[British Motor Corporation]] (BMC) before it was incorporated into the new [[British Leyland]] group, and the last production car designed by famed designer [[Alec Issigonis]]. It was the first car to be launched by British Leyland.

Originally, under BMC's plan for its new model range, which it had been developing since 1965, the Maxi was to have been called the "Austin 1500" on its spring 1969 launch, and a saloon version the "Morris 1500" was to follow in the autumn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/2011/10/01/the-cars-austin-maxi-development-history/ |title=The cars : Austin Maxi development story |publisher=AROnline |access-date=2012-04-08}}</ref> However, upon the merger of BMC and Leyland the new management abandoned the four-door saloon [[notchback]] and developed the [[Morris Marina]] instead. The Marina, launched in April 1971, was a rear-wheel drive car available as a saloon, coupe or estate.

The new chairman [[Lord Stokes]] decided to also change the hatchback's name to the Maxi in homage to the Mini of 10 years earlier. All Maxis were produced at the [[Plant Oxford|Cowley]] plant in [[Oxford]], although the E-Series engines were made at a new factory at [[Cofton Hackett]] neighbouring [[Longbridge]].

The Maxi was launched in Oporto, Portugal, on 24 April 1969, in a blaze of publicity; it was one of the first cars to appear on the BBC's new car programme [[Wheelbase (TV series)|''Wheelbase'']].{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Underneath the Maxi's practical and spacious bodyshell lay an all-new [[front-wheel drive]] chassis, which was interlinked with an innovative five-speed [[manual transmission]]; the fifth gear was another rarity on family cars in 1969 and one which many manufacturers did not adopt until more than a decade later. The gear selector suffered from notorious problems with its control linkage, especially in early models which had a cable-operated linkage prone to cable stretch and other problems. These were noted by autotesters such as Vicar in ''Today's Driver'' (1969), who wrote: "This is probably a good idea that just needs a little bit of working on."<ref>''Today's Driver'', February 1969</ref><ref>From "Today's Driver" February 1969. http://driventowrite.com/2013/11/01/1969-austin-maxi/</ref> This criticism actually came as a result of a road test two months before the car officially went on sale. The later rod linkage was less problematic. All models were prone to problems brought on by the "cogs in the sump" layout, whereby the gearbox and engine shared a common oil supply. The clutch oil seal was also prone to leakage.

Power came from a {{cvt|1485|cc|abbr=on}}, [[BMC E-Series engine|E-Series]] petrol engine which would later be used in other British Leyland products, such as the [[Austin Allegro]]. The 1750 and twin-carburettor 1750 HL models, added to the range in 1971, offered good performance by the standards of the era, with a top speed of {{cvt|97|mph}}, while the smaller-engine version could exceed {{cvt|90|mph}}.

Despite the new platform, the Maxi's styling suffered from the decision to save tooling costs by re-using door panels from the [[BMC ADO17|Austin 1800]] "Landcrab", which gave the Maxi an unusually long wheelbase in relation to its length, coupled with the fact that the carried-over doors made the Maxi resemble a scaled down version of the 1800 (and the [[Austin 3-Litre]], which also used the same doors). This design was by then five years old, at a time when curvaceous American-inspired "[[Coke bottle styling|coke bottle]]" styling (typified by contemporaries such as the [[Ford Cortina#TC Mark III (1970–1976)|Ford Cortina Mk III]] and [[Hillman Avenger]]) was very much in vogue, contrasting sharply with the Maxi's obviously mid-1960s looks. Another styling ambition for the car was a four-door [[sedan (car)|saloon]] version, to compete directly with the [[Ford Cortina]]. A prototype was built, badged as a Morris, but it was not put into production, since the booted extension made the Maxi almost the same size as the 1800 model, which was itself replaced in March 1975 by the [[Leyland Princess|18-22 series]] models (renamed the Princess soon after its launch). Also worthy of note is that the Maxi was voted the least stolen car in 1971 and 1972.

In Australia, owing to recently increased local content assembly tariffs which would have resulted in the Maxi being uneconomic to build, [[British Motor Corporation (Australia)|Leyland Motor Corporation of Australia]] developed in the UK the [[Morris Nomad]], a hybrid utilizing the Maxi's E-series engine/transmission and rear tailgate, fitted to the Morris 1100 body which was already being assembled in that country. For a short while the Nomad (under the Austin name) was exported to New Zealand and offered alongside the locally assembled Maxi.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/cars/bmc-cars/1100-1300/11001300-international-variations/bmc-11001300-australian-variations/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170103183713/http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/cars/bmc-cars/1100-1300/11001300-international-variations/bmc-11001300-australian-variations/ |archive-date=3 January 2017 |title=BMC 1100/1300 : Australian variations - AROnline : AROnline}}</ref>

[[File:Austin Maxi Facia (LHD- French Model).JPG|thumb|The interior of a left hand drive French model]]
The Maxi featured a spacious interior, comfortable passenger accommodation, competitive prices and reasonable running costs. It was let down by a dull interior and poor build quality, although it was not as notorious for its failings as the [[Austin Allegro]] and [[Morris Marina]] were during the 1970s.

The Maxi had several rivals during the 1970s, including the [[Volkswagen Passat]] (1973) and [[Simca 1307|Chrysler Alpine]] (1975), although its best-selling rivals from Ford and Vauxhall did not produce a hatchback until the early 1980s.

One unusual feature of this car was that the rear seat back, as well as folding forward as in a conventional hatchback, also folded back. In combination with fully-reclining front seats, this gave satisfactory, if spartan, sleeping accommodation.

Towards the end of the Maxi's life, in 1980, a lightly revised model was marketed as the "Maxi 2", although by now sales were declining and a new car to succeed the Allegro and Maxi was being developed. Its launch was delayed by the extra investment required to develop the [[Austin Metro]], launched in October 1980.

===End of production===
On 8 July 1981, the Austin Maxi's 12-year production run came to an end.<ref>{{cite web|last=Adams|first=Keith|title=Austin Maxi development history|url=http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/2011/10/01/the-cars-austin-maxi-development-history/|work=AROnline|access-date=15 May 2012}}</ref> Its replacement, the [[Austin Maestro]], which also replaced the smaller Allegro, was introduced in March 1983. Shortly after the Maxi's demise, BL met the demand for a larger family hatchback by revamping the [[Princess (car)|Princess]] and renaming it the [[Austin Ambassador]], although this was a short-lived model which only lasted until 1984, when the [[Austin Montego]] was launched. This completed BL's rationalisation, as it now had just one model competing in this market sector, whereas the Maxi had been one of three designs competing in a sector of the market which had been led by the [[Ford Cortina]].

The Maxi production lines at Cowley were taken over by production of the [[Triumph Acclaim]], which was launched in October 1981.

Despite its practical design and remarkable space efficiency (it is shorter, narrower and lower than the sixth generation [[Ford Fiesta]]),<ref>{{cite web|title=1972 Austin Maxi HL technical specifications|url=http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=41305|work=Carfolio database|publisher=Carfolio.com|access-date=15 May 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=2012 Ford Fiesta 1.6 Hatchback technical specifications|url=http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=259622|work=Carfolio database|publisher=Carfolio.com|access-date=15 May 2012}}</ref> the Maxi never came close to reaching its projected sales targets. BL management decisions involving the Maxi had significant knock-on effects to the rest of the car line-up. BL marketing decreed that the Maxi should be the only car in the range to feature a [[hatchback]]. This stance prevented the [[Austin Allegro]] and Princess models gaining hatchbacks despite those designs being capable of receiving them. The policy was discontinued with the arrival of the [[Rover SD1]] in 1976, and the fast-growing popularity of hatchbacks during the 1970s and 1980s saw British Leyland launch a raft of new hatchback models. The Austin Metro, launched in 1980, was only available as a hatchback, as was the 1983 Austin Maestro.