MINI Plant Oxford

In 1912, William Morris, the 1st Viscount Nuffield, bought the former Oxford Military College in Cowley to relocate his company, laying the groundwork for the future automotive manufacturing site.

Starting from 1914, William Morris pioneered Henry Ford-style mass production techniques in the United Kingdom at the Cowley site, which became known as the old tin shed.

The present site of Plant Oxford traces its roots to the car body manufacturing business of the Pressed Steel Company, which was established in 1926.

In 1933, a railway goods yard was constructed beside the Wycombe Railway to facilitate the supply of components into the factory and the transportation of completed vehicles.

Following engagement with the Air Ministry in 1935 and factory capacity expansion through the shadow factory plan starting in 1937, the site produced de Havilland Tiger Moth training aeroplanes during World War II. The plant also housed the No 1 Metal and Produce Recovery Depot for processing damaged aircraft.

The site underwent a series of corporate changes, beginning in 1952 when Morris Motors merged with the Austin Motor Company to form the British Motor Corporation.

In 1968, British Motor Holdings, which had acquired Pressed Steel in 1966, merged with Leyland Motors to become British Leyland, bringing the mass-market car manufacturing division under the Austin-Morris name.

In 2000, BMW sold the Rover Group but retained the Cowley site specifically for the production of the new Mini, officially renaming the facility Plant Oxford.

Following the acquisition and site redevelopment by BMW, the plant began manufacturing the new Mini in May 2001.