The Daily Toggle reports the buyback program is because:
. . . MINI wants to reuse the R50 chassis. The move is unprecedented, or as MINI executives keep insisting, NOT NORMAL. MINI plans to reuse old R50 chassis as the platform of a new model.
According to the article:
BMW board member Dr. Otto von Jürgens-Übermorgen presented the program in a press conference today [6/23/2015]. He was short on details.
“MINI will be building the much-anticipated MINI Rocketman using the chassis of used R50 MINI Coopers. The production car will be called the MINI Minor 50 in homage to the R50s sacrificed to build it. While it won’t be as small as the original Rocketman Concept vehicle, we found MINI fans were just as happy to have a MINI as small as the first Cooper again.”
