To say that the Rootes Group were loyal to the Hillman Minx marque would be an understatement, with no less than seven versions of this mid- range family saloon being produced by the company, between the years 1932 till 1970.

The original Minxs were powered by either 1,390cc and 1,494cc engines although from the Series 3 until the model was discontinued, the powertrain was a 1,592cc in the final Series 3 that survived until 1967.

Hillman came into the Sixties with the Series I rapidly upgraded to the Series 2 and later the 3 which ran until 1963 when it was replaced by the Series 5.

 There was to be no Series 4 Minx as that number had been set aside for the Super Minx launched in 1962.)

ate in 1963 the Series Five Minx made its first appearance.

Improvements over the Three Series included a more capacious fuel tank, individual front seat, a full set of driver’s gauges, conveniently placed in front of the driver, disc brakes in the front and even widescreen washers.

The first anomaly, showing the winds of change running through the corridors at Rootes, was the Five was only available as a four-door saloon, with convertible and estate options available only in the Super Minx- a completely different design.

Despite that the Series V Minx represented a major revision by any standards, for the monocoque body had undergone a major revamp.

The Five had was a new squared-up cabin roof, along with a new fascia and a less wrapped-round rear window, while the "fold-over" tail fins were deleted. 13in wheels (instead of 15in) were standardised, along with front-wheel disc brakes.

The Hillman Minx Series V was powered by a 1592cc, capable of generating 53 bhp. matched up to manual transmission.

Those who opted for automatic had their cars equipped with a Borg Warner unit, in place of the discredited Smiths Easidrive unit.

From September 1964 this model gained a new all-synchromesh gearbox, a welcome feature that had become standard in all remaining Rootes models at the same time.

The Series Six version of the Minx arrived in the Autumn of 1965, almost identical to the Five, although powered by a much more powerful 1725cc engine initially generating 65bhp, but later detuned to 59bhp.

The 1725cc engine was the very first version of this engine family to have a five main bearing crankshaft.

Other minor updates on the Five included headlamp flashers, with even the option of fitting a heater, radio, clock, reversing lights, whitewall tires and wheel trims.

All of these features were only available as optional extras.

The Series Six, discontinued in 1967 was, to all intents and purposes, the last of the Hillman Minxes, although as Series Seven was launched that same year, little more than a down market version of the Hillman Hunter,

Hillman Minxs of the Sixties remained true to their “Rootes - good, steady, continuously improving family cars although rarely capturing the hearts and the imagination of the UK and European public.

Between the Five and Six Series, Hillman produced a total of 376,000 Minxs.