Building Cars Live: 20 October 2015

Summary

Follow the latest action from inside the Mini factory in Oxford
James May, Kate Humble & Ant Anstead reveal the science, engineering & people that keep us on the road
Find out more about the fascinating history of cars & their production
Join the conversation at #CarsLive on twitter or email [email protected]

Live Reporting

We're taking a pit stop for tonightpublished at 21:10 BST 20 October 2015
Great to see so many of you loved the show. Join us live tomorrow for the final lap at 7:30pm on BBC Two and online. Tonight's show is already available to watch in its entirety in the Live Coverage tab above.
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Bringing back memoriespublished at 21:03 BST 20 October 2015
Building Cars Live has brought back fond memories for many of you.
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What did you think?published at 21:00 BST 20 October 2015
We're glad to hear many of you enjoyed Building Cars Live.
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That's it for tonightpublished at 20:59
We've seen inside the factory and met the people - and robots - who make these remarkable machines.
Tomorrow we'll be back to see what's happened with the build of the Mini car. Join us again from 7pm tomorrow for more Building Cars Live.
Our Friends Electricpublished at 20:45
Kate Humble visits Norway, where a quarter of EU electric car sales were made in 2014, to find out why a petrol-head is now the proud owner of an electric car.
Media caption,
Kate Humble heads to Norway to find out why electric cars are the king of Norwegian roads
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Satisfyingly efficientpublished at 20:41
Some viewers are finding the logistics of Building Cars Live rather satisfying.
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Power to the Peoplepublished at 20:33
Watch Ant Anstead meet several generations of workers at Cowley, and catches up with the rally team building racing cars in their spare time.
Media caption,
Meet generations of factory workers that put the heart into the car industry.
Mini nostalgiapublished at 20:31 BST 20 October 2015
Building cars live at the Mini factory in Oxford has brought back memories of Mini ownership for some viewers.
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"That's my car!"published at 20:28 BST 20 October 2015
Some of you have been seeing the origins of your own cars on Building Cars Live.
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What you're saying about the engineering of Building Cars Livepublished at 20:27 BST 20 October 2015
What do you think about the British engineering on display at the Mini factory in Oxford?
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Made in Britainpublished at 20:24
James May wrestles with the finer points of bespoke car manufacturing when he tries his hand at wood bending at the Morgan Motor Company.
Media caption,
How hard is it to build a car by hand? James May finds out.
1934: Origins of the Beetlepublished at 20:24
The car of the people
In 1934 Adolf Hitler commissioned Ferdinand Porsche to design the Volkswagen Beetle. Hitler wanted a car fit for his high-speed road network, the Autobahn, and he set challenging design parameters – the car must be able to reach 100 km/h, carry two adults and three children, and cost less than 1000 Reichsmarks (£86).
Quote Message
It should look like a beetle. You have to look to nature to find out what streamlining is.
Adolf Hitler
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Adolf Hitler inspects a Volkswagen Beetle
1959: The popular Fiat 600published at 20:21
Italian innovation and Spanish miracle
The Italian Fiat 600 was made and sold in Spain as the SEAT 600, where it became an icon of the “Spanish miracle”, the economic boom between 1959 and 1974.
The car sold remarkably quickly, passing the one million mark only six years after launch. In Spain the popular car was nicknamed “el ombligo” (the navel) - because everyone had one.
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
A Fiat 600 in Turin, Italy in 1959
1939: Ford Angliapublished at 20:19 BST 20 October 2015
Squad car to superstar
As the rather patriotic name suggests, the Ford Anglia was launched by the UK branch of Ford. It was launched shortly after the start of World War Two. In the 1960s, the third generation Anglia was adopted by British Police forces who wanted a compact, fuel-efficient car.
Quote Message
[They had] a distinctive white band on both the front doors and the roof. As black was the first basic colour used they looked like Panda bears. For this reason we came up with the acronym “Patrol And Neighbourhood Deployment Area” Cars, although when Ford offered a substantial discount on their Anglia range we could only get them in pale blue and white.
Alan D Johnson, Author, Police Cars of the 1950s and 1960s
Image source, Getty Images
The Ford Anglia is no stranger to TV and films, and they appeared frequently in classic cop shows Heartbeat and Z-Cars. Vivian from 80s comedy The Young Ones owned a yellow Ford Anglia with flames painted on the sides, and in Harry Potter and Chamber of Secrets (2002) Harry and best friend Ron Weasley fly to school in an enchanted turquoise Ford Anglia 105E.
Other cars are availablepublished at 20:19
The Mini wasn't the only small car that made an impact. Here are some other compact classics...
What is Kaizen?published at 20:15
How does it make car production more efficient?
Kaizen is the Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement. Kaizen helps ensure maximum quality, eliminate waste and improve efficiency. It is a core principle of lean manufacturing.
Kaizen involves standardising an activity, such as making part of a car, and measuring how long it takes, then innovating to improve productivity. This cycle is repeated, continually making improvements. Workers are encouraged to come up with ideas to improve efficiency.
At Toyota today, all production line workers have targets of two kaizens per month – this could be as simple as storing your tools in a better way for quicker access. In addition, dedicated teams are assigned to observe and improve sections of the production line over a number of months. Toyota issues prestigious awards to its employees for their kaizens.
Image caption,
One way to improve efficiency from the Mini factory in Oxford
Just in timepublished at 20:14
James May looks at the relay race that brings together a global network of parts - at the right time and in the right sequence. The factory only has an hour’s stock of some items and delays are expensive, so every second counts.
Media caption,
James May on the production line where parts are delivered just in time.
1969: Minipublished at 20:12 BST 20 October 2015
The best seller
Over five million British Motor Corporation Minis were sold over its 41 year production run, making it Britain’s best-selling British car. The mini-marvel has been showered in accolades, including Autocar magazine’s ‘Car of the Century’, and Classic & Sports Car magazine’s ‘Number One Classic Car of All Time.’
BBC iWonder: Why do we love the Mini?
Image source, Getty Images
The Mini: Then and nowpublished at 20:11
How a design classic changed with the ages
Discover more with BBC iWonder - Why do we love the Mini?
Do your prefer the old or new Mini?published at 20:10
Which do you prefer? This is what some viewers are saying.
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