Indholdsfortegnelse for November 2017 i Mini Magazine

Glancing at this month’s feature Minis would have you think we’ve gone a bit motorsport crazy, but while all the Minis included certainly have a competition flavour about them, there’s still plenty of variety for everyone to enjoy. We’ve got a bike-powered Mini, an amazing rally car tribute, a spaceframe monster in the making, a budget Cooper SPi built to compete in Germany and a great example of the original hot Mini itself - a 1960s Mini Cooper S. Not a bad line-up, and that’s without our stunning Broadspeed GT cover duo. Of course, they have strong motorsport credentials too, but that’s only a mere part of it. What we have here is a pair of Minis that have to be among the most desirable anywhere in the world. We’re…

• Maximum Mini author and Mini Magazine contributor, Jeroen Booij, has launched a new service called Maximum Mini Heritage. The idea is that Jeroen will be able to share any background information and relevant documents on specific Mini-based cars. The Maximum Mini files include original build specifications, sales literature and historical correspondence, plus a photographic archive with more than 31,000 pictures. Prices start at £5 for a copy of each digital image, while a file on the make and model of any Mini-based car, including words and a selection of digital photographs, will cost £35. A full file with all the information available will be £175, and comes complete with a Maximum Mini Heritage presentation folder and updates for up to 12 months after the point of order. Jeroen is…

There was a mixture of nerves and excitement amongst the British Mini Club team ahead of the latest Mini show at Stanford Hall on September 17, with the club taking over the organisation of this long-running event for the very first time. With 35 years of success under the stewardship of the National Mini Owners Club, the BMC had a tough act to follow at the picturesque Leicestershire venue. One of the main attractions of this show is the excellent autojumble, which seems to be a dying feature of Mini shows nowadays. Stanford is different though, with the trade area seemingly even bigger than usual and a host of rare bits being offered at decent prices. Plenty of the big-name traders were also in attendance from all over the UK…

For a show that was free to enter, West Sussex Mini Owners Club’s annual Minis by the Sea event on September 3 certainly offered one heck of a lot in return. Not only did you get a friendly welcome into the Steyne Gardens venue on Worthing seafront, you also got an excellent selection of Minis, a relaxed atmosphere, a sizeable donation to charity and – this year especially – evidence of how Mini owners really look after each other. Minis arrived at the grounds from 9am for a laid-back affair, but everyone was encouraged back to their cars at 10am for a synchronised horn blowing – a great way to open the show! The club presence was strong, with the hosts joined by excellent displays from the likes of Brighton…

“Paul plans to integrate his frame with a steel Mini bodyshell...” Variety is the spice of life, so they say, and Paul Preston is certainly one to follow that philosophy. Even though his restoration business firmly specialises in Minis, Paul’s not been one to pigeon hole himself with one ‘type’ of build. His recent stand at Stanford Hall really proved the point, showcasing his talents with everything from a beautifully prepared 1959 shell right through to a Volvo-powered Z Car. Paul has been into Minis ever since he restored one with his dad at the age of 16. He’s been working on them professionally for well over 20 years, and during that time he’s built everything from standard, original examples to custom creations, including his own Lynx-AE R1-powered Riley…

They were all built under the same Abingdon roof, but each Works Mini had its own character depending on the year it competed and the competition it was entered into. And though DKG 2C started life as a 1965 Tweed Grey Cooper S, it harks back to a 1967 Works rally car in looks, spirit, and feel. That’s because it’s been re-modelled into a Group 6 lightweight rally Mini, inspired by BMC’s entrants for the 1967 Alpine Rally. Held in folklore as one of the most demanding rallies during the sport’s golden 1960s era, the ’67 Alpine, or Coupe des Alpes, saw all handicaps scrapped and allowed for higher average target speeds. The BMC Competitions Department took advantage of these regulations and built up three Group 6 (prototype) cars for…

COST £144.00 2.75/2.95 FD Speedo drive gaskets, diff gaskets and oil seals as required. TIME 3-4 hours CONTACT Mini Spares 01707 607700 www.minispares.com DIFFICULTY Fourth gear in a Mini bypasses the layshaft and intermediate gears altogether and is a direct drive from first motion shaft to third motion shaft, so the crown wheel and pinion (CWP or final drive, FD) fitted therefore determines the fourth gear ratio. A high numbered FD (commonly referred to as ‘low’ in relation to the speed it will achieve) like a 3.76:1 means that the engine turns 3.76 times for every revolution of the driven (front) wheels. A low numbered FD (commonly referred to as ‘high’ in relation to the speed it will achieve) like a 2.95:1 means 2.95 turns of the engine per wheel…

There’s exiting news for my Le Mans Mini Marcos project. This time it comes from the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), organisers of the Le Mans 24-hour race for as long as human memory can remember. It has its own Heritage department too, which includes the Le Mans museum with some 100 cars on permanent display, and an archive spanning historic files on just about all of the cars that ever took part. This included my Marcos, so it’s no surprise that I was keen on seeing them for myself! After many weeks of waiting, it sent me copies of its full file on car number 50 in the 1966 24-hour race. This means all the documents are there, from the very first application form to all the official records…

There’s an adage in motorsport circles, which suggests that in order to make a small fortune, you need to start out with a much bigger one. Fortunately, when it comes to competing in a Mini we’re blessed with a number of different options to suit a wide range of budgets, but even so, the cost of a full season’s racing is still a stretch for many budding racers. Game over? Not for German enthusiasts Frank Hebel and Benedikt ‘Bene’ Kopietz. By joining forces to enter their Rover Cooper in the thrilling British Car Trophy series, they’ve halved the cost burden without capping the excitement. What’s more, they’ve put together a beautifully-prepared car – one that would put many show and shine cars to shame. “They get to race at some…

• A new ‘Mini Meet South’ event for owners in Scotland took place on September 24, organised by the ScottishMini Forum. A total of 11 cars from various Scottish Clubs met at Happendon Services on the M74, taking the low and high roads to Wanlockhead - the highest Village in Scotland - for the Scottish staple of tea or coffee and a sticky bun. The route passed through Crawfordjohn, Leadhills and finally to the Wanlockhead Mining Museum Café, with most of the attendees surprised at how good for Minis the surrounding roads were – empty, twisty and recently resurfaced! On the way back to the start point, the Minis headed down the south western side of the hills to the A76 south, then looped down and over the Dalveen Pass.…

With the beautiful Jurassic Coast as a backdrop, it’s no surprise that the annual Mouth 2 Mouth Mini Run continues to be a popular day out for Mini fans across the Dorset region and well beyond. This year’s Jurassic Coast Mini Club flagship took part on Sunday September 10, and marked the run’s 10 year anniversary. The event started at the Riviera Hotel in Weymouth, with bacon sandwiches warming the participants as they set off towards Exmouth along the coastal road. The runners then paused for a stop at the Sidmouth Donkey Sanctuary. Ice creams weren’t as popular this year due to the the overcast conditions, but despite drizzle at the end point, spirits were high. The Lifeboat Station in Exmouth laid on a barbecue with burgers for everyone, and…

October 8 Malvern Autumn Mini Show Part of the Malvern Classic Event, held at Three Counties Showground. www.classicshows.org October 29 Cap’n Jaspers Gathering West Country Mini Scene’s autumn gathering at Plymouth Barbican. www.wcminiscene.co.uk October 27- November 5 The Italian Job Fantastic annual tour in Italy for cars from the famous 1969 film and derivatives, raising money for children’s charities. Includes stops in Bologna, Imola, Modena, Venice, Turin and at the Pagani factory. www.italianjob.com November 10-12 Classic Motor Show Superb multi-marque classic car show at the NEC, Birmingham, with live demonstrations, traders, autojumble and more. www.necclassicmotorshow.com January 7 2018 Wirral to Llandudno Run Popular annual run from Bromborough on the Wirral to Llandudno in North Wales, including a stop in Rhos-On-Sea and the spectacular climb up the Great Orme headland. Places…

Picture the scene at the Mini Cooper Day at Beaulieu in 2016. The relative calm is interrupted as EOP 88D enters the main arena, side-exit exhaust pipe barking and a Weber IDA poking through the alloy bonnet. This is the sole Broadspeed GTS racer, brilliantly restored and back in the limelight 50 years after it was built. For owner Chris Wooden and pal Jacco Mol, it’s the culmination of dreams, hard graft, mind-blowing attention to detail and years upon years of extensive research. The GTS was a one-off version of the Broadspeed GT, itself an incredibly rare derivative. With its slippery fastback shape it’s undoubtedly a legend, often referred to as a baby Aston Martin or simply as the best of the Mini variants. Just 21 were built, and of…

As the model celebrates its 50th birthday this year, few very people would argue that a proper MkII Mini Cooper S has a worthy place in any dream garage. Phil Kershaw was well ahead of the curve with his 1969 example though, picking it up when it was a moderately-priced old runabout in 1986. Since then he’s been lucky enough to own several of his dream motors, including an original Lotus Elan Sprint and an Austin Healey 3000, but it was his Almond Green Cooper S that got the ball rolling. Back in 1986, 1960s Mini Coopers fell a long way short of the frankly incredible prices they can achieve now, but they still had a strong following despite being out of production for 15 years. “I was mad on…

BAD FUEL I’ve recently read that ethanol E10 unleaded fuel will become commonplace in the UK, and is already widely used in the rest of Europe. I’ve heard this can damage fuel hoses and rubber components, so I want to future proof my Mini Thirty as it gets used for long-haul trips in the summer months. Can you recommend some fuel hose that will cope, or perhaps an additive I could add to the fuel? I remember seeing something about an additive but I’ve not seen anything in the shops. Rich Smart This ever-changing picture in fuel chemistry for general consumption is as difficult to cater for as it is alarming. We are already seeing cars burning out because of the corrosive nature of ethanol in fuel and what it…

A few weeks ago, I finally caught up on all the outstanding jobs caused by my post-Asian sojourn – good news as it means I get my evenings and weekends back to get on stuff that needs doing outside work. Catching up with friends and family has been high on the agenda, closely followed by getting work done on my Mini fleet. The Clubby Estate is the priority as it’s the closest to being roadworthy, and I need to get it out of the garage to make space for the Mini Thirty project, though Karin is still waiting for a Mini as a daily driver to replace her hated Renault Clio. I still haven’t got around to treating the rusty parts on the front panel of the Clubby, so haven’t…

• A great line-up of Minis helped to light up the Classic and Sports Cars by the Lake show near Bury St Edmunds on September 3. Taking place at Hall Farm in Fornham St Martin, the event has been running since 2010, with proceeds going to St Nicholas Hospice Care. An excellent line-up of 15 cars from Bury Mini Club included an immaculate Pick-up, an Innocenti Cooper 1300, an early Austin Seven, Kevin Sutcliffe’s modified 16-valve Mini and a lovely Teal Blue MkIII. The Suffolk region of the Mini Cooper also joined in with a strong display, while various Minis were scattered around the grounds. With a great variety of cars on show and plenty to see for all the family, the event once again proved to be a great…

The Oulton Park Gold Cup is the Cheshire circuit’s signature event, with a packed programme of historic racing, car club displays and more taking place from August 26-28. Organised by the HSCC, it features sports cars, single-seaters and touring cars from the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s, with Minis once again a major part of the action. This year’s Gold Cup was the penultimate meeting for HSCC Historic Touring Car Championship. The series has Minis competing in two of its classes – HRSR Class D and Appendix K – K3. An impressive 12 Minis were in competition for the two-race event this time, although Roger Ebdon’s Mini suffered mechanical issues during qualifying, bringing the final field down to 11. Race one saw some interesting battles between the Class D and…

FAST ROAD VAN Name: Marc Simpson Car: 1980 Minivan Location: Manchester • Here is my 1980 Minivan project. I’ve been into Minis for over 12 years now, and have always wanted a van as in my opinion it’s the best Mini derivative! It took me years of looking to find the right example, but in the end I managed to convince a good friend of mine to sell me his. It’s believed to have been off the road for over 10 years, with London to Brighton stickers on the windows from 2002 and 2005. Judging by the rivets in the roof from an advertising sign and the colour, we think it’s an ex-Southern Electric van. I plan to keep the Atlantic Green paint, but lose the white roof. The shell…

Bike engines in Minis have been a proper thing for more than 15 years now, leading to several commercial conversion kits designed to provide blistering performance from screaming small-bore motors. But Canadian Adam Trindler didn’t bother with one of these when brewing up his Kawasaki-powered hybrid; he just got his toolkit out and stuffed a Japanese bike engine in the back of a Japanese Mini. OK, so that probably over simplifies it just a little, and by Japanese Mini we don’t strictly mean Japanese-built. However, many of the tastiest Minis were exported to Japan in the 1980s and 1990s, including unique models such as the Canvas Top, Tartan, plusher anniversary versions and plenty more. The Japanese inspection system can make it brutally expensive to drive older cars, so using an…

For many, July 8 2017 was just another day of the year, but for a particular group in Mexico, it called for a three-day celebration. On the same date 25 years previously, a man had the idea to call upon fellow enthusiasts to form a club in honour of a small British car that to this day still fascinates the world. That man was Alejandro Jimenez Landa, and the club is Mini Asociados México AC – a club for every Mexican enthusiast with a passion for Minis. To celebrate, Alejandro invited the members of his club and its sister club, Mini Maniacos of Monterrey, to join him in San Luis Potosí, the state where it all began. Families arrived from all over Mexico, representing 12 states and 15 cities overall.…

“The standard OE-fitment pumps are pretty good up to a point...” Almost any fuel pump is capable of delivering sufficient fuel for even the most monstrous, fire-breathing A-Series engine if the throttle pedal never sees more than around 25 per cent of its travel, simply because you are only using a very small amount of the power potential. It’s all about calorific value – it takes about the same amount of fuel to produce the same power from any engine. But once you bury the loud pedal for any period, a massive mixture lean-out will occur along with the potential for big, expensive engine damage. A fuel line with too small a bore causes similar problems when maximum power is sought. The standard OE-fitment pumps are pretty good up to…