Mini Magazine November 2018

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: just when you think you’ve seen everything Classic Mini, someone moves the game on! Well, that’s what I think of this month’s cover star and what Ollie Scull has done with his Mini. It's basically Ollie’s dream car made into a reality, you can't miss it with the Candy Orange paint, Zeemax body kit and that massive Vortex rear wing. Fitting a Honda VTEC engine is difficult at the best of times, so the fact he got it under the standard Mini nose is impressive. More impressive is the amount of engineering Ollie’s done to turbocharge it — the result being over 300bhp and that fairly substantial Garret turbocharger hanging out the grille! What’s more he isn’t finished yet, with an…

“Jason wanted a reliable car with a ‘60s influence and mild road manners” By the time Jason Barr turned 12 he knew he wanted to drive a Mini. His cousin, Mark, provided the inspiration, as bit-by-bit he transformed his Mini from a complete rust bucket banger into a road-going vehicle of dreams. So thorough was the transformation that over a decade later the car is still on the road. The seed had been sewn. Jason’s first Mini, registered PIJ 8530, was a 998-engined 1985 saloon in Gunmetal Grey. We all remember our first Mini and how we made it our own and Jason is no different. Before long the 12-inch Minilites were replaced by 13-inch deep dish versions, in went a custom-made interior and out went the 998cc engine to…

BODY 1979 shell rebuilt with new inner and outer wings, A-panels and front panel, sills and rear valance, wheel arch extensions, fibreglass MkI boot lid inner and outer skins on standard steel centre, dummy fuel filler neck, pressed steel grille. Paint: Volvo Polestar Blue with black grille. All brightwork sprayed black. ENGINE MG Metro 1275cc A-plus block, new piston rings and crank bearings, standard head, camshaft and rockers, water-heated alloy inlet manifold, LCB exhaust manifold, stainless steel pipe, Playmini back box, 1.5-inch HS 4 SU carburettor,K&N cone air filter, alloy radiator, DSN Classics combined thermostat/engine steady bracket, silicone hoses. TRANSMISSION Pre-Verto clutch assembly, new master cylinder standard MG Metro ‘box rebuilt with new seals and gaskets. Final drive ratio 3.44:1 SUSPENSION Resprayed subframes. Hi-Los, KYB dampers, heavy-duty adjustable tie rods,…

Barrie ‘Whizzo’ Williams got his nickname from a journalist after his outstanding win at the 1964 Welsh International Rally. In his article, the journalist asked who this Welsh Whizz was, and the name stuck, despite the fact Barrie wasn’t Welsh! His drive on the 64 Welsh was the first international rally win for the Mini Cooper S and the start of his professional motorsport career. He followed this up by becoming the first British driver to complete the Swedish Winter Rally with co-driver John Devonport. Born in 1938 in rural Hertfordshire, Barrie cut his teeth driving tractors and farm machinery which seemed to have a constant attraction to the ditches and hedgerows around his home. A career in motorsport was always on the agenda and at the tender age of…

The weekend of the 31 August/1 September saw nine Mini crews make the journey overseas to Belgium to compete in the Conxion Omloop van vlaanderen Tour of Flanders for the fifth and sixth rounds of the HRCR Mini Sport Cup. Competing over the course of two days and 17 exhilarating stages, the Mini crews were truly tested, and Belgium certainly did not go easy on them! Chosen this year as an alternative to the Manx Rally, the Tour of Flanders was well received by all of the crews that entered. Mini Sport-sponsored Clive King/Anton Bird enjoyed a rather revealing recce, where some unfortunate road book mistakes were brought to light — thankfully having corrected these issues in their notes, the team set off with a confident start for the beginning…

Saturday’s Miglia race started off with a bang on the opening lap – literally – when a coming together down Paddock Hill continued up to Druids, leaving several cars out of the running. On the restart, it was Nick Padmore who opened up a gap, including a new lap record, from Aaron Smith and Lee Deegan, with series leader Dave Drew settling for a damage-limitation eighth place behind rivals Rupert Deeth, Alfie Brown, Colin Peacock and Kane Astin. A record-breaking Mini Libre entry saw David Franks secure the class victory, with a good battle for second between newcomer Rob Davis and Ian Fraser, once Steve Baker had dropped out. With rain having dampened the track, the opening Se7en encounter saw differing tyre choices. Spencer Wanstall finally broke his Se7en duck…