Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2023 i MiniWorld

As we start a new year it’s customary to look to the last. With trepidation due to the pandemic of the proceeding years, we began 2022 with hope of a full UK Mini show schedule and that’s, thankfully, what we enjoyed. Some of our overseas friends were not so lucky but hopefully we can all now look forward to a full-on 2023 of enjoying our Minis. Our Event Diary on page 53 is certainly filling up nicely and There should be plenty to celebrate as it will be the 60th anniversary of the Mini Cooper S. People often ask me how we continue to find excellent feature cars for MiniWorld. Apart from a few Minis we find at shows, it’s mainly down to you lovely lot sending in photos of…

Von Ryan’s Express is, in this case, the title of a feature in Cars and Car Conversions mag in December 1974, as well as being the title of a well-known Frank Sinatra film in 1965. The car featured in CCC was a heavily-modified rally Mini built and driven by Pat Ryan, who later went on to be a Works rally driver for BL, driving Marinas, Allegros and Triumph Dolomites. Pat’s Mini had the rear seat back removed and the rear of the shell was held together structurally by the rollcage. Underneath, at the rear, was a beam axle and coil-overs, while the front retained standard S dry suspension with Hi-Los fitted. Brakes were standard S front discs with Minifin rear drums. It also ran on 13” wheels which was unusual…

I grew up in a `Mini culture` which led me to love and live with these pocket rocket jewels. Many people say that I am too tall to drive a Mini but I always say that sitting in a Mini feels like sitting in a big sofa to me. How did I get into Minis? My father, Emmanuel, owns a Mk3 which he bought new from a dealer in 1976. It is in Alfa Romeo green and was built in Malta with parts sent over from England (a system known as Complete Knock Down) as well as having some local parts. It even had a Maltese Cross badge on the A-panels. In our garage there were always nuts, bolts, gearboxes, engine blocks and many other parts related to Minis. I…

“Managing the homologation documents was pivotal to BMC’s competition cars such as the MGA [soon to be replaced by the MGB], the ‘Big’ Austin Healey 3000 and the Mini being qualified to enter motorsport worldwide,” says Bill. It was a job which suited his passion for detail and accuracy. Moreover, the timing couldn’t have been more appropriate because new homologation forms were about to be introduced and Comps. Dept. Manager Marcus Chambers explained how it all worked and the link between BMC, the RAC Motorsport Division and the Federation International de l’Automobile, or FIA. “At the start of each event, the team had a copy of the Homologation form available for the event scrutineers to read if requested,” continues Bill. “Significantly, on the Monte Carlo Rally in 1966 the performance…

■ OWNER AT THE TIME: Nick Klee ■ ISSUE: May 2006 Nick Klee loved tinkering with an array of cars, often fitting full-on ICE systems, but hadn’t engaged in a rebuild until a 1980 Clubman Estate came on his radar. “I didn’t go out looking for a Mini,” recalled Nick. Apparently, the owners were moving house and the Estate, which had been rotting on a driveway for two years, was surplus to requirements. For just £50 he became the new owner. “I started stripping it down and I was left with an awful lot of bodywork.” He sent it off to Southern Mini Centre and it was at this point he realised that because so much work would be necessary, and so many panels needed replacing, that he might as…

Sporting Bears Motor Club reports that it has raised over £3 million for children’s charities since it started in 1989. The money has been largely raised thanks to Dream Rides which are passenger-ride experiences on public roads lasting 20 minutes, or 10 miles, in the cars of your dreams. The total is largely thanks to classic car owner volunteers allowing people to pay to experience a ride in their pride and joy and even paying for fuel. Alan Moss, Chairman, said, “In 1989 Chris and Pat Glasbey formed the Sporting Bears with the aim of raising money for charity. In 1992 we appeared at the NEC Classic Car Show for the first time, and the concept of ‘Dream Rides’ was introduced. Throughout this time we have continued to support children’s…

"The reason I bought it was for the colour… You don't see many Fiesta Yellow Minis." Brian Birchall tells us: “I’ve owned Minis for a long time. I’ve owned and restored them all. I had a Mk2 Cooper S, a Traveller that was in MiniWorld and a Mini Pick-up, but I had never done an Austin Seven.” He had to get it out of his system and, in June 2007, found a perfect candidate: a rusty 1961 Austin Seven De-luxe which most would have walked away from. Over the next 12 years he spent around five years working on it, on and off between other car projects. “It failed an MOT and they chucked it in the woods, where I found it. It was rotten. There were a load of…

2023 January 12-15 Autosport International Annual multi-marque event celebrating everything motorsport at Bimingham's NEC. Traders, clubs, displays and a live-action arena. www.autosportinternational.com 29 Wirral to Llandudno Mini Run Annual Mini event organised by Wirral Minis. Starts at Bromborough, Wirral and travels to the spectacular scenery of the Great Orme and ends at Llandudno Prom where Minis are displayed for the afternoon. Non-club-members are very welcome to join in. www.wirralminis.com 29 British Mini Fair Fantastic event at Bingley Hall, Staffordshire County Showground. Perfect shopping day out for Mini fans due to the large amount of Mini-specific traders and autojumblers plus club stands, British Mini Club's Show 'n' Shine and the Premier Concours final. +44 (0)1384 897779 www.britishminiclub.co.uk March 12 Mile of Minis Fundraising event for Buttle UK. Starts at MINI Plant…

BMC’s original long wheelbase Minis were launched in 1960: round-nose Mk1 Estates, Van and Pick-up. Their upwardly-mobile saloons, dubbed Hornet and Elf, appeared in 1961 whereas the Clubman-fronted Estate, at £763 in the UK, appeared in 1969 and stayed in production all the way through to 1982. In the UK, neither Van nor Pick-up got the Clubman front end and they survived, with very few changes, right through to 1983. This particular Clubman Estate was first registered in 1975 which makes it one of the last to be produced in the UK with the 998cc A-series engine and manual transmission. Later the same year the manual Estates got the 1098cc long-stroke engine and the 998cc was used for the Automatic Estates. By coincidence, 1975 also saw the last Wolseley-branded car…

Supporting Bill’s job of managing the documentation was the indefatigable Competitions Department Secretary. “In the years before computerisation and the internet the Competitions Department’s secretary had to rely on her typewriter, telephones, facsimile and telex machines. During the period of the Mini the Competitions Manager changed from Marcus Chambers to Stuart Turner and later to Peter Browning in 1967. Behind the scenes was the change of Secretary from Jayne Derrington to Diana Kirkby, Mary Smith and Sandy Lawson.” A large proportion of the Secretary’s time would have been taken upmaking arrangements for the BMC team’s hotel accommodation on international rallies such as the Monte Carlo and the Alpine. “This involved booking arrangements, usually by letter and confirmation by an international telephone call,” explains Bill. “Then there was the paperwork for…

“To take part in an international rally it was normal practice to take up every spare inch of space in the Mini’s boot with a can of oil, two spare wheels, a fire extinguisher and a selection of hand tools should a car experience a breakdown mid-rally stage,” says Bill. “This collection of equipment was supplemented by the larger tools such as trolley jacks and welding equipment, together with a Hydrolastic suspension pump when the latest system was introduced in 1964. It was all carried aboard the rally ‘barge’, usually a Wolseley 6/99 saloon. It was not unusual for the teams to travel many thousands of miles, putting considerable strains on the rally cars themselves.” Back at headquarters there was always the occasional outbreak of high jinks with a ‘missile’…

A significant rally in the Mini’s emergent career was the 1959 Mini Miglia National in which Pat Moss, with Stuart Turner as navigator, gave the little car its first win. “It was fitted with harder brake shoes and competition-type shock absorbers, with additional driving lights and a Halda Speed Pilot navigation aid,” said fellow Competitions team member, DenGreen, to MiniWorld. “Next, three [848cc] Minis were prepared for the RAC Rally in late November. Sadly, it revealed a serious weakness in the power train design as it became noticed that oil was seeping past the primary gear oil seal and causing severe clutch slip; the problem being exacerbated by the rigours of rally speeds and high revs. All three Minis failed to finish. The solution developed by the engineering team involved…

Cornish Mini Club is looking forward to welcoming Mini owners to its annual Riviera Run event at Pentewan Sands Holiday Park in St Austell, Cornwall. The event takes place Friday 28 April to Monday 1 May and there are extra Mini cruises arranged for those staying the rest of the week. Showgoers have the option to stay in the very nice static caravans or you can book a camping pitch right on the seafront. Those staying off-site can buy day tickets to the show days (no dogs allowed). As well as the Mini shows on the Saturday and Sunday there will be a multi-marque car show on the Monday. There will be plenty to do and see for all the family including a Sunday afternoon Mini cruise plus evening entertainment…

Once a Mini has had 12 owners, none of whom have taken any real trouble to maintain it, it’s likely that it will be beyond repair. Mini commercial vehicles, Van and Pick-up, were usually owned by companies and written off economically when repair bills exceeded their replacement value, which was very low for a VAT-registered company. Vans sold nearly 10 times better than Pickups in the UK. Over half a million Mini Vans were made but just over 58,000 Pick-ups, making Pick-ups very rare indeed. Both models in the UK were produced from 1961 to 1983 and very few are left but their prices, reflecting high demand, now certainly mean that they are well worth saving and restoring. Paul Moran is a professional HGV Class 1 driver with a background…

We find ourselves in an economic recession with prices, especially energy, mortgage and food prices, rocketing. We have to battle through somehow and ensure that we can continue to own and enjoy our Minis and any other cars that we own. There are, of course, a lot of ways to save money, make life a little more bearable and also keep our hobby going strong. Project progress may have to slow down or be put on hold for a while until things start to look up. Much has been written about saving money in the press and on social media and there has been a lot of advice handed out on television programmes. Most of the ideas, and there are some very sensible suggestions, are very general and will go…

I've been a British car guy since I bought a 1973 Triumph TR6 while in college in 1988. I later went on to own numerous British cars, from several MGs to a TVR to a 1970 Jaguar XK-E in British Racing Green which, to me, is the epitome of British classic cars. I did an amateur restoration on the Jag in my parents’ garage in New York City and kept the car for over 11 years. I even got to enjoy driving it when my wife and I moved to Connecticut, the perfect place to enjoy classic British cars in the US. For me, it was the closest thing to driving the scenic country roads in the UK; on the wrong side of the road, of course. I bought my…

During the 1950s, BMC operated 25 mobile ‘classrooms’ using specially-prepared ‘buses’ for providing accommodation for educational courses for dealer staff trainees touring around the country. “When the scheme was finally curtailed, one of the vehicles was offered to the Competitions Department who quickly decided that, if it was extended by 2ft at the rear, the vehicle could be converted into a transporter which could accommodate either one Works MGB or two Minis,” explains Bill. Luckily, it was left-hand drive, thus making it suitable for continental driving, and was painted in Competitions Department colours of rich red and white, and fitted out to take tools and spares as well as catering facilities.” One novel use of the transporter was to take the suitcases, with spare clothing belonging to the rally teams,…

Not surprisingly, Stuart Turner’s meteoric rise to stardom as navigator during the 1950s placed him in a strong position to share his skills with well-respected drivers of the day, navigating for the likes of John Sprinzel (“a masterly entrepreneur”) and Pat Moss. In fact, Stuart’s link with Pat came through Marcus Chambers, then heading up BMC’s Competitions Department at Abingdon and taking part in several events with her in a Morris Minor before entering the Mini Miglia of 1959. That was in one of the first 850 Minis in which they came home victorious, despite Stuart finishing the rally with his feet ankle-deep in water. All the while Stuart was notching up valuable rally contacts; a case in point was when he was lucky enough to be paired with Erik…