Mini History - Pt. 1

One of the things I really enjoy about Minis (and Mini owners) is the practise of getting to know the history of the car. Most sale ads will mention how many owners a Mini has had (one-owner cars are increasingly rare, especially in North America) and often where the car was originally sold.

My car was sold off the lot of Manotick Motors to a Colonel in the Canadian Forces from the village of Kars. He bought it for his daughter who drove it for a few years until she almost got t-boned. She didn't want to drive it anymore and gave it back to her father who stored it in his barn (apparently along with several other 60s/70s vehicles including a Land Rover) for the next 20 years.

He did drive it for a summer or two - but after that, most of the miles put on it were from the annual Kars Parade. He had an oversized wind-up key that he would attach to the roof and it was a big hit with the crowd. But it sat for a few years in the barn, at least, before the next owner offered to buy it in 2004. I don't know how he found it in the barn, but Mark (2nd owner) told me the sale was a little bizarre.

The Colonel and his wife had become very reclusive as they grew older and were not comfortable with anyone visiting their farmhouse. When Mark arrived to view the Mini he was asked to avert his eyes away from the house and keep them pointed in the direction of the barn as they crossed the yard - the Colonel and his wife followed behind. It wasn't until the Colonel's wife retreated back to the house that the Colonel allowed Mark to relax, explaining his wife was very nervous about strangers.

Thankfully, all went fine after this and Mark bought the car without further overtones of axe-murder horror movies:
thanks to Mark for the photo

De Rigourd

Parked the Mini in the carhole today. I love having it sit in the driveway so I can see it on my way out and when I get home - but Hallowe'en is approaching and I don't want to risk it getting tipped on its lid. (It is, kind of, pumpkin-ish coloured/shaped, after all.)



I spent a few hours on the weekend cleaning the inside and the trim/lights on the outside. I'm really digging the original crappy vinyl interior. Aside from some black markings and one long-ish tear in the driver's seat cushion, it's in great shape. It even smells right - smells just like the Mini we used to have as one of our family cars when I was a kid (the other car was a HUGE Ford LTD.)

I daydream now when I go out to the garage for a smoke - thinking about the finished car; the paint job, the addition of a decent stereo, a dash and maybe a centre console? So many details to consider! So many wonderful possible outcomes!

I can't wait to get this car on the road. I want to drive it forever.

Mini/Me

1980

Me beside my dad's ice-racing Mini on a frozen lake in Thunder Bay.
2008

Me sitting in my new Mini in my driveway in Ottawa.

Arrival

My new Mini was delivered on Friday - I'm still in disbelief over actually owning one. I'm going to take some pictures of my own on my days off this week, but for now here are a few more from the previous owner:







I'm going to spend some time in the next couple days vacuuming and cleaning the interior and maybe give the outside a good wash/polish...

Legacy Mini

Aquiring the 1969 Mini would be quite the coup. Especially for a first-time Mini Owner. My father didn't have a chance to own such a specimen until his 50s - and he's spent much of his life driving and restoring Minis both in the UK and here in Canada.

His last Mini was a 1967 Cooper S. He bought it as a burned out shell, the victim of an insurance fraud fire at a used car dealership. He was able to trace the history back to the original owner and even got in contact with the man after the restoration was complete; he learned that an old pipe-cleaner, mysteriously found in the car once all the interior had been removed, actually belonged to the original owner who still smoked a pipe!

I helped with a couple things during the restoration: disassembling part of the rear sub-frame and searching Mini Spares for windscreen and window glass stamped with the appropriate date-markers (tiny white dots above or below different letters on the safety registration stamp. This took the better part of a day's work and we managed to find almost every pane from a first-quarter 1967 production run.)

But that was pretty much the extent of my involvement. Even so, I was seriously disappointed when I learned a few years later through my brother (my dad and I have gone through long periods of non-contact), that after my dad returned to Canada from the UK, he sold the cherished '67 S to an American from Texas.

If the Old British Guy decides to sell his 69 Cooper (and if I'm lucky enough to be able to afford the car and restoration) - that sucker's staying in the family.

Luckily, my brother and his wife just had a baby girl so now there's actually someone to pass it on to...

It's not quite official, but...

I just put a deposit on this car:

The Holy Grille.

Although I'd missed out on buying his Mini, the seller agreed to keep an eye out for anything that might be in my price range. He mentioned he'd seen a Mini in a garage in his neighbourhood but he was pretty sure the guy wasn't interested in selling. Apparently the car was covered in old boxes and hadn't been driven in a long time. Two weeks later I got an email - the seller had talked to the guy and was passing on the info:

1. One owner;
2. Year: 1969;
3. Type - Austin Mini , 998 cc, 2 SU carbs and larger exhaust;
4. Has not been driven since 1983;
5. Price: Owner is unsure what it is worth;
6. Some rust and engine might need work ?

This a Mark II Cooper. A 1969 Mark II Cooper. That hasn't been driven in 25 years. Sitting in the garage of an old British man who is unsure what it's worth. Fuck me. Obviously I e-mailed the guy right away to see if I could take a look. He was still reticent about selling but asked me to call in a week when I returned from a road trip.

I called last week. Still unsure, he's going to speak with his son and decide what they want to do with the car and get back to me.

I mentioned I was looking for a restoration project and that my father has restored Minis before - I'm hoping he'll realize the car deserves better than 25 years worth of dust and sell it for a ridiculously affordable price to someone that will care for it like a freaking lover.

1982 RHD

A few weeks ago I was twenty minutes away from owning my first Mini.



I had seen the ad on craigslist or kijiji a few days prior and exchanged a couple e-mails arranging to go have a look. On a whim, I'd sent the ad to my dad and asked his opinion - the price was fair and it looked to be in good shape. It was a 1982 right-hand drive, imported from the UK a few years ago; disc brakes on the front, 1275cc engine, flared wheel wells and 12" tires, nice interior, very little rust.

I mentioned I was going to make an appointment at my bank to see if they'd loan me the $5000 (doubtful, my credit rating is crap - but what the hell, it's for a Mini...) and in his reply my dad offered to front me or co-sign. I was driving up to his place near Kingston the next day to pick him up and we talked about it on the way back to Ottawa. When he mentioned we might have enough time to see the car before he had to be at the airport (he left for Darfur until the end of the month) I floored it back as fast as possible.

I had to stop at home and call the seller. I apologized for the short notice and asked if it was ok to come by right away - my dad was on his way out of the country and we had 1/2 an hour before he needed to be at the airport.

But the car was sold. A couple from Kingston had come up an hour before, had left and come back to buy 20 mins before I called. He said I was welcome to come by anyway (the couple was coming back the next day to pick up the car, there's always a chance they don't make it) and not wanting to let it go, my dad and I headed over.

It's been a long time since I've been that disappointed. Or, I suppose, a long time since I've been that excited about something. My entire life (almost) I've wanted to own a Mini. Minis and I go way back. I had never been so close. Only in the last year have the circumstances even been fortuitous for Mini-ownership - I have a garage it will fit in, my dad's workshop/machineshop/custom tools/expertise at my disposal and access to funds (even if it means giving up all other luxuries.) And then to find a Mini in my price range? I really felt this car was destined for me. I thought for sure the couple wouldn't show at the last minute.

But they did.