Genuine Cooper S: 1966 Austin Mini Project
This rusty 1966 Mini Cooper is a genuine “S” model, verified by the provided British Motor Heritage Trust certificate. It is a major project, but certainly not past the point of saving. And given the impressive sales prices of genuine S cars over the last few years, there is more than enough to work with here. The seller points out numerous areas that will need rust repair and that the original engine and transmission are long gone, but that some details still remain as clues to its S specifications. Find it here on eBay with bids to $4,000 and the reserve unmet.
The Mini still wears its British registration plates on the rear, which makes it seem likely that this car was brought to the U.S. years ago, either with a service member or individual who was working overseas for a while. The seller notes he recovered it from a Wisconsin dairy barn, so it clearly hasn’t spent much time as a part of an owner’s prized collection, despite its relative rarity. The faded blue paint is not original, as the car left the factory wearing Old English White/Black with Red/Gold trim. The Mini does retain its original front disc/rear drum brake setup.
Those little details are what help enthusiasts determine the authenticity of a claimed “S” car, though this one leaves fewer concerns thanks to the aforementioned authenticity certificate. The seller notes that some of the other classic identifiers, like the brake booster and oil cooler, are missing, but it does come with the 120 m.p.h. speedometer. I have read that many 1966 S models have dual gas tanks, but this is not verified in the listing. Another major piece that’s missing? The floors. A whole lot of patchwork will be needed here to make this Mini roadworthy, including the front floorpans.
The rear floorpans may need work as well, and the seller lists out numerous other areas in need of attention. Scuttle corners, rear boot hinge panel, rear valence, rear subframe, battery box, and perhaps even the door skins are all identified as areas needing work/replacement. That’s before you even get to sourcing at least a non-matching but genuine S engine and gearbox and sorting out the interior. A major project but certainly a worthy one, but I suspect you’ll still eclipse the going rate for a nice “S” car if you’re not able to weld yourself.
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Comments
Hmmm a real John Cooper S. Someone will snap it up. Sure would be great to see this back on the road again. These were sure enough quirky, with go kart tires, sure would haul; #$$. saw a mill recently that was warmed up a bit, dynoed at 155 hp, would propel this baby nicely. it was built for an original (REAL) Mini
Good luck to the new owner. Lots of work but a labor of love for someone!
Cheers
GPC
Nice.
Make a great ash tray.
Hmm
4000 and 20 more will get old rusty going again 😧
Except my jeans pocket for wallet was
Dry rotted it fell through and is lost 😃
Love it ..
“Undoubtedly there is ample rust.The car is crusty. The car needs to be completely gone through and restored.The front floors need replacing and maybe the rear as well. A pair of frontfloors come with the car. The previous owner had designs on replacement butnever got around to it. The wings could be replaced but the hinge panels seemok. The scuttle corners need replacing.The rear boot hinge panel need replacing. The rear valence is rusted as is therear subframe. The car could do with new door skins. The front subframe appearsfine. The battery box is rusted but the boot floor is fine. The driver sidesill should be replaced. “
British plates but LHD? I know its possible but how likely?
Paris Italy for example is Left etc.
My dad stationed in Alconbury England in 70s had a morris minor rear barn door type wagon left hand drive and a 67 Jag for my mom Right hand etc.
The weird camera angles in the auction pics are giving me vertigo.
A new body shell can be had for about 12k. I know that is a lot of money but probably cheaper than trying to restore this shell
Unfortunately, the finished car will not be this car. It needs so much replaced, that the restored car will probably only have the original VIN tag, maybe the engine block, and a handful of rare parts. However, the allure of the Cooper S will ensure that something lives again.
There was a car dealer named Alec Poole in Dublin, Ireland that raced one of these back in the early ’70s. If I recall, his was turbo charged and reportedly had a top speed of 140mph. That must have been terrifying for a car with 10″ wheels. I did see it race at Phoenix Park a time or two and at Mondello Park where it did well in it’s class. I worked for a guy who raced an Austin A40 in the same class at the time and he told me that at high speed that little Mini didn’t look too stable on the straightaways. And it always passed him, sometimes it even lapped him.
This Cooper S will definitely be a labor of love to restore and it won’t be cheap. These were great little cars that were a blast to drive, very popular at the time with an impressive racing reputation. I hope this one can be brought back to life again.
It’s also missing its hyrolastic suspension…tread carefully.
The new bodyshells are nice, but not correct mk1.
Re high speeds – a sorted mini is indeed very quick, it’s also shockingly stable at high speeds. A ton of fun.
If you look at the photo closely, you will see the top of the second gas cap. The suspension on this car would be the rubber donut and aluminium trumpet and should be easily sourced.
My first car was a 66 mini and my brother had 4 over the years. Rallied them in local events in central Scotland, as did 2 of his friends.
If it’s ’66 it should be Hydrolastic (’64-’71).
It’s not a Cooper S but if it’s a MK 1 Mini it might be worth a few Dollars.
Why is it not a Cooper ‘S’?
Never seen a Cooper S without twin fuel tank fillers.
Twin tanks were optional until ’66, so there were lots of single tank S’s.
It does have two gas caps
the heritage certificate shows it built as a LHD export model with US style lamps so was probably bought by a US service man and taken home at the end of his tour, look at bad obsession motorsport on youtube to see a shell rebuild, and a lot more!
Built an S using a new 72 and a former race car. Had two former Brit Ley race mechanics put it all together. These when sorted properly were very stable at speed. Had mine up to 135 mph more than once. Tracked like a go cart on rails. Miss that little rocket.