7th Dec, 2011 15:00
The Pavilion Gardens
1963 Morris Mini Cooper FIA Appendix K Race Car
Estimated at £28,000 - £35,000
Lot details
Registration No: YNL 120
Chassis No: KA2S4312223
Mot Expiry: May 2012
Admittedly the Monte Carlo Rally no longer has the cachet of old, but when Paddy Hopkirk and Henry Liddon won the 1964 event in their Morris Mini Cooper S, registration `33 EJB', both car and crew starred on Sunday Night At The London Palladium and were front page news in all the national newspapers - it was one of the greatest British motorsport stories of all time. Works Cooper S Minis won again in `65, `66 and `67 though were controversially disqualified in `66. So international was the resulting hue and cry that the team probably accrued more publicity than if the victory had stood! The first Mini to bear the name of F1 constructor John Cooper was the Mini Cooper of 1961. The stroke of the standard 848cc engine was lengthened to 997cc which, together with other improvements, raised the power output from 34 to 55bhp. A closer ratio gearbox and front wheel disc brakes completed the package. The engine was replaced by a shorter stroke 998cc unit in 1964. With an eye on the appropriate racing classes, BMC eventually produced a total of three versions of the more powerful Cooper S with 970, 1071 and 1275cc engines respectively.
The mighty Mini being sold is a genuine 1963 Cooper that was simultaneously restored and transformed into a FIA Appendix K race car in 2006 by Steve Harris Motorsport (Mr Harris being a renowned graduate of the Downton Engineering Works). Following the conversion it has reportedly (a) been driven by Scots Touring Car ace John Clelland in the all-Mini race at the Goodwood Revival, (b) won its class at a U2TC round and (c) claimed the top step of the podium at the first all-Mini race organised by the Masters series. The vendor rates the paintwork as "good" but notes that the bodywork currently has "some minor race damage". He also tells us that both the 1300cc `A' series engine and four-speed manual gearbox have already been overhauled for the 2012 season. A proven front-runner offered at a fraction of its preparation cost, `YNL 120' is finished in Blue with a White roof and possesses a MOT certificate valid until May 2012.
Registration No: YNL 120
Chassis No: KA2S4312223
Mot Expiry: May 2012
Admittedly the Monte Carlo Rally no longer has the cachet of old, but when Paddy Hopkirk and Henry Liddon won the 1964 event in their Morris Mini Cooper S, registration `33 EJB', both car and crew starred on Sunday Night At The London Palladium and were front page news in all the national newspapers - it was one of the greatest British motorsport stories of all time. Works Cooper S Minis won again in `65, `66 and `67 though were controversially disqualified in `66. So international was the resulting hue and cry that the team probably accrued more publicity than if the victory had stood! The first Mini to bear the name of F1 constructor John Cooper was the Mini Cooper of 1961. The stroke of the standard 848cc engine was lengthened to 997cc which, together with other improvements, raised the power output from 34 to 55bhp. A closer ratio gearbox and front wheel disc brakes completed the package. The engine was replaced by a shorter stroke 998cc unit in 1964. With an eye on the appropriate racing classes, BMC eventually produced a total of three versions of the more powerful Cooper S with 970, 1071 and 1275cc engines respectively.
The mighty Mini being sold is a genuine 1963 Cooper that was simultaneously restored and transformed into a FIA Appendix K race car in 2006 by Steve Harris Motorsport (Mr Harris being a renowned graduate of the Downton Engineering Works). Following the conversion it has reportedly (a) been driven by Scots Touring Car ace John Clelland in the all-Mini race at the Goodwood Revival, (b) won its class at a U2TC round and (c) claimed the top step of the podium at the first all-Mini race organised by the Masters series. The vendor rates the paintwork as "good" but notes that the bodywork currently has "some minor race damage". He also tells us that both the 1300cc `A' series engine and four-speed manual gearbox have already been overhauled for the 2012 season. A proven front-runner offered at a fraction of its preparation cost, `YNL 120' is finished in Blue with a White roof and possesses a MOT certificate valid until May 2012.
Auction: The Pavilion Gardens, 7th Dec, 2011
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