1967 Austin Mini Cooper
Entered from the Moorlands Collection

Registration No: JFL 408E
Chassis No: CA257967048
MOT: March 2027

• Previously rallied by Wing Commander Brian Watson
• Subject to a fully restored body shell in 1994 along with significant mechanical and structural improvements
• Fully prepared for historic rallying with an MSUK logbook

The Mini was actually de-tuned before launch in 1959. The prototype's 948cc engine made it embarrassingly rapid compared with other more expensive cars in the BMC group, and it was downgraded to 848cc and 34bhp.
A collaboration between racing car builder John Cooper and the Mini’s creator Alec Issigonis, the Mini Cooper debuted in September 1961. The original A-Series 848 cc engine from the Morris Mini-Minor was increased to 997 cc boosting power from 34 bhp to 55 bhp. The car featured a tuned long-stroke engine, twin HS2 SU carburettors, close ratio gearbox with remote gearchange, and 7 in disc brakes with two-pot callipers, a first at the time in a small car. Priced at £679, 1,000 examples were commissioned and designed to meet the homologation rules of Group 2 rally racing. The 997 engine was replaced by a shorter stroke 998 cc unit in 1964 after the more powerful Cooper S with 1071cc engine had made its debut in 1963. A giant killer in road racing and rally events, including famously winning the Monte Carlo Rally for the third time in 1967, that same year saw the Mini updated to MkII specification complete with redesigned radiator grille, revamped interior, larger rear windscreen and a host of other minor changes.

Rallied by Wing Commander Brian Watson whilst raising money for the RAF, JFL 408E is finished in cellulose Old English white over a black roof and has been the recipient of a host of mechanical, structural, and electronic upgrades making it into a highly usable rally car. These include; re-inforced subframe, inboarded brake, fuel and battery lines, Group 2 wheel arch extensions, Cooper S disks, hubs, calipers, drums and master cylinder, 970S block bored to 999cc with Omega balanced pistons, lightweight flywheel, competition clutch, Megadyne 286 camshaft and straight-cut close ratio Jack Knight gearbox. Subject to a fully restored body shell in 1994 it is fully prepared for historic rallying with an MSUK logbook and current MOT to March 2027.

For more information, please contact:
Angus Fender
angus.fender@handh.co.uk
07943584762