Description
Restored and Upgraded 1997 Rover Mini Cooper Sportspack
A fantastic example of what appears to be a classic Mini but thanks to a previous owner is anything but!
A huge amount of work undertaken across several years through to 2023, with car only covering circa 3, 000 miles since (including a brilliant trip to the Classic Car Weekend at Spa in Summer 2024)
The base is a 1997 Rover Mini Cooper Sportspack with the majority of recent work done by a previous owner who ran a car tuning business, on what was his Mum's Mini (lovingly referred to as Olive).
In terms of the more standard stuff, he completely stripped down and resprayed the vehicle replacing the subframes in the process.
The engine was then completely rebuilt, along with restoration of the cylinder head.
To add a little "something extra" to the car, a straight cut, straight drop gearbox was fitted to give it a unique driving experience (Classic Mini meets F1 car!!) alongside an uprated clutch, bespoke throttle body and upgraded Ramair filter and intakes. All of this "exits" through a Stainless Steel Fletcher exhaust system. The short gate gearchange further enhances the driving experience.
The car sits wide & low on Hi-Lo suspension (though I have raised it slightly due to the state of the roads) and to finish it off externally some fabulous JBW deep dish alloys were added (best looking wheels I've seen on a Mini in my opinion).
The interior has the beautiful walnut dash with all the dials you need, including the extra battery and oil temp gauges, plus an upgraded Pioneer Bluetooth stereo alongside an excellent set of Edge & Gladen front & rear speakers (albeit radio reception isn't great just FYI). Seats match the car brilliantly in Porcelain Green and are in fantastic condition all round, very comfortable and with adjustable headrests. Fitted with four 3-point seatbelts and the standard drivers airbag. Also has the factory fitted immobiliser, all working as it should.
The boot is functional with a standard spare, new jack and also an upgraded battery I fitted myself a few months back (as car isn't used too much, so wanted something with higher capacity).
Car starts first time, every time and drives brilliantly - the tuning work done on it means it is aching to go and feels special and very quick. It is a visceral driving experience, which is exactly what it should be - loud, bumpy and a huge amount of fun to wrestle round corners!!
Paintwork is in great condition all round but as with most Minis (and as you inevitably notice yourself more than anyone else looking around it) there are a few stone chips and some minor rust bubbles, but nothing requiring any urgent work - it appears to be purely cosmetic and I guess is part of owning a classic vehicle (unless you want a concourse example for at least double the price!). One particularly annoying (to me) scratch/ small dent on boot where it was fouling the chrome bumper when opened - unfortunately only realised once the damage was done.
Full underside photograph (on ramp) was from when I purchased it approx 1, 700 miles previously and looks pristine, smaller photos of underside are current.
Car was purchased from GB Mini Garage in Nov 23 (- details above) and has been lovingly maintained since with the usual work done throughout my ownership. Unfortunately our main car is now needed for my wife's work meaning I need to get something far more practical and boring - if I could keep it as a 3rd car I would!
MOT is through to early Oct 2025
Some limited paperwork in terms of previous MOTs, invoices, etc but this doesn't present with full history, images of rebuild, etc
Mileage is obviously high overall, but as per above description, car has been completely rebuilt in recent years and has covered barely any miles since.
Additionally car had previously been registered as a category D insurance loss — meaning vehicle damaged but repairable back in Oct 2003 — but again, as per above, car has been fully restored since and everything has been renewed so hopefully purely academic.
11 previous keepers
