Mini Clubman

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“And now for something completely different”….This 1980 Clubman is something of an enigma. OJN 745V was first registered on 1st July 1980 and we can only assume was involved in some form of accident in the first few months of its life.

The owner went to British Leyland in November 1980 and purchased, directly from them, a new bodyshell, doors, boot and bonnet, the invoices for which accompany the car. Adding to the intrigue is how long the project took to complete. It appears that the original owner must have worked at an incredibly slow pace, leaving the project stuck in their garage for decades. We believe it was finally completed in summer 2016, an MOT being issued in July 2016 recording 5 miles on the odometer.

Apart from the aforementioned bodyshell and parts, the rebuild also included the purchase of a new cylinder block directly from British Leyland Motorsport in Abingdon in March ’82 with numerous engine and body parts also purchased throughout the early 1980s.

The documents with the car suggest a truly impressive specification including;

Cooper ‘S’ disc brake assemblies on the front and an adjustable rear brake balance valve in the cockpit. Negative camber bottom suspension arms, SPAX adjustable shocks and adjustable ride height suspension. Drive is via a close-ratio straight-cut gearbox fitted with Salisbury powerlock differential. It uses an A+ engine with gas flowed head breathing through a 45 Weber DCOE carburettor supplied from twin fuel tanks. Finished off with 6x10” Mamba wheels, Dunlop Sports tyres, FIA roll cage, fire extinguisher and 3 point full harness and racing seats.

Its most recent MOT was issued in October this year with no advisories, recording just 160 miles on the clock.

With new Heritage bodyshells now costing £8,500 plus, this is a rare and cost effective opportunity to own a 1980 Mini Clubman with ‘delivery mileage’.