Mini Cooper

The Mini Cooper was introduced in 1961 and was the brainchild of John Cooper who wanted to offer a tuned version of the Mini to the public. Alec Issigonis, however, was not keen on turning to competition with 'his' Mini.

Thankfully the board was persuaded otherwise and a long and illustrious string of competition successes followed, the car dominating not only saloon car racing in the ‘60s, but also autocross, sprinting and, of course, rallying.

By the early ‘70s, the Cooper name had disappeared, however in the drive for more marketing editions to keep Mini sales buoyant, Rover introduced the Mini RSP (Rover Special Projects) in 1990. Such was the appeal and success of this, that they re-introduced the Cooper name from 1991 and the rest, as they say, is history. When Rover finally split and BMW took on the Mini brand, the Cooper name was part of the appeal and has played a major role in the revival of the New Mini.

This 1991 example has clearly had a great deal of time and money spent on it, having recently been fitted with a new clutch, Minilite-style wheels and new Yokohama tyres. Inside it has been trimmed in leather and has a Webasto sunroof making it look a most appealing proposition.

According to the vendor it has covered 96,600 miles and will carry a 12 month MOT by the time of the sale. The attractive number plate H2 BCR is included in the sale. Prospective buyers should note that it is listed on the Insurance register as a Category D (damaged, repairable) dating from April last year.