Mini Cooper Innocenti

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Born as the result of a collaboration between Alec Issigonis and John Cooper, designer and builder of Formula 1 and rally cars, the legendary Mini Cooper was launched in 1961.

The car featured a race-tuned engine, twin SU carburettors, a close-ratio gearbox and front disc brakes, uncommon at the time in a small car. In line with the rest of the Mini range the Cooper models received the Mk II updates in 1967 consisting of a squarer grille, larger rear window and bigger rear lamps, the Mk III arriving in 1969 with its concealed door hinges and swanky wind-up windows.

The more powerful Cooper S was launched in 1963 with a 1071cc or twin carb 1275cc engine which produced a healthy 76bhp and was good for 96mph – although the car was so nippy and alive you always felt you were going twice as fast as you really were! Other improvements included larger servo-assisted disc brakes, twin fuel tanks, an oil cooler and modified drive shafts.

The Cooper was such a huge success that the design was licensed to Innocenti who assembled cars at their factories in Milan, Italy, and Seneffe, Belgium from 1966 to 1975 to serve European demand for the model. Slightly different from the UK-produced models, the Innocenti versions had a ‘closed block’ Austin 1300GT engine with twin carburettors, a black plastic front grille, quarterlight front windows, reversing lights, special wheels, and a bespoke interior with a six-gauge dash and vinyl seats with cloth inserts. Around 28,200 were sold in total and survivors are increasingly sought after today.

Dating from March 1973, this right-hand drive Innocenti Cooper was manufactured in Belgium and is a ‘matching numbers’ machine that retains its original 1300GT engine and gearbox which have recently been rebuilt. The 12H/719X engine number prefix denotes that it has the modern pot joints that were introduced on the drive shaft outputs in 1973.

It also retains the correct Innocenti wheels, six-gauge dash and new reproduction cloth seats supplied by Newton Commercial. Finished in original green with a cream roof, it is said by the vendor to be the only example ever made in this colour scheme.

A stalled restoration project from a deceased estate, the car has had just one owner since 1993 and is said to be highly correct and unmolested. It comes with an old style V5 plus paperwork from the Mini Cooper Register confirming its origins and date of manufacture. It is presently on a ‘Q’ plate but the new owner should be able to get it put back on an age-related number by sending the Mini Cooper Register documentation to DVLA when applying for a new V5C.

Said to run and drive well, the car needs some minor detailing and reassembly before it can be returned to the road. With top examples of this rare Cooper variant fetching double the estimate suggested here, it should amply reward the finishing touches now required.