Raced, Crashed & Abandoned – But now this Mini is back!

Sir William Lyons once said, “The car is the closest thing we will ever create to something that is alive.” His words resonate with the story of Harrison Kirby’s MK2 Mini Cooper ‘S’. A car that seemingly has nine lives.

The history of this Mini is a little hazy in places, but its story starts as a standard MK1 Mini Super Deluxe, destined for the road this car was not, and pretty soon it was battling door-to-door on racetracks. In 1978, the original MK1 body shell was written off in an accident and the car was comprehensively rebuilt using a Mk2 Cooper S.

During this time, it campaigned in the Mini Miglia championship. The Miglia championship was introduced in 1970 primarily for those racing in the Mini Se7en championship to progress, or for more experienced saloon car racers to enter the world of door-to-door Mini motorsport.

At the time, Miglia spec cars were 1,000cc, with less restrictive tuning regulations when compared with a Se7en car. The fitment of a twin-choke carburettor and wide, slick tyres meant these cars were extremely capable. It also meant that the racing got more and more competitive, and even more ‘close quarters’.

In 1980, just 2 years after its write-off accident, Harrison’s racer was rather dramatically rolled at Silverstone. At the time it was finished in a dark shade of purple and wore the number 31. Post  accident, it was loaded up onto a trailer, behind a Landcrab quite fittingly – keeping it in the family. Oh how times have changed. Once it was loaded up, it was taken away and the seemingly catastrophic damage was assessed.

Rather than another re-shell, the car was straightened on a jig at British Leyland’s Special Tuning works department at Abingdon in Oxfordshire. The home of the motorsport Mini, where iconic Minis, like Paddy Hopkirks’ Monte Carlo winning Mk1 ‘S’, were assembled.

During its time at Abingdon, it was treated to a host of tweaks thanks to experienced Mini racer and its then-owner, Bob Sayer. Bob at the time was an employee at the Special Tuning Abingdon Works, meaning that this car is one of very few to have been treated to some real hands-on factory love.

Little things like expertly drilled lightweight door hinges and a custom gauge binnacle were fabricated, all the way up to being lightened and strengthened as per ST work’s motorsport car. After its body repairs, the car was refinished in its two-tone blue and white livery, now destined to wear the number 49.

Now this is where the story gets a little hazy. Harrison only has a few photos of the car being used in period when it was blue and white, but it is known that after its Abingdon rebuild the car competed in the 1981 season, and sadly suffered complete engine failure at Oulton Park.

Harrison bought the car after discovering it in a barn, where it had been left to quietly slumber for some thirty-five years. Battered and with no engine (it had been removed it blew at Oulton), the future looked bleak. Harrison really is the next part of this car’s story, he trained as a race mechanic and spent his time working on everything from Caterhams, to 106 GTIs, to fire-breathing Chevrons and everything in between.

Harrison took it upon himself to get number 49 back on a circuit and decided to build the car to suit modern Mini Se7en regulations. Sticking with a 1,000cc engine built by the late, great Rob Selby, featuring a Wedged, X-Drilled and balanced crankshaft, Jack Knight dog engagement gearbox and Wossner pistons. Harrison and his dad Rob, an ex-BTCC driver nonetheless, and the rest of the team at Newport Garage set to work on restoring this old racer.

The car was refinished in its colour matched shade of blue. However, look closely at the immaculate paintwork and the roof is still a little rippled from its accident in 1979, it still has its history, and it holds so many stories. Harrison was incredibly keen to hold onto those, even ensuring that when the body shell was sandblasted, they avoided sandblasting the original decals from the rear quarter panels.

A custom rose jointed steering column replaces the original fixed version helping to ensure an optimal driving position, whilst mounting the seat behind the crossmember helps to get the car’s centre of gravity down. AVO dampers keep each corner firmly planted whilst the split Weber carburettor performs its best song, and sing it does.

Rob Selby’s work is some of the best when it comes to Mini engine building, somehow managing to scramble huge figures from tiny capacity engines that were designed way back in the 1940s.

The original Special Tuning fibreglass flip front remains in use, as per the regulations meaning that the car is easy to work on in the pits at a race circuit, as well as saving more valuable weight behind it hides a huge alloy radiator, helping to cool the Selby power plant. At the back, the original boot lid remains, still damaged as it was back in 1981. 

A conversion to wasted spark does away with the use of an ancient Lucas distributor and means accurate ignition timing. Whilst inside the car you can monitor the engine’s RPM, water and oil temperature through stunning STACK gauges mounted in the original gauge pod.

You’re held firmly in place by a modern and safe FIA approved Cobra bucket seat and are greeted by a carbon fibre gear knob and adjustable brake bias valve and a modified internal gear linkage that offers a notchy, yet satisfying gear change.

Harrison’s work on this car is stunning, it’s often believed that all racing cars are expertly built works of art and engineering, but the truth is a lot of the time, they’re not. They’re thrown together with cable ties and miss-matched bolts, but then they’re a tool for a job. That’s not the case for number 49, it has been built to a standard higher than most could aim for, by someone with a vast array of skill, knowledge and experience. Now he just needs to get it onto a circuit.