Mini Magazine

welcome

You can probably tell from the fact that I'd recently had a haircut, my editorial picture this month was taken pre-Covid. I have two reasons for using it - in the picture I'm driving Mike Brewer's Cooper S (aka Project Frankie) en route to Mini In The Park 2019. So it's both yet another of my Mini memories, and also this month, we see PF come to an end. Turn to page 28 and you see a delighted Mike welcoming his Cooper S back into his garage. It's a stunning build, and credit must be given to everyone involved with the project, in particular Andy 'Ace' Harrison and the team at Acespeed. We're delighted to see car and owner reunited. I wanted to share another of my Mini memories with you…

setting the standard

Lauded for the excellence of its Land Rover Defender builds, Landroid, a visionary company, where renovation meets innovation, melds the very highest levels of quality, creativity, and engineering. In doing so, it puts its clients behind the wheel of very special, very personal... and unique vehicles. And, whereas the legendary Defender remains at the very core of Landroid’s business, running parallel to this is the company’s Special Projects division. Robin, Director of Landroid, takes up the story. “In addition to our Defender builds, we have a nine-strong Special Project team tasked with undertaking unique restoration and modification projects, creating ultimate ‘one-off’ vehicles built exactly to our clients’ specifications,” he enthuses. “Although the special project cars are, typically, very different to the Defender. So far, we’ve done TVRs, a Lada Niva and…

the owner

”I’m very much a classic car fan, and own quite a few,” mentions Emin. “But I’m also a classic Mini fan, as is my wife Mina. The Cooper was a special gift for her. Being a Japanese import, it was an ideal basis for Landroid to restore and enhance.” “The people there are so professional, and so accommodating. I’ve had a number of my cars restored by other companies, but Landroid’s meticulous approach, attention to detail, standards of workmanship and customer care are second to none. Rarely does a day goes by when I don’t chat to one classic car specialist or another, so it’s easy to make comparisons with Landroid. It’s by far the best company I have dealt with.” “I wanted the Cooper to retain as much of the original…

tech spec

BODY 1994 Japanese market Rover Cooper Automatic. SportsPack arches. Wipac LED headlights and sidelights. Refinished in original Rover British Racing Green metallic with white roof. ENGINE 1275cc single point injection. Fully rebuilt to standard spec. Fletcher stainless steel exhaust. Alloy radiator. SUSPENSION Mini Sport Smootha Ride suspension kit. TRANSMISSION AP four speed automatic. BRAKES 8.4 inch front discs with vented discs and uprated pads. Braided hoses. WHEELS AND TYRES 6x12 Superlight alloy wheels with Yokohama A539 175/50R13 tyres. INTERIOR Full retrim in diamond stitched tan leather with green piping, doorcards embossed with Union Jack logos. Mota- Lita wood rimmed steering wheel. Refinished walnut dash. Custom built air conditioning system using T7 Design Thermal Solutions components. Custom made centre console. Sony head unit with six speakers. Combined amplifier and subwoofer in boot.…

behind garage doors

We are always on the look out for half finished projects for our On The Job feature, so if your Mini is part way through a restoration then drop us a line. We love shooting these features as your workshops always make such an interesting backdrop, packed full of tools, parts and plans... but we’re not the only ones who go a bit funny around an interesting workshop or garage... Machine Mart are on the lookout for dream workshops packed with tools, big or large, messy or immaculate! The first video in the new series from Machine Mart is now live with dedicated Clarke enthusiast Ant showing off his impressive workshop and collection of products. You can watch for yourself at: www.machinemart.co.uk/ dream-workshops/ Do you have a garage or workshop you’d like to…

obituary: peter browning

• Peter Browning sadly passed away on 14 March. He was 84 and had been unwell. Peter was well known for his role as competitions manager of BMC/British Leyland and also executive director of the British Racing & Sports Car Club. His love of motor sport was inherited directly from his father, Bill, who was a founder and vice-president of the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain and raced MGs at Brooklands in the 30s. Peter joined the Harrow Car Club in 1955, soon taking up the role of Competitions Secretary and organising fixtures like the Eight Clubs race meeting at Silverstone. This soon led to paid work in motor sport - he was the youngest person to ever qualify as a Grade 1 timekeeper, which got him through the door…