Vehicle Description
With vintage looks, modern power, and exciting handling, this
late-production, grey market 1998 Austin Mini is a great
opportunity to own a great example of the car that started it all.
Essentially every front-wheel-drive compact car that followed
duplicated the Mini's groundbreaking design, although very few,
including its modern namesake, have ever managed to duplicate its
combination of endearing personality and go-cart-like handling.
Mini production continued for decades in England because these
iconic little cars were consistently popular. As a result, this
rather unusual Flame Red Mini is instantly recognizable anywhere it
goes. Mark VII Mini's were the last of the breed, with the "Mini
1.3i" representing a luxurious, yet restrained, and deliciously
retro 'modern' classic that capitalized on the car's racing
heritage. Like most 'gray market' cars, this one comes with an
interesting background, specifically that it's titled as a 1961 -
likely an administrative maneuver to ensure it made it into the
United States without issue. Regardless of what a piece of paper
might say, this was born as a 1998 model, although the styling of
these Mark VII Mini's was so faithful to the earlier designs that
the distinction between the decades is not that obvious. It's still
diminutive, boxy, forward-canted, and features an original-style
livery with Flame Red paint offset by a white roof and white racing
stripes on the bonnet. The look is instantly recognizable all over
the world, with the horizontal grille and fog lights up front, wide
fender flares at the flanks, and that butch rear end featuring
those iconic 'stacked' taillights. The paint and bodywork look too
darn good to be 25 years old, so we suspect it was redone in the
not-too-distant past, and whoever laid it down certainly knew what
they were doing. Clean drip rails, exact gaps, and straight panels
make up a laser-straight steel body that's been adorned with a
deep, lustrous, top driver-quality red finish, and with the
addition of the white decals on the bonnet and the white roof, the
car's curb appeal is off the charts. Slender chrome bumpers fore
and aft look great, a white pinstripe terminates into a "Mini
Cooper" decal down the side, and tinted windows add to the car's
sporty look, and it wears a "Union Jack" license plate and window
decal with great pride.
Inside, the diminutive external dimensions are stretched to their
limits in every dimension, resulting in a surprisingly comfortable
passenger compartment, particularly for front seat occupants.
Contemporary two-tone upholstery forms the foundation of the sporty
passenger compartment featuring gorgeous black-and-white hides,
neatly fitted red carpets are protected by heavy-duty black
floormats, and black vinyl door panels soften the look and offer
reasonable levels of noise and heat insulation. 1997/1998 were the
last years you could still get burled walnut wood in a Mini - later
models all featured cheaper body-color steel accents - so this one
feels extra sophisticated inside. The steering wheel is thankfully
on the left side (or as we Yanks call it, the correct and therefore
indeed the 'right' side), and the gauge set-up is classic Mini,
with a trio of large units of the driver. The Mark VII replaced the
original Mini dash shelf with a full-width dashboard, which
afforded space for a trio of auxiliary gauges in the center, a
stereo beneath (which has been upgraded to a Kenwood AM/FM/CD/AUC
head unit) and left plenty of room for a useful glovebox with a
classic Mini badge on the door. Adding to the entertainment, a
4-speed manual transmission sticks up directly from the
transmission tunnel and offers decent action and positive gear
selection. In back, two passengers will be perfectly happy for a
cross-town jaunt, but if you're going farther than a few miles,
it's best used for storage, although the trunk itself is
surprisingly roomy.
The engine is a gutsy 1275cc Inline-4 (aka the 1.3L) that runs
superbly today thanks to obvious signs of great care and
maintenance throughout the years. As the last of the Mini's it was
all but set in stone that these would be superb little drivers,
doubled-down by the fact that they were produced under BMW's
stewardship, and the feisty four-cylinder is certainly a blast to
push to the limits. True, it only rates at about 63bhp and 95Nm of
torque, but when you consider the miniscule sub-750 kilogram curb
weight you quickly realize that it's plenty. Remember, these were
built to commemorate the past, not pull the Mini into the future
(the latter 'capitalized' MINIs did that), and when you're cycling
through the 4-speed and stretching this hot-red go-kart to 90mph
(which is approximately its top speed) the only thing you'll be
thinking off is how silly the giant grin on your face must look.
It's completely stock under the bonnet and doesn't really seem to
need more power, because it's just such a joy to drive as-is. It
starts easily, idles well, and pulls the little car around with
genuine enthusiasm. The suspension offers a reasonable compromise
between ride and handling, with the conical springs offering a
modest amount of damping, so the shocks themselves don't need to be
too stiff to do a good job, and the power front disc brakes are the
perfect dance partner. The low center of gravity combined with
having the wheels pushed out to the very corners of the body give
it instantaneous reflexes, a feeling enhanced by the Minilite
wheels and relatively fat 175/50/13 Dunlop radials.
Minis are beloved for many reasons, but perhaps most of all for
their combination of utility and performance. And this little red
Mark VII packs all the best the car has ever had to offer into one
awesome package. Call today!
