Holy cow the craftman ship is top notch, 6hs to stich by hand a rollcage :o id probably still be finishing after 6 years and would look crap lol. Lovely motor.
I've been following this guy on insta for the longest time and have had the honour of seeing the car irl a few times now. So glad that the car and owner are getting the attention they deserve for such an amazing build.
I'm old enough to remember my father owning one during the late 70's, but it didn't look or work like that ! . It was usually overheating and the ride was brutal . Thanks to James for showing what it could look like
I'm not the only one then! I fancied a girl at school who's Dad had an orange P reg'd Imp. He was a detective inspector - anyone imagine a copper of any rank driving anything like an Imp now?!
My dad had one. I remember coming back from a week at nans with me and my sister in the back and it was tipping it down. This is when we discovered the floor had holes in and we where paddling in the back. Was always fascinated by the engine in the back.
Cheers, my dad had one :) . tbh in the main we loved it ( from new in 74?) . did trips up the western isles from yorkshire.. us kids asleep in the back..... Just out grew it I think, though it had started having some mechanical issues ( looking back after 6 years, crikey cars didn't last back then!).... . Wasn't as quick as that one though!
This is something i would watch everyday, the car they featured is so inspiring and immediately click on it after seeing it. Alex should go around UK and europe to review this kind of cars, i just watch 0:20 and i already loved it
@@markcoyle5648 obsessed 🤣 3 comments on this channel and all about dwarfism😉 anything you wanna share mate? Won’t judge if you like a bit of Bridget the midget
Smashed one into a lamppost backwards when I was young, massive under steering with the engine in the boot, a mechanic told me to put a bag of cement under the bonnet and try again, much better 😂😂😂
@@casualmmafan4258 I had a paving slab but then I fitted Monte Carlo springs, which dropped the car 1", along with Chrysler Comps stiffer bushes etc and found it was no longer necessary. With standard kingpin carriers it had a slight positive camber which decreased under braking.
@Phil Earl Maybe I pre-empted that in my driving style but I found mine, on Monte Carlo springs (1" lower and stiffer at the rear), stiffer bushes and 155 Dunlops, had no tendency to do that. But it could be drifted quite nicely in the wet.
Had mine bored out and the original radiator in the back couldn't cope so moved it to the front, added some wheel spacers and it was brilliant. Could easily out corner my mates mini cooper back in the seventies.
Was expecting you to reveal Ethan is actually a sleeper engineer (and fantastic actor ha) and has been building this in his spare time since he was 12.
You really should put more emphasis onto classic cars on the channel, I know they aren’t quite so good for views but it’s important to keep the passion for older cars flowing.
I mean, if one is interested in Tesla and such things there are better places than CT. I would expect car people to be more into unique content like this than random new cars content/reviews that you can get in dozens of other places, too...
i absolutely love it when someone takes a nugget and really tarts it up properly. what a fantastic little hotrod! so much attention to detail in this hillman, beautiful!
I absolutely LOVE this imp! Just bought one as a project car a few weeks ago, this being a prime inspiration. There is something about this imp that I just absolutely adore.
I love When you show cars like this. Awesome build. Congrats to the owner! Please keep showing us more great builds like this. Btw I’m German and also have never even heard of this car.
Lovely to see old cars even if i really disliked the Hillman Imp in the 70's. What a beautiful colour and finish. Truly beautiful. Still don't like em though lol.
You just took me back fifty six years to a time when I had an Imp as a warm road / club competition car. Nothing like this beauty, but great fun, and always punched above it's weight. One Christmas I hacksawed the back off the passenger's seat and jammed steel rod up the seat tubes so I could slot it back into place. With it removed, I could put a camp stretcher from the parcel tray to the back window. I joined my mates for a camping trip over the holiday break (Summer in NZ). We got unseasonal downpours for seven days! I moved out of the flooded tent, and slept in the car, back window open if it didn't rain, closed if it did... I was the only one who stayed warm and dry!
Did you know the Engine in the imp is a legend!! it is called the Coventry Climax and was originally designed in the 1950's to be an MOD water pump...... part of the design brief was it had to be able to be picked up by two fire fighters and that lightness is why it found it's way into a lot of race cars.
FWMA was the pump motor designation. In '76 I pulled an engine to rebuild out of a Husky estate and drove home with it sitting next to me having left the passenger seat at home.
What a fantastic and unique build! I know it would be a huge amount of work, but the odd show like this, covering other peoples projects would be great. Well done guys!
@5:10 reference to singer - my Grandmother drove a 'Singer Chamois' which was the posh version of this car. The coventry climax engine was first used as a generator in the back of a bomber, then used by the fire brigade as a pump! a version of it was also used by Jack Brabham to win the Formula One world championship in 1959
Grandad used to race hillman imps and sunbeam tigers and alpines in hill climbs and rallies. All out of a small privateer race team in Glasgow. Beautiful to see such a stunning car fly around.
I had one 38 years ago paid 30 quid for it shoved in the back yard for a year sold it to a mate for 40 quid SMH I've seen loads of gorgeous bike engined ones over the years I could cry !
Every Civic driver in the world: just nods. Driving a slow car fast is where it's at. That is indeed a well polished knob. As you said what a truly unique ride that is a fusion of racing designs and car scene modifications all applied to his vision and made into reality. That's what car culture is all about people!
That wasn't revving you've got to hear a tuned Imp engine rev to believe it - it's like a motorcycle engine! 9,000rpm was not uncommon with very few mods.
@@BlatentlyFakeName Very true, one of the reasons I ditched my Hayabusa - prison speeds every time you touch the throttle above 2nd gear. My MT-10 feels faster - even though it's much slower due to the short gearing, wheelies and windrush. You can have fun below 100mph.
I had one of these lovely little cars as a very young driver and it was a blast driving it , I just thrashed it everywhere I went but rust took over and I didn't have the time or the tools or a garage to strip an rebuild it to pass an MOT . So my next car was a Hilman minx in white with a red leather interior, I bought the car as the older Gentleman owner had had a front end bump and he had such a bad experience he just wanted the car gone . By then I was able to do a bit of panel work and use a tin of spray paint and recover the damaged front wing . The Minx was an entirely different type of car from the Imp to drive , and now looking back there were several design flaws in the Imp that had they been addressed they would have been a far better a roomier car than the mini , and the design flaw with the mini rear sub frame was rust took over and rotted it out . THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR SHOWING US YOUR WORKMANSHIP YOUNG MAN , OH by the way I still have the small steering wheel and the boss I bought back in 1973 .
One day in 1967 when I was 7 my dad came home with a loan car while his Ford Corsair 2000E was in the garage for some work. He drove me to school in it the following day, I was blown away - Google Sunbeam Stilleto, what a design, what a name?
Lay your hands on a book from " Apex to Imp ". The Imp was Roots group attempting to build a high volume, low cost car. It was under developed/tested and had two notable failures, the water pump seal & the throttle linkage.
I have owned and competed in mine since 1988 (first car, and I passed my test in it). Driving position and gearstick position are excellent due to the car being designed jointly by Tim Fry and Mike Parkes. Parkes was a successful racer and became a Ferrari driver. The Coventry Climax derived engine loves to rev when tuned right and also powered world championship hydroplane racers - look up Andy Chesman. My engine is an ex hydroplane built to run a continuous 10500 rpm in its day. George Bevan won the BSCC three years in a row in the same Imp. Seriously underrated cars these days...
@@nicwilson89 Honda Specialist used Cheap parts re branded as genuine parts or so the story goes, if you go back on the last prelude build episode you will see many a comments regarding them To add many will point you to this video ua-cam.com/video/RRAoCOS15f4/v-deo.html
Had two of these in the early seventies. With a set of wheel spacers and little tweaks on the suspension it was pretty fast around the corners compared to my mates mini cooper. Did blow the head gasket regularly with the aluminium engine but was an engineering student at the time so just skimmed it. In the end went for a Hartwell conversion, bored out to 915 cc, radiator moved to the front. This of course meant I broke the pipework running underneath the car on a rough road, still was a cool car. In the summer used to drive with the back window up for more ventilation but eventually grew out of my boy racer days. Not surprised Alex had trouble with the gearchange they were notorious for wear and even when new there was far too much linkage from the middle of the car to the gearbox. I even started mine a few times with the crank handle..
Prediction before watching (that's probably wrong) Either some sort of BMW(I dont know german cars well) or a Volvo Amazon Edit: nevermind I was completely wrong
We had an origional one of these at our garage in 2001. Still had the plastic over door cards. My boss worked building them when he was young , and so bought one. Built in Linwood, Scotland This one looks good, the origionals looked very strange, engine right over back wheels . Brings back memories.
I had one of these in the late 80's. I bought it wit a spare rally engine which i Put in the back with the seats folded down. It wheelied going over a hump back bridge due to the lack of weight in the front. You could squeeze into tight parking spots and climb out of the back window. Choke is on floor next to handbrake and heater hoses ran the length of the car so water would cool in winter on way to blowers. Used to have to leave heating on in summer to prevent engine overheating. I loved it! It eventually conked out and I gave it to a local garage. Last time I saw it was on Top Gear being used as a trials vehicle.
I had one in the 70's, bored to 940cc, 28 thou off head, twin dcoe carbs & R17 cam. Rally gearbox, team Hartwell suspension. Full cage. Very quick, needed weight in the front or no steering when on power. Good fun. It met a sorry end on the North Wales Rally when it hit an oak tree sideways at around 60 mph .Sad day.
Bought wife one many years ago , hand painted with massive SHELL sticker on roof, she wasn't happy. Water poured in everywhere when it rained, front suspension ripped off body work (she never noticed,cos I said they all handle like that,oops )plus starter motor used to jam so I turned fly wheel 90 deg and all was well ish again, she grew to love it even though I only paid £35 for it. Happy days
I've a 1973 imp super in a shed waiting for some TLC, this makes me want to make time for it to get done. I learned to drive in an imp, driving/drifting it around a field at 10, such cracking little cars. Maintaining it was my gateway to engineering... Everything is mechanical and the engine is easy to take in and out.
My first car too, a '66 Super. Took apart everything except the steering rack. Sold it to my BiL when I got a company car and I see online its last tax was due in August 1982.
MAN... This video took me right back to MY very first car - a royal blue metallic Hillman Imp. Totally bog standard... Used to be an absolute pig to start - the choke lever (yes, I am that old...!) was down by the base of the gearstick but you also had to use your left hand for the ignition key... So, you could never regulate the choke whilst turning the engine over...! Finally, despite the fuel tank being under the bonnet (imagine how 'toasty' that would be in the event of a head-on crash...???) the front end would go super light at anything above 40mph making steering a bit of a 'fingers crossed' affair...! But, all-in-all, good memories... Thanks for that, guys...
That is the coolest Imp ever. My first car was a Hillman Imp (a 1973, bought in 1985, scraped in 1987 after a lot of mistreatment ) which was rather less cool, but they are genuinely fun little cars.
Hopefully they stay low key and prices don’t shoot up. I’m after one once my Mini is finished and I have enough space for both. A guy local has a few in his barn from back in the day.
I love Imps! They were sold here in the States under the Sunbeam label, in very small numbers. Back in '69, my best friend's mother had one as a loaner, when her Chrysler 300 was in the shop. We were Seniors in High School at the time, and he had lost his license (in Michigan, if you got a ticket in the first year of your license, you lose it until you turn 18), and she would let us use her car, if I drove. We routinely drove groups of Sophomore girls home, after classes, in the Chrysler, and when they saw they saw the Imp, they loved it, and wanted a ride. We discussed the logistics necessary to make it happen (there were 8 of them that day!). We decided to see if the Imp could hold them all (mostly petite, and mini skirted). Four in the back seat, three in the boot (hatch window open), facing out, and one between us, in front (straddling the shifter). After a couple of stalls, (very early in my manual shifting career) we proceeded to the next stop sign. When traffic cleared, I slipped the clutch as much as I had found was required, previously, and the Imp refused to progress, accompanied by a ride odor coming from the clutch area! When they designed it as a 4 passenger auto, they apparently were quite serious! The girls took the bus home, as did my friend's mother, after work, and we rode with the tow truck, to the repair shop, walking the rest of the way. I wish I could find another Imp, would make a great vintage racer! 🤭👍
So cool seeing my knob in this car.
Love your knob too!
You sir have talent 👍
You might want to rephrase that haha
@@abdurali8855 😂😂iykyk
Truly a magnificent knob
This Hillman on bags almost makes Alex look like a giant...almost!😂
Lol 😂
@@fahadmars2022 .
@@fahadmars2022 .
Holy cow the craftman ship is top notch, 6hs to stich by hand a rollcage :o id probably still be finishing after 6 years and would look crap lol. Lovely motor.
The rollcage is the easiest part...
@@pinut187 ironically probably right, i would still totally mess it up. The craftsman ship and skill is beyond a level i could archive.
I've been following this guy on insta for the longest time and have had the honour of seeing the car irl a few times now. So glad that the car and owner are getting the attention they deserve for such an amazing build.
He's cool beans
Whats his insta
@@nikostragoustis1749 @revracing
ua-cam.com/video/PdV4DMJkbA4/v-deo.html
😃😬
this car is cooler than any new car can ever be, the owner can be proud.
I'm old enough to remember my father owning one during the late 70's, but it didn't look or work like that ! . It was usually overheating and the ride was brutal . Thanks to James for showing what it could look like
I'm not the only one then! I fancied a girl at school who's Dad had an orange P reg'd Imp. He was a detective inspector - anyone imagine a copper of any rank driving anything like an Imp now?!
Brutal...lol...yep I remember
My dad had one. I remember coming back from a week at nans with me and my sister in the back and it was tipping it down. This is when we discovered the floor had holes in and we where paddling in the back. Was always fascinated by the engine in the back.
😭😭🤭😶
@@6ettinold Why not a Lada?
My dad helped build the Hillman Imp in the Linwood factory in Scotland , brought a smile to my face when I saw this vid ! :)
Cheers, my dad had one :) .
tbh in the main we loved it ( from new in 74?) . did trips up the western isles from yorkshire.. us kids asleep in the back..... Just out grew it I think, though it had started having some mechanical issues ( looking back after 6 years, crikey cars didn't last back then!)....
.
Wasn't as quick as that one though!
Me a intellectual: its a *ZAZ* *-* *Zaporozhets* *968M*
Car throttle : its a *Hillman* *Imp*
Me: *WHAT!!!??*
I only know it from Forza Horizon 4 haha
i thought the same thing my dude
exactly same as me :D :D
From the thumbnail I was thinking the same. But unless you are from the eastern block you wouldn't really know it
Grynai kaip ZAZ atrodo.
7:54 welcome to forza horizon 4 game , that shot really looks like taken from the game 😍😍😍
😬😬😏😅
*every feature on an obviously modified car*
Alex - "is this standard?"
Audience - *facepalm*
Except for the rear hatch. That was standard but he thought it was modded 🤣
@@gerardmontgomery280 Yes, I actually laughed out loud at that. The sign of someone not doing homework ahead of a job.
This car is just so unique in every single way... Absolutely love it, although I can only imagine the amount of work that goes into this
I'm from Canada and just for the record I've heard and seen Hillman Imp's before. Awesome little car!
😭🤭☺️
@@iwantsexseemyvideo33 You're Def a 50 year old hairy bloke
Hi, gato38! I'm surprised little Imps can be spotted in Canada under 3' of snow... ;-)
@@EleanorPeterson Haha Sadly I've never seen one here, would love to own one like this.
This is something i would watch everyday, the car they featured is so inspiring and immediately click on it after seeing it. Alex should go around UK and europe to review this kind of cars, i just watch 0:20 and i already loved it
ua-cam.com/video/saM3gWvg2AA/v-deo.html
why does alex always look like hes always flexing😂😂😂😂
Short man syndrome innit
Its what midgets do to look big.
😑😑😂
Small man syndrome
@@markcoyle5648 obsessed 🤣 3 comments on this channel and all about dwarfism😉 anything you wanna share mate?
Won’t judge if you like a bit of Bridget the midget
Smashed one into a lamppost backwards when I was young, massive under steering with the engine in the boot, a mechanic told me to put a bag of cement under the bonnet and try again, much better 😂😂😂
Doesn't this guy have a fiesta radiator in the front?
My grandfathers had a patio slab 😂
@@casualmmafan4258 I had a paving slab but then I fitted Monte Carlo springs, which dropped the car 1", along with Chrysler Comps stiffer bushes etc and found it was no longer necessary. With standard kingpin carriers it had a slight positive camber which decreased under braking.
@Phil Earl Maybe I pre-empted that in my driving style but I found mine, on Monte Carlo springs (1" lower and stiffer at the rear), stiffer bushes and 155 Dunlops, had no tendency to do that. But it could be drifted quite nicely in the wet.
Had mine bored out and the original radiator in the back couldn't cope so moved it to the front, added some wheel spacers and it was brilliant. Could easily out corner my mates mini cooper back in the seventies.
Was expecting you to reveal Ethan is actually a sleeper engineer (and fantastic actor ha) and has been building this in his spare time since he was 12.
You really should put more emphasis onto classic cars on the channel, I know they aren’t quite so good for views but it’s important to keep the passion for older cars flowing.
Views are what matter. Car throttle is a business
I mean, if one is interested in Tesla and such things there are better places than CT. I would expect car people to be more into unique content like this than random new cars content/reviews that you can get in dozens of other places, too...
i absolutely love it when someone takes a nugget and really tarts it up properly. what a fantastic little hotrod! so much attention to detail in this hillman, beautiful!
I had an Imp in the early 70s and remember changing the clutch with the engine supported on a beer crate! Those were the days.
Yep, could get an Imp engine out and back in again in little over an hour.
I'd support the engine and transaxle on three jacks and roll the car away.
My great uncle (george bevan racing) made and raced his hillman bevan imp, he got 1st place in 16 gt races in a row, a legend in my books
The Beven spannered Sunbeam Imp with Bill McGovern driving won the then equivalent of the BTCC in 1971 and 1972.
@@LondonSteveLee indeed he made it in his shed at home
Always love to watch Alex review custom cars! 😁
I absolutely LOVE this imp! Just bought one as a project car a few weeks ago, this being a prime inspiration. There is something about this imp that I just absolutely adore.
“Im doing 30mph I’m having the time of my life”
Coming from someone who “should of” been a racer 🤣😂
should of
should of
should of
should of
should of
should of
should of
Mazda CX 9 Carbon Edition 2021 Review
I don't understand what you mean
@@richandiben should have*
Defaultdtrix UA-cam Famous
I love When you show cars like this. Awesome build. Congrats to the owner!
Please keep showing us more great builds like this.
Btw I’m German and also have never even heard of this car.
Lovely to see old cars even if i really disliked the Hillman Imp in the 70's. What a beautiful colour and finish. Truly beautiful. Still don't like em though lol.
Love imps. Drive a warm sorted one and your hooked.
I'm doing a mgb gt with a s2000 engine. Once it's in going turbo route
Love this imp it's great.
My Dad used to have Singer Chamois coupe back in 1972-I was 4 at the time and still remember it.
Andrew Gardner my mom had a singer chamois.
The kid with the riced out Honda:
Exactly!!! Why hasn’t anyone heard of my 1000hp civic,tested on the Chuck.E cheese dyno!
ua-cam.com/video/saM3gWvg2AA/v-deo.html
😬
love this build over an exotic.
Never heard of the imp? you underestimate the finnish rally scene.
Absolutely awesome craftsmanship. Simply stunning!
Alex's dyed hair makes him look like a lego man
I wonder if it comes off the same way?
Remember seeing this at fitted a couple years ago and love it!
Did Alex really say "You've even given your helmet a proper going over" 😂
You just took me back fifty six years to a time when I had an Imp as a warm road / club competition car. Nothing like this beauty, but great fun, and always punched above it's weight.
One Christmas I hacksawed the back off the passenger's seat and jammed steel rod up the seat tubes so I could slot it back into place. With it removed, I could put a camp stretcher from the parcel tray to the back window. I joined my mates for a camping trip over the holiday break (Summer in NZ). We got unseasonal downpours for seven days! I moved out of the flooded tent, and slept in the car, back window open if it didn't rain, closed if it did... I was the only one who stayed warm and dry!
i LOVE these wheels, they look so good
Did you know the Engine in the imp is a legend!! it is called the Coventry Climax and was originally designed in the 1950's to be an MOD water pump...... part of the design brief was it had to be able to be picked up by two fire fighters and that lightness is why it found it's way into a lot of race cars.
FWMA was the pump motor designation. In '76 I pulled an engine to rebuild out of a Husky estate and drove home with it sitting next to me having left the passenger seat at home.
Uno reverse, I love hillman imps
😭😭🤭😊
So cool seeing my knob in this car.
What a fantastic and unique build! I know it would be a huge amount of work, but the odd show like this, covering other peoples projects would be great. Well done guys!
I love you guys you are one of the best motoring Chanel’s in the world
Maybe even the entire universe
@5:10 reference to singer - my Grandmother drove a 'Singer Chamois' which was the posh version of this car. The coventry climax engine was first used as a generator in the back of a bomber, then used by the fire brigade as a pump! a version of it was also used by Jack Brabham to win the Formula One world championship in 1959
Haha , joke’s on you , I love Hillman imps and see one ever time I leave the house
Mazda CX 9 Carbon Edition 2021 Review
@@carreviewsbyma7457 ?
Reminds me of NSU Prinz TT over here. You gotta love these boxy little cars!
Love it when the small ones pack a punch
Grandad used to race hillman imps and sunbeam tigers and alpines in hill climbs and rallies. All out of a small privateer race team in Glasgow. Beautiful to see such a stunning car fly around.
I've definitely heard of it, but then I own an Imp...
😬😬😅🙈
I owned one in 1971 . First car . Big bore exhaust ,air horns . Bring it on !
This car is freaking gorgeous. Just fantastic work!!
*Alex: "Be different, don't try and follow trends, do your own thing"*
*Next video: "Let's roast your cars..."*
Great video, love your enthusiasm for it Alex. Quality cool car, brilliant attention to detail, fair play to the owner.
That's exactlay my type of car
ua-cam.com/video/saM3gWvg2AA/v-deo.html
@@carreviewsbyma7457 STOP
@@uniformgeist303 He just getting his bag
I had one 38 years ago paid 30 quid for it shoved in the back yard for a year sold it to a mate for 40 quid SMH I've seen loads of gorgeous bike engined ones over the years I could cry !
@@carreviewsbyma7457 sorry to say this man but this is cringe
Every Civic driver in the world: just nods.
Driving a slow car fast is where it's at.
That is indeed a well polished knob.
As you said what a truly unique ride that is a fusion of racing designs and car scene modifications all applied to his vision and made into reality. That's what car culture is all about people!
9:00 it sounds incredibly fast, until you see the landscape in the background going really slowly
Lovely little Imp they are great fun.That little all alloy engine is a racing engine built by Coventry Climax which is great for tuning.
Based on the Coventry Climax FWMA engine actually.
That has got to be the highest rpm with lowest speeds I have seen Alex go.
It's a 4 speed and it tops out at 80mph so they're pretty close!
😊🤒😑
That wasn't revving you've got to hear a tuned Imp engine rev to believe it - it's like a motorcycle engine! 9,000rpm was not uncommon with very few mods.
Slow motion performance is the future. Much more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.
@@BlatentlyFakeName Very true, one of the reasons I ditched my Hayabusa - prison speeds every time you touch the throttle above 2nd gear. My MT-10 feels faster - even though it's much slower due to the short gearing, wheelies and windrush. You can have fun below 100mph.
I had one of these lovely little cars as a very young driver and it was a blast driving it , I just thrashed it everywhere I went but rust took over and I didn't have the time or the tools or a garage to strip an rebuild it to pass an MOT . So my next car was a Hilman minx in white with a red leather interior, I bought the car as the older Gentleman owner had had a front end bump and he had such a bad experience he just wanted the car gone . By then I was able to do a bit of panel work and use a tin of spray paint and recover the damaged front wing . The Minx was an entirely different type of car from the Imp to drive , and now looking back there were several design flaws in the Imp that had they been addressed they would have been a far better a roomier car than the mini , and the design flaw with the mini rear sub frame was rust took over and rotted it out .
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR SHOWING US YOUR WORKMANSHIP YOUNG MAN , OH by the way I still have the small steering wheel and the boss I bought back in 1973 .
I mean it’s in Forza probably everyone has heard of this thing by now lmao
One day in 1967 when I was 7 my dad came home with a loan car while his Ford Corsair 2000E was in the garage for some work. He drove me to school in it the following day, I was blown away - Google Sunbeam Stilleto, what a design, what a name?
The only project you need to hear about is the 1000tipla by @vilebrequin 😁
Lay your hands on a book from " Apex to Imp ". The Imp was Roots group attempting to build a high volume, low cost car. It was under developed/tested and had two notable failures, the water pump seal & the throttle linkage.
That has so much more character and interesting than a carpark full of tedious modern crap. What a fab car and the interior is stunning
My first car in 67.I thought it was cool,but nowhere as cool as this unit-LOVE it.
Not gone lie I thought it was a ZAZ for a second.
I have owned and competed in mine since 1988 (first car, and I passed my test in it). Driving position and gearstick position are excellent due to the car being designed jointly by Tim Fry and Mike Parkes. Parkes was a successful racer and became a Ferrari driver. The Coventry Climax derived engine loves to rev when tuned right and also powered world championship hydroplane racers - look up Andy Chesman. My engine is an ex hydroplane built to run a continuous 10500 rpm in its day. George Bevan won the BSCC three years in a row in the same Imp. Seriously underrated cars these days...
Last time I was this early brexit didn’t exist
Love it. Pure passion and craftsmanship in every stitch and part. Beautiful. And Scottish, even better!
hi alex, im here to remind you that you NEVER FINISHED THE PRELUDE PROJECT
ua-cam.com/video/saM3gWvg2AA/v-deo.html
That one will never see the light of day cause of the guy they used for the engine stuff.
@@rafiulhaque8064 Oh? Sounds like there's a story there
@@nicwilson89 Honda Specialist used Cheap parts re branded as genuine parts or so the story goes, if you go back on the last prelude build episode you will see many a comments regarding them
To add many will point you to this video ua-cam.com/video/RRAoCOS15f4/v-deo.html
@@rafiulhaque8064 Ahhhh, cheers dude
I can hear the Hillman Imp's going skyrocketing in value after this video
My mum owned one of these... I bought a bmw 1800 instead as there’s only 10 in the whole of the uk
Had two of these in the early seventies. With a set of wheel spacers and little tweaks on the suspension it was pretty fast around the corners compared to my mates mini cooper. Did blow the head gasket regularly with the aluminium engine but was an engineering student at the time so just skimmed it. In the end went for a Hartwell conversion, bored out to 915 cc, radiator moved to the front. This of course meant I broke the pipework running underneath the car on a rough road, still was a cool car. In the summer used to drive with the back window up for more ventilation but eventually grew out of my boy racer days. Not surprised Alex had trouble with the gearchange they were notorious for wear and even when new there was far too much linkage from the middle of the car to the gearbox. I even started mine a few times with the crank handle..
Prediction before watching (that's probably wrong)
Either some sort of BMW(I dont know german cars well) or a Volvo Amazon
Edit: nevermind I was completely wrong
@WANT SÈХ - Rita 25 y.o ! OPEN MY C A N A L !!! shut up bot
We had an origional one of these at our garage in 2001. Still had the plastic over door cards. My boss worked building them when he was young , and so bought one. Built in Linwood, Scotland This one looks good, the origionals looked very strange, engine right over back wheels . Brings back memories.
Who else already knew what a Hillman Imp was?
I had one of these in the late 80's. I bought it wit a spare rally engine which i Put in the back with the seats folded down. It wheelied going over a hump back bridge due to the lack of weight in the front.
You could squeeze into tight parking spots and climb out of the back window. Choke is on floor next to handbrake and heater hoses ran the length of the car so water would cool in winter on way to blowers. Used to have to leave heating on in summer to prevent engine overheating. I loved it!
It eventually conked out and I gave it to a local garage.
Last time I saw it was on Top Gear being used as a trials vehicle.
They were originally called Roots Imps, Hillman eventually became Chrysler in the UK
Getting famous off of comments day 170, so I can live the dream, live life to the fullest🤙🚀🤙
What an amazing attention to detail!
Get the wheels on straight, lift it up a tad and it'll be sorted 👌
I had one in the 70's, bored to 940cc, 28 thou off head, twin dcoe carbs & R17 cam. Rally gearbox, team Hartwell suspension. Full cage. Very quick, needed weight in the front or no steering when on power. Good fun. It met a sorry end on the North Wales Rally when it hit an oak tree sideways at around 60 mph .Sad day.
Who hasnt heard of an Imp if they live in england and have any interest in classic cars
My dad used to rally the Imp in Finland in the late sixties. In Finland it was sold as the Sunbeam Imp and was lovingly called "Sumppi".
Give me this over a financed bmw or vxr anyday car scene is dead these days
As the owner of a 1972 Hillman Imp Super, I'm pleased to see some recognition for these rather forgotten things.
Bought wife one many years ago , hand painted with massive SHELL sticker on roof, she wasn't happy. Water poured in everywhere when it rained, front suspension ripped off body work (she never noticed,cos I said they all handle like that,oops )plus starter motor used to jam so I turned fly wheel 90 deg and all was well ish again, she grew to love it even though I only paid £35 for it. Happy days
I've a 1973 imp super in a shed waiting for some TLC, this makes me want to make time for it to get done. I learned to drive in an imp, driving/drifting it around a field at 10, such cracking little cars. Maintaining it was my gateway to engineering... Everything is mechanical and the engine is easy to take in and out.
My first car too, a '66 Super. Took apart everything except the steering rack. Sold it to my BiL when I got a company car and I see online its last tax was due in August 1982.
Love it, that's a cracking little car, love the finish on the interior too, absolutely nailed it!
Never thought I'd love a Hillman Imp so much that I want it in my life.
Well done that man...👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
This is one of the coolest Cars i ever seen. The attention to details is simply sensational😍
...theres just something SO COOL about those little older square box-ey cars... so awesome!
MAN...
This video took me right back to MY very first car - a royal blue metallic Hillman Imp.
Totally bog standard...
Used to be an absolute pig to start - the choke lever (yes, I am that old...!) was down by the base of the gearstick but you also had to use your left hand for the ignition key... So, you could never regulate the choke whilst turning the engine over...!
Finally, despite the fuel tank being under the bonnet (imagine how 'toasty' that would be in the event of a head-on crash...???) the front end would go super light at anything above 40mph making steering a bit of a 'fingers crossed' affair...!
But, all-in-all, good memories...
Thanks for that, guys...
Absolutely quality ...another funny fact filled and witty vid
ua-cam.com/video/r0xHfiec06M/v-deo.html
That is the coolest Imp ever.
My first car was a Hillman Imp (a 1973, bought in 1985, scraped in 1987 after a lot of mistreatment ) which was rather less cool, but they are genuinely fun little cars.
Best modded car I’ve seen in a while, Amazing attention to detail.
Hopefully they stay low key and prices don’t shoot up. I’m after one once my Mini is finished and I have enough space for both. A guy local has a few in his barn from back in the day.
Epic! He's clearly got some serious skill with the interior, too!
I only knew about this car like a week ago. A lad had thrown in a BMW motorcycle engine in the back. Looked sick, this is also an amazing build!
What a truly awesome, totally unique machine! Absolutely love it!
Owned one in 1979 loved it.
That’s cool
I had an Imp and a Siger Chamios back in the day. Great little cars.
I love Imps! They were sold here in the States under the Sunbeam label, in very small numbers. Back in '69, my best friend's mother had one as a loaner, when her Chrysler 300 was in the shop. We were Seniors in High School at the time, and he had lost his license (in Michigan, if you got a ticket in the first year of your license, you lose it until you turn 18), and she would let us use her car, if I drove. We routinely drove groups of Sophomore girls home, after classes, in the Chrysler, and when they saw they saw the Imp, they loved it, and wanted a ride. We discussed the logistics necessary to make it happen (there were 8 of them that day!). We decided to see if the Imp could hold them all (mostly petite, and mini skirted). Four in the back seat, three in the boot (hatch window open), facing out, and one between us, in front (straddling the shifter). After a couple of stalls, (very early in my manual shifting career) we proceeded to the next stop sign. When traffic cleared, I slipped the clutch as much as I had found was required, previously, and the Imp refused to progress, accompanied by a ride odor coming from the clutch area! When they designed it as a 4 passenger auto, they apparently were quite serious! The girls took the bus home, as did my friend's mother, after work, and we rode with the tow truck, to the repair shop, walking the rest of the way. I wish I could find another Imp, would make a great vintage racer! 🤭👍
Had one of those back in 1968. Great wee cars made by Rootes through in Linwood near Glasgow. Great handling little car and a whole lot of fun.