I remember a race commentator's excitement in the early 60s - "These little cars are going into the corners ridiculously fast and they're coming out of them a damn sight faster." Keep smiling John.
G’day John I absolutely love it what a beautiful example a Cooper. S. I restored a mini but it was nothing compared to this kind regards John Tasmania Australia 🇦🇺 PS what a beautiful day in the UK we have been over three times love it.
Wow! What a beautiful example of an "Austin Cooper S"! Such a showpiece. Nice that you got to take it for a spin. I could see when you got out of her that you were happy as ever LOL. Can't blame you there. And RED of course!
That was a beautiful car. Here in the USA, they've got so much garbage on them, that you're better off walking. I'll never forget the old 1950's Morris Minor my father used when I lived in Thetford. Loved It and thank you for the video. 👍
What a fantastic engine the A series is . The sound as you decelerated changing down I was there with you !! Finishing off with that so contented smile. Thanks. In our 60s turning 20.
Hello John, What a lovely car... My first car when I passed my test at 17 was a 1964 Morris Mini Cooper (998)... the fuel gauge did not work so I would brake hard and listen to for fuel splashing around in the tank... happy memories of a boy racer... Take care. Paul,,
Not really clean as an original unrestored '66 motor though is it? I bet that body was stripped right back to the bare metal inside and out, not a scrap of 1966 paint on it anywhere. And I wonder how much welding was necessary to get it structurally sound?
What a beautiful car,it must be one of the very best. Narrator keeps calling it a Mk 2 Cooper S but of course it is A Mk 1. A credit to the restorer though.
Those were the days. Amazingly clean example. A friend of mine raced one back in the day. He picked up the special parts from John Cooper and was very successful. The Mini was one of those designs that looked like it shouldn't work, but worked a lot better than the others. Thanks for sharing this.
own a 68 Sprite, along with a very reliable far eastern car thats just a year old, one gets me from A to B, the other does the same but with fun ! love it
My Dad did the Monte in 1966 in a Mk1 Cooper S, Car No.96. I wish I could find that car now, what a lovely example that car is John, bet its worth quite a bit of money.
Thanks for that lovely video. I had a 1968 F registered MK 1 Morris Mini Cooper S . Twin tanks become slandered fitment by then. That lovely example of an Austin Mini Cooper S is a Mk1 which had smaller rear lights and should have a smaller rear screen.
I know it's a year old video, but are the front seats original I don't remember them being so thickly padded. It was a long time ago since I had mine though, same colour scheme.
@@petergordon4525 I've had another look at the video and i don't think they are the original front seats. At 5.22 into the video you can se what looks like a lever to recline the seat. I never seen this in any of the Mini's I had owned or worked on. This video takes me back when i stared driving in the mid 70's. Fantastic era to be driving so many different cars.
@@mikeymike7360 that car seems to be a real mixture when you read all the comments, easy to think its original. Still a really nice car though, wouldn't mind it for myself.
Very impressive original Mini. Lovely. I had a standard 1970's Mini in the eighties , idler bearing went, 3 scrap yard engines later, it went from a 1000 cc to 850 cc. I never noticed until I was washing it one day, that the steering wheel is not inline with the seat. You needed two spanners to adjust the seat position, I think only 3 settings I think it needs a bit more test driving. Lol. Thanks for sharing.
Then I saw the clutch peddle rubber cover on the floor, and that really took me back. It’s funny how the past always looks so attractive, the reality was that we drove around with a tool box in the boot, well we did anyway 😉,
When I had my shop I had a customer that restored the Mini's. One of the jobs that we did for him was to modify the cylinder heads, that he brought to us, by drilling them to add the extra head bolts.
Lovely motor takes me back to racing the law in their Pi triumphs they couldn’t keep up that’s when coppers where decent blokes not robots My S was a beast with its party piece of going off the clock happy days thanks John
Bright back fond memories. We raced Cooper S in South Florida in the 70’s. The little 1275cc engine we were told was originally designed as ship bilge pump before being adapted to the mini…not sure if that is true. Ours were left-hand drive versions and for people used to the typical rear wheel drive cars that were pretty much standard those days it was a challenge to learn to drive these fast. For rear wheel drive if you start oversteer and the back end started coming around you let off the throttle and counter steered but for the mini if you got into a similar predicament and lifted the throttle foot there was a good chance you’d roll the thing…full throttle if the rear started sliding!!!
Yes Alec Issigonis was a brilliant engineer with his concept of engine cross wise and then engine on top of the gearbox to give the passenger compartment the biggest form in a short car, front wheel drive, wheels at each corner, giving the fantastic handling the mini had. Look at what he gave the world as most vehicles are now engine across the front and front wheel drive.
Absolutely mint John. Takes me down memory lane, my first car (standard 1000 not the Cooper S) but about the same vintage and the same colour (once I had resprayed it to get rid of Mr Bean Green). Cheers, Jon
Yum, yum, yum - A yum for each Mini I owned. The beat up standard 1000 from 74 was for some reason the most fun. Easily the best car I owned out of a big number followed by a Fiat 124 sport coupe and an RX-8, that was a very cool pair.
Full of bits I recognise and understand. Sounds I remember. When cars had switches and handles and the battery just powered the starter, lights and heater fan ( if you had paid for that extra). I bet you thought Christmas had come early when you saw that.
Iconic cars indeed! I was fortunate to own one in the late 60's which unfortunately I abused awfully was forever tighteneing that gear remote knuckle joint to the point of distruction almost 😢
Look a red roller skate. Shoot I couldnt even fit in the car. But I will say it sure is cute , sounds good looks good . Clean everywhere wow. Must not get used . I always remember my mom liked a car from overseas a morris minor. This Austen I bet shed like her too
Very good nick that. Starts almost as easily as my Spitfire Mk IV did. (Well, to be fair I think you'd need special equipment to tell which was faster). That had twin SUs as well. Brilliant carb.
English teacher at school had one, and he was 6 ft 6in high, so he simply removed the driver's seat and drove from the back seat, and on sunny days opened the sunroof to get his head out. That engine obviously has had the new valve seats installed, no more leaded petrol, and if not the valves would already have eroded the cast iron head till they fell out.
John, when I was looking around for my first car I test drove a 125 GT and it scared the pants off me as the brakes were shite. I settled for a dolomite sprint. I loved the triumph, heavy steering but good and solid let down by poor under seal as it rusted out in no time at all. Halcyon days.
I remember dynamos being a right bugger with the brushes... remember being out with my cousin in a VW beetle (1950s one) and having a hellofafight with the brush spring, (fortunately right on top of the damn engine lol). Ended up wedging a cig butt and a match in there... (showing my age now!)
Strip of a box of matches folded over 2 times to get you home, then a pound equivalent for the service kit of 2 brushes for the dynamo, the 4 brushes for the starter, plus the bushes in the starter. Then a business card to clean the regulator contacts and set the points gap.
Lovely car, possibly was a hydrolastic, converted to dry, not an easy job, many parts are different. Rear radius arms are different, front top suspension arms are different, front shock adsorber mounts, and on my car although the holes for the mounts were there, the welded on nuts were not present. Had to improvise and there is not much room there.
My Uncle got a Mini-Cooper in the 70's. It had the unusual feature so as to being able to sweep the head-ligts by means of a lever, haha. Quite fast accelerating for a relatively cheap car of the time. I suppose the top-speed was about 160 km/h or 100 mph. Quite fast for the time. Not something you want to sit in, smashing into a 300 year old oak at 100 km/h though.
That's a beautiful example, it's either a brilliant restoration or an extremely well preserved original. As it's a D plate it will be a MK1, not a MK2.
Nice one John! Lovely little motor. I wonder how many hours work and thousands of pounds it took to get it into that condition. A paint job far, far better than ever came out of the Austin I think Longbridge factory. And probably five times the weight of primer and paint lol.
It,s got a mk.2 back window,mk.1 rear lights and a mk.1 front grill. Also all Cooper s models had twin tanks and an oil cooler as standard,from 1966. Beautiful example,but appears to me not to be an original s.
I spotted some but not all of that! Also the front window catches are the very early type metal ones, as on my Jan 1st 1962 Mini. I believe that the twin tanks were and option, like the 3.44 Differential.
Hi John ,I always thought the Cooper S had two fuel caps, ie one one each side to allow filling from any side , maybe that was on later models. very nice car be you enjoyed that test run .
@@doubleboost You know your stuff Sir! Sadly many classic cars now have had similar bastard wheels fitted. It is "front of house stuff' and spoils it for me. That you can hang on after your Spam curry suggests you have a very strong constitution. Go well John.
It's totally brand new! Unless the engine is the original to the car, I bet the only thing on that that came out of Longbridge in 1966 was the body and the rest is spare parts lol
Well, the originals were steel, and likely long since rotted away from both inside and outside, so copper is a much better way to replace them. Pressure is never going to be high with drums all round.
It's a Mk1. Don't think it's all original: seat belt mounts & a few other things strongly suggest it's pre mid '63, but with a later front panel. Needs a new voltage regulator too 😊
Probably not do 120 MPH, but should top 100 MPH. My 1962 Mini would, 1098 cc engine with 12G295 head , single 1 1/2" SU, 3.44 diff, still on 10 Inch wheels.
When you crawled out, you were grinning like you’d done something illegal and got away with it! Ha!
John has a wonderful smile...always happy, well, maybe not always.....Cheers to all
@@ypaulbrown “Bastard mini!” Ha!
Well he was driving on the wrong side of the road all the time :-P
He probably did.
What a stunning car! Things were so much simpler back then. We used spanners and brains instead of an OBD port!
And no plastic on the engine or fuel system.
I remember a race commentator's excitement in the early 60s - "These little cars are going into the corners ridiculously fast and they're coming out of them a damn sight faster." Keep smiling John.
G’day John I absolutely love it what a beautiful example a Cooper. S. I restored a mini but it was nothing compared to this kind regards John Tasmania Australia 🇦🇺 PS what a beautiful day in the UK we have been over three times love it.
Wow! What a beautiful example of an "Austin Cooper S"! Such a showpiece. Nice that you got to take it for a spin. I could see when you got out of her that you were happy as ever LOL. Can't blame you there. And RED of course!
Love the grin from ear to ear. Brings back memories.
It probably took days for that grin to go away. I am truly envious of your having driven that glorious car.
That was a beautiful car. Here in the USA, they've got so much garbage on them, that you're better off walking. I'll never forget the old 1950's Morris Minor my father used when I lived in Thetford. Loved It and thank you for the video. 👍
The smile own your face says it all, great video John, keep'um coming..
What a fantastic engine the A series is . The sound as you decelerated changing down I was there with you !! Finishing off with that so contented smile. Thanks. In our 60s turning 20.
I'm loving all these extra videos, cheers John
Hello John,
What a lovely car... My first car when I passed my test at 17 was a 1964 Morris Mini Cooper (998)... the fuel gauge did not work so I would brake hard and listen to for fuel splashing around in the tank... happy memories of a boy racer...
Take care.
Paul,,
Great to see such a clean example, my brother recently picked up an Italian Job edition, great fun to drive.
So clean you could eat lunch off it.
Not really clean as an original unrestored '66 motor though is it? I bet that body was stripped right back to the bare metal inside and out, not a scrap of 1966 paint on it anywhere. And I wonder how much welding was necessary to get it structurally sound?
Reminds me of my apprenticeship radius arms hated mini and metro for them but grew to love them happy times.
What a beautiful car,it must be one of the very best. Narrator keeps calling it a Mk 2 Cooper S but of course it is A Mk 1. A credit to the restorer though.
Those were the days. Amazingly clean example. A friend of mine raced one back in the day. He picked up the special parts from John Cooper and was very successful. The Mini was one of those designs that looked like it shouldn't work, but worked a lot better than the others. Thanks for sharing this.
own a 68 Sprite, along with a very reliable far eastern car thats just a year old, one gets me from A to B, the other does the same but with fun ! love it
My Dad did the Monte in 1966 in a Mk1 Cooper S, Car No.96. I wish I could find that car now, what a lovely example that car is John, bet its worth quite a bit of money.
Be in excess of 100K
Awesome. I had a 1275GT with the same gearbox remote. Brought back loads of memories, thanks for sharing
Finally, a video where my username is relevant. What a fantastic car!
Thanks for that lovely video.
I had a 1968 F registered MK 1 Morris Mini Cooper S . Twin tanks become slandered fitment by then.
That lovely example of an Austin Mini Cooper S is a Mk1 which had smaller rear lights and should have a smaller rear screen.
Indeed it is a late MK1
I know it's a year old video, but are the front seats original I don't remember them being so thickly padded.
It was a long time ago since I had mine though, same colour scheme.
@@petergordon4525 I've had another look at the video and i don't think they are the original front seats.
At 5.22 into the video you can se what looks like a lever to recline the seat.
I never seen this in any of the Mini's I had owned or worked on.
This video takes me back when i stared driving in the mid 70's. Fantastic era to be driving so many different cars.
@@mikeymike7360 that car seems to be a real mixture when you read all the comments, easy to think its original.
Still a really nice car though, wouldn't mind it for myself.
Very impressive original Mini. Lovely.
I had a standard 1970's Mini in the eighties , idler bearing went, 3 scrap yard engines later, it went from a 1000 cc to 850 cc. I never noticed until I was washing it one day, that the steering wheel is not inline with the seat. You needed two spanners to adjust the seat position, I think only 3 settings
I think it needs a bit more test driving. Lol.
Thanks for sharing.
Then I saw the clutch peddle rubber cover on the floor, and that really took me back. It’s funny how the past always looks so attractive, the reality was that we drove around with a tool box in the boot, well we did anyway 😉,
I had a 1965 Austin Healy Sprite around 1972 or 73 what a fun car to drive. I think it was the first year with crank up windows.
When I had my shop I had a customer that restored the Mini's. One of the jobs that we did for him was to modify the cylinder heads, that he brought to us, by drilling them to add the extra head bolts.
I have drilled a few heads in my time
I used to hate doing the by pass hose from the head to the water pump
Lovely motor takes me back to racing the law in their Pi triumphs they couldn’t keep up that’s when coppers where decent blokes not robots
My S was a beast with its party piece of going off the clock happy days thanks John
Bright back fond memories. We raced Cooper S in South Florida in the 70’s. The little 1275cc engine we were told was originally designed as ship bilge pump before being adapted to the mini…not sure if that is true. Ours were left-hand drive versions and for people used to the typical rear wheel drive cars that were pretty much standard those days it was a challenge to learn to drive these fast. For rear wheel drive if you start oversteer and the back end started coming around you let off the throttle and counter steered but for the mini if you got into a similar predicament and lifted the throttle foot there was a good chance you’d roll the thing…full throttle if the rear started sliding!!!
You have brought back memories of my teens. My friend and his brother had 2 they were a blast, fast and agile I think it was the front wheel drive.
Miles ahead of their time !
That one is a stunner !
Yes Alec Issigonis was a brilliant engineer with his concept of engine cross wise and then engine on top of the gearbox to give the passenger compartment the biggest form in a short car, front wheel drive, wheels at each corner, giving the fantastic handling the mini had. Look at what he gave the world as most vehicles are now engine across the front and front wheel drive.
Very nice John. And I see you know were the police like to sit with the speed cameras
Beautiful condition. Great video. Thank you for sharing.
Lovely car John, looks like you enjoyed your drive in it.
Looks like you had fun. :) These cars look like real deathraps to me.
I want one too. Nice! But still .. in the meantime .. very happy with my Smart Fortwo greystyle
Had a 1966 Mini Cooper and a 1967 Mini Cooper s, they where cheap in those days, would be a fortune today
Absolutely mint John. Takes me down memory lane, my first car (standard 1000 not the Cooper S) but about the same vintage and the same colour (once I had resprayed it to get rid of Mr Bean Green). Cheers, Jon
Yum, yum, yum - A yum for each Mini I owned. The beat up standard 1000 from 74 was for some reason the most fun. Easily the best car I owned out of a big number followed by a Fiat 124 sport coupe and an RX-8, that was a very cool pair.
That is one sweet ride John ! Very nice share .. ENJOYED ..
Full of bits I recognise and understand. Sounds I remember. When cars had switches and handles and the battery just powered the starter, lights and heater fan ( if you had paid for that extra). I bet you thought Christmas had come early when you saw that.
Excellent video
In stunningly great shape. I wish I could have bought a '67 Stingray and kept it in that condition...my retirement would be made.
Iconic cars indeed! I was fortunate to own one in the late 60's which unfortunately I abused awfully was forever tighteneing that gear remote knuckle joint to the point of distruction almost 😢
The race lads used to put a tack of weld on the bastard things
Look a red roller skate. Shoot I couldnt even fit in the car. But I will say it sure is cute , sounds good looks good . Clean everywhere wow. Must not get used . I always remember my mom liked a car from overseas a morris minor. This Austen I bet shed like her too
Very good nick that. Starts almost as easily as my Spitfire Mk IV did. (Well, to be fair I think you'd need special equipment to tell which was faster). That had twin SUs as well. Brilliant carb.
I thought that from 1966 onwards, they had twin tanks as standard. Mine certainly did.
you look so Happy John....Cheers
English teacher at school had one, and he was 6 ft 6in high, so he simply removed the driver's seat and drove from the back seat, and on sunny days opened the sunroof to get his head out.
That engine obviously has had the new valve seats installed, no more leaded petrol, and if not the valves would already have eroded the cast iron head till they fell out.
John, when I was looking around for my first car I test drove a 125 GT and it scared the pants off me as the brakes were shite. I settled for a dolomite sprint. I loved the triumph, heavy steering but good and solid let down by poor under seal as it rusted out in no time at all. Halcyon days.
Dolly sprint was a good car in its day , worth stupid money now
One little minor observation John, and this is not a criticism, the oil pressure is too high, that is a lesson I learned in my racing days, 76/78.
It was stone cold settled to 75 running on the road
That smile 👍
Nice to see another side, of what you get upto John.
If the Patrion thing takes off you will see a lot more
Awesome little car 👍😁👍.
I remember dynamos being a right bugger with the brushes... remember being out with my cousin in a VW beetle (1950s one) and having a hellofafight with the brush spring, (fortunately right on top of the damn engine lol). Ended up wedging a cig butt and a match in there... (showing my age now!)
Strip of a box of matches folded over 2 times to get you home, then a pound equivalent for the service kit of 2 brushes for the dynamo, the 4 brushes for the starter, plus the bushes in the starter. Then a business card to clean the regulator contacts and set the points gap.
Lovely car, possibly was a hydrolastic, converted to dry, not an easy job, many parts are different. Rear radius arms are different, front top suspension arms are different, front shock adsorber mounts, and on my car although the holes for the mounts were there, the welded on nuts were not present. Had to improvise and there is not much room there.
That is one very nice restoration. I’m too large to drive one, Even if the steering wheel is on the wrong side. Lol
Thanks John
They say that you never forget your first car! Mine was an Austin Mini Cooper S, 1275cc, 1965. a pathetic green colour, EVK 933C.
That's one hell of a first car
Superb restoration example, looks as though it has come straight off the line at Cowley. Must be new engine only 776 mile on the clock.
My dad used to say it was the first car he went over 100 in haha no speed cameras back then
The car is perfect. well done
My Uncle got a Mini-Cooper in the 70's. It had the unusual feature so as to being able to sweep the head-ligts by means of a lever, haha. Quite fast accelerating for a relatively cheap car of the time.
I suppose the top-speed was about 160 km/h or 100 mph. Quite fast for the time.
Not something you want to sit in, smashing into a 300 year old oak at 100 km/h though.
That's a beautiful example, it's either a brilliant restoration or an extremely well preserved original. As it's a D plate it will be a MK1, not a MK2.
And the back lights are mk1... mk 2 are square lights 😒
Definitely not a mark 2
Sweet ride John
I know you HAD to get behind the wheel don't blame you
A real little gem !
Thanks John
High seatbelt mounts on the pillars means it’s a pre 63 shell, predates the car by a couple of years. Wrong speedo, etc.
That thing is absolutely mint John - what an experience!
Good to see a proper mini 👍
Nice one John! Lovely little motor. I wonder how many hours work and thousands of pounds it took to get it into that condition. A paint job far, far better than ever came out of the Austin I think Longbridge factory. And probably five times the weight of primer and paint lol.
It,s got a mk.2 back window,mk.1 rear lights and a mk.1 front grill. Also all Cooper s models had twin tanks and an oil cooler as standard,from 1966.
Beautiful example,but appears to me not to be an original s.
I spotted some but not all of that! Also the front window catches are the very early type metal ones, as on my Jan 1st 1962 Mini. I believe that the twin tanks were and option, like the 3.44 Differential.
What a car brilliant john
I want one too John, miss my MK 3
Hi John ,I always thought the Cooper S had two fuel caps, ie one one each side to allow filling from any side , maybe that was on later models. very nice car be you enjoyed that test run .
The twin tanks were an extra
@@doubleboost Thanks John, didn't know that. Great vidio's keep up the good work .
90 hp packs a lot of fun here in the states we would try and squeeze in a hell cat engine lol.
Rattle box you can hear every squeak and bang from it
I've rode in loads of mini,s the road noise was horrendous. Not my favorite car thats for sure. But hey its good we all don't like the same things .
Great car, mini's were a lot of fun to drive I put my little 850 round the clock twice and those were hard miles poor car
Great cars and a particularly fine example.
Thanks for sharing.
Shame about that bastard steering wheel
Yes i did not like the wood rim wheel
@@doubleboost You know your stuff Sir!
Sadly many classic cars now have had similar bastard wheels fitted.
It is "front of house stuff' and spoils it for me.
That you can hang on after your Spam curry suggests you have a very strong constitution. Go well John.
It's like almost brand new!
It's totally brand new! Unless the engine is the original to the car, I bet the only thing on that that came out of Longbridge in 1966 was the body and the rest is spare parts lol
Thanks for sharing!
Fantastic!
No computer required 🔧👍
Mini really bit the bug with Mini’s…. But great cars all the same 👌🏻😎
I think I may have seen her at "Red Cars at Redcar" show.
Ah, that’s how real cars were made. What a beautiful example.
What a car!
Some folk put the Maxi 1725 engine in, I was offered one in the 80's, but didn't trust it!
It is a Mk1 Mini, not a Mk2, mate.
Beautiful, my Mini Mk1 can't compete with that. ^^
Those knees, though. 7:02 it's like you've been crawling under cars or something.
Wow a great day at work indeed.
very clean that is bro
The GTI of the day also has a good Anti theft device the rotor arm
That is one very nice restoration. I’m too large to drive one, Evan if the steering wheel is on the wrong side. Lol
I careful owner / driver and two hooligan mechanics every MOT time 😂😂😂😂😂
I I seen one thing wrong with it the steering wheels on the wrong side just kidding John nice video
My dad had a new one those twin SU’s were a bastard to keep balanced. It went like sh1t off a shiny silver shovel
Dash-pots full of 3in1 oil - :-D
Wow driving on the wrong side of the road in a very expensive car. Very nice restoration. Was that copper lines on the brakes?
Well, the originals were steel, and likely long since rotted away from both inside and outside, so copper is a much better way to replace them. Pressure is never going to be high with drums all round.
Wrong side of the road? Nah. This is the uk!
@@Loonybikerbitch yes sir. Just picking on John. He came over to the US for the Bar Z Bash and he said we drove on the wrong side of the road. 🤣🤣
@@SeanBZA Discs on the front You can still get steel "bundy" brake pipe . That is what i would have used instead of copper
It's a Mk1. Don't think it's all original: seat belt mounts & a few other things strongly suggest it's pre mid '63, but with a later front panel. Needs a new voltage regulator too 😊
Sounds like the opening scene from mad max on the highway
I wanted to see you test if it would do that indicated 120mph. Bet that would be a ride!!
Probably not do 120 MPH, but should top 100 MPH. My 1962 Mini would, 1098 cc engine with 12G295 head , single 1 1/2" SU, 3.44 diff, still on 10 Inch wheels.
Back when Mini was an adjective and not a noun!