59 replies to this topic

[Samini86]

Without!! It is part of their heritage, but I think its good to be different sometimes and they look ace without. Maxandpaddys are something else though

Mine without stripes and pinstripes...

Definitely a late model, but is that a cooper? Looks really smart either way

Yeah lovely car mate

[Cooperman]

Definitely a late model, but is that a cooper? Looks really smart either way

Cheers! Yeah its a 93 cooper. It was more or less stock when I got it but slowly changing it to a cleaner look, just waiting for my mounting plinths for my chrome mirrors at the moment =)

Do you need some spotlight lenses/glass to replace the ones on your car which appear to be held together with tape?

[gwatkins15]

Definitely a late model, but is that a cooper? Looks really smart either way

Cheers! Yeah its a 93 cooper. It was more or less stock when I got it but slowly changing it to a cleaner look, just waiting for my mounting plinths for my chrome mirrors at the moment =)

Do you need some spotlight lenses/glass to replace the ones on your car which appear to be held together with tape?

Cheers all! Ha Ha no I actually dont I've got a set of original ones but just fancied a change

[Black.Ghost]

I love both.

But IIRC those stripes were originally for the rally teams to indicate which car was which. One would have just a left line, one just a right and the other two stripes. It was Rover who did it as a design thing.

Edit - Ive just seen that Cooperman already said this. Ignore me

Edited by Black.Ghost, 20 April 2012 - 05:23 PM.

[AVV IT]

I fitted my bonnet stripes when I first bought the car at the end of the nineties. Back then the Rover Cooper look was what everyone wanted, classic mini production was coming to an end and the Rover Cooper seemed to celebrate everything that was great about the mini. So if you owned a non cooper, or a pre Rover Cooper model, then a contrasting coloured roof, winged badges and bonnet stripes seemed to be the thing to do.

These days I'm really not that keen on them any more and much I prefer the look of the non striped bonnet. But with over a decade of paint fade on my bonnet since they were fitted, I guess I'll have to wait until I get around to respraying it before removing them.

[TA2DMAC]

I like the look of stripes but doesn't always look right.
I've seen one that had straps the full length of the bonnet which looked pretty cool.
It also had a nice roof rack and white wheels with hubcaps.
Had a very retro-vintage look to it.

[surfblue63]

The bonnet stripes on Minis started on the Tour de France when the 'works' needed to be able to identify which of their cars was which at a glance. One car had just one sripe, one had two stripes and the other had one on the opposite side. That is as stated in the works Mini book.

I love both.

But IIRC those stripes were originally for the rally teams to indicate which car was which. One would have just a left line, one just a right and the other two stripes. It was Rover who did it as a design thing.

Edit - Ive just seen that Cooperman already said this. Ignore me

Obviously the fact that the Cooper Car Company had been painting their cars from the mid 1950's with two white stripes from the screen to the nose had no influence on the bonnet stripes appearing on their Minis in the 1960's, and on the Mini Coopers, which I think John Cooper had something to do with, from the 1990's!


PS Here's a pic of one of the Minis with a single bonnet stripe which competed on 1964 Tour de France



The cars also had corresponding stripes on the boot lid as well, as can be seen on the Standard Triumph film of the event

Edited by surfblue63, 20 April 2012 - 10:10 PM.

[Black.Ghost]

The bonnet stripes on Minis started on the Tour de France when the 'works' needed to be able to identify which of their cars was which at a glance. One car had just one sripe, one had two stripes and the other had one on the opposite side. That is as stated in the works Mini book.

I love both.

But IIRC those stripes were originally for the rally teams to indicate which car was which. One would have just a left line, one just a right and the other two stripes. It was Rover who did it as a design thing.

Edit - Ive just seen that Cooperman already said this. Ignore me

Obviously the fact that the Cooper Car Company had been painting their cars from the mid 1950's with two white stripes from the screen to the nose had no influence on the bonnet stripes appearing on their Minis in the 1960's, and on the Mini Coopers, which I think John Cooper had something to do with, from the 1990's!

What was the first production mini to come with stripes as standard?

[surfblue63]

What was the first production mini to come with stripes as standard?

RSP Cooper I think in 1990.

[Cooperman]

I think the rally cars only used the stripes for identification on that one event. Why I don't know.
They do look good actually, especially on the later cars.

[surfblue63]

I think the rally cars only used the stripes for identification on that one event. Why I don't know.
They do look good actually, especially on the later cars.

The Tour de France had a lot of tests on circuits and I guess the team were taking lap times, so with the stripes it would be easier to identify which car was which. Various teams used similar ideas in the Le Mans, one that springs to mind are the Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar D-Types that raced at Le Mans. They had differring amounts of stripes between the headlamps.

[Jelly Bean]

Stripes on Cooper's , plain bonnets for other variants.

[JP Detailing]

The bonnet stripes on Minis started on the Tour de France when the 'works' needed to be able to identify which of their cars was which at a glance. One car had just one sripe, one had two stripes and the other had one on the opposite side. That is as stated in the works Mini book.

I love both.

But IIRC those stripes were originally for the rally teams to indicate which car was which. One would have just a left line, one just a right and the other two stripes. It was Rover who did it as a design thing.

Edit - Ive just seen that Cooperman already said this. Ignore me

Obviously the fact that the Cooper Car Company had been painting their cars from the mid 1950's with two white stripes from the screen to the nose had no influence on the bonnet stripes appearing on their Minis in the 1960's, and on the Mini Coopers, which I think John Cooper had something to do with, from the 1990's!


PS Here's a pic of one of the Minis with a single bonnet stripe which competed on 1964 Tour de France



The cars also had corresponding stripes on the boot lid as well, as can be seen on the Standard Triumph film of the event

Thanks for sharing this video, was great to watch whilst sipping my tea before a detailing job. Cheers ;)

[Spud_133]

Only on brg coopers with white roof.


Gunna get myself some brownie points from Max&Paddy

[bcjames]

I've been thinking about it and I think if my car wasn't green I think I'd prefer it stripeless. BRG and white is just soooo right



My Mini by bcjamesmini, on Flickr