129 replies to this topic

[jaydee]

and now bmw own mini! full circle in a way cooperman!!

Post 94 minis are bmw by the way..

[jaydee]

They used loads of oil with the original 'S' giving about 100 miles per pint

The 997 uses more oil than fuel..and doesnt have a good mpg though

[surfblue63]

This is the Chinese Garage in Beckenham, Kent.



I did work experience here in 1979 when it was a Leyland Dealers. I remember replacing the front pads on an SD1 Rover and helping to strip a customers 1100 that had snapped it's crank. It is now a Peugeot Dealers.

It even gets a mention on Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia..../Chinese_Garage

and there's a film from 1929 on the Pathe site

http://www.britishpa...-near-beckenham

Edited by surfblue63, 05 September 2012 - 10:08 PM.

[jaydee]

Oh i've seen that, didnt know that was a BL dealer

[CMXCVIII]

We've all moved a long way away from Birmingham, which I think was the OPs original request.

North London had Palmsville Garage in Muswell Hill, Lavender Hill Motors in Enfield, Holocene Associates in Islington ... and, possibly oddest of all, much weirder than The Chinese Garage, Peter Allen's Lansdowne Motor Company was a very specIalised Austin Rover franchise that traded entirely with doctors from premises in the underground car park below the British Medical Association building in Tavistock Square [where the bus blew up on 7/7]

[mininuts]

A few pictures, not much help but, they're good

[leroy26]

hehe me likey pictures :)

thanks to all!

[minidizzy]

My Minis are MOTed at H L Austin in Wandsworth, London. I was told they used to supply Rover Mini Coopers to John Cooper in Ferring for his 'S' conversions. They are now a Skoda dealer.

[CMXCVIII]

Is that about the last ever Mk1 Mini [F registered after August 1967] up for sale in the Used Car Centre at least 10 years later?

Edited by CMXCVIII, 07 September 2012 - 06:19 AM.

[JimminyBob]

The old rear numberplate on mine had Lancashire & Williams Stockport on it. Whether they were an Austin/Rover dealer or not I don't know. It must have been quite a while ago though since the plates had the old font.

[AVV IT]

Most of them round here were part of the Marshall group of Cambridge, who still run the Land Rover dealerships today, but also manufacture specialist military vehicles, fire engines & ambulances etc, as well as aerospace engineering. http://www.marshallg...k/about-us.html

Edited by AVV IT, 07 September 2012 - 11:31 AM.

[mininuts]

The old rear numberplate on mine had Lancashire & Williams Stockport on it. Whether they were an Austin/Rover dealer or not I don't know. It must have been quite a while ago though since the plates had the old font.

Here you go
http://www.lancashir...s.com/about-us/

Edited by mininuts, 07 September 2012 - 04:24 PM.

[62S]

Meanwhile back in Birmingham there I recall Thomas Startin in Aston and Erdington, Colliers in South Yardley, Evans & Kitchen in Kings Heath and numerous Patrick Motors as well.

[mininuts]

Some more dealer piccies

[JustSteve]

My old friend and rally buddy Peter Silva had his BLMC dealership taken away in 1977. He then took a Mitsubishi dealership and they were so supportive. I recall helping him at an open-evening when I did the test and demo driving in a Mitsubishi Coupe and frightened the punters by driving around Burnham Beeches in the dark very quickly. So he went from selling a load of junk to selling a quality produced car range.
BLMC were their own worst enemy really.
After being heavily into Minis until 1966, when I wanted a new road car to replace my 998 Cooper I bought a new 1966 Cortina GT. It was just so much better and no more expensive than a Cooper 'S' 1275. It was more reliable and had a better cruising speed too.

What are you doing here then?

..but seriously, I've seen you make similar posts a few times. What is it about minis that keeps you 'one of us' ?