1965 Austin Mini Cooper S 1293 Mk. I Rally Car.
Entered from the Ronald White Collection, Auction Estimate £30,000 - £40,000
Lot Details
Registration No: EWK 799C
Chassis No: C-A2S7676009
MOT: Exempt
"Previously owned by recognised Mini specialist Tom Seal, who uprated it to historic rally specification, incorporating many period features
Driven by Timo Makinen, winning the 1,000 Lakes Historic Rally (1990 and 1991) and the Historic RAC Rally (1991)
A resident of the David Sutton Motorsport Museum from 1992 until 2006
Part of the Ronald White Collection since 2006
Looking as if it would not be out of place on the Monte Carlo Rally, ‘EWK 799C’ was converted to Group 2 historic rally specification in the late 1980s by Tom Seal. It was extensively uprated to an extremely high state of tune, with the engine bored out to 1,293cc and equipped with a Kent 296 camshaft and ultra-light flywheel. The engine build was the work of Cliff Humphries, formerly of BMC’s Abingdon Competitions Department, and when it was dyno-tested it was found to produce 120bhp at 7,750rpm. Other features of the build included a straight-cut all-synchromesh gearbox, straight-cut Timken-specification drop gears, a limited-slip differential, and a paddle clutch with a steel backplate.
The body shell was restored with new panels as necessary, and painted to a “concours standard.” The suspension was built with Koni shock absorbers, while the brakes were replaced, the servo was overhauled, and the brake lines were routed to avoid stone damage. The specification included DS11 front pads and VG95 rear shoes. The electrics were rewired with “works wiring” and fuses by John Smith of Lucas Racing, who had done the wiring for works Minis at Abingdon in the 1960s.
The finished car was handed to Timo Mäkinen, who had rallied Minis with so much success in the ’60s, including the ’65 Monte victory. Mäkinen was credited with setting up the suspension on ‘EWK’, and he proceeded to drive it to first overall in the 1990 Historic 1,000 Lakes Rally, and first overall in the 1991 Historic RAC Rally. He led for days one and two of the 1991 Pirelli Classic Marathon, then finished second overall in the 1991 Historic 1,000 Lakes Rally and first overall in the 1991 Globen Rally in Sweden. After the ’91 season, it was advertised for sale at £24,500. In 2004, it entered the David Sutton Motor Museum, prior to its sale in 2006 to Ronald White, who has kept it on static display. It is supplied with history including a V5C and a past FIA identity form, and with recommissioning it should be ready to rally again."
https://handh.co.uk/...-mk1-rally-car/
