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Your New Minis
If you're proud of your Mini and want to shout about it send us an email and we'll post it here for all fellow New Mini fans to see. Email in a pic with a description of your car to newmini@ipcmedia.com. A pic of you with your Mini would be even better!
First love This is Nigel Green’s first Mini; it cost him £6000 and he’s owned it for just over 6 months. It’s a Cooper and came with the factory fitted alloys and 38,000 miles on the clock. Since buying the car Nigel has spent a further £2000 on improvements which include the full chrome interior kit, blue LED in the footwells and boot, Union Jack decals on the roof and bonnet, a set of 18 in alloys and new uprated bulbs all-round. He’s also invested in some Wipac front spots which will be fitted soon. Under the bonnet he’s treated the engine to a K&N performance filter, NGK Iridium spark plugs and most recently some Performance Nology hotwires from the USA. It may well be his first Mini but he’s got off to a flying start and says there are loads more plans in the pipeline.
Dressed to thrill “I love my Mr Mini,” says Sophie Babbage from Gloucester. And who can blame her when the car in question is a 54 plate Mini Cooper. Sophie bought the car in March 2009 and paid £7000. “I’ve never had a Mini before but you can make so many modifications to them to make them look different,” she said. “I went to look at quite a few but I wanted a black and white one with chequered mirrors and I went all the way to Derby to get this one.” The Cooper came with a full Mini service history and she added a further 5000 miles on the clocks in the first 6 months she owned the car - it’s now covered 39,000 miles. “I want to get the windows tinted to get it looking a bit more funky,” explained Sophie. “Ideally I also want a black roof instead of the white and to fit some nice big black alloys as well.” And so the changes begin.
GP stripper Viewed by most as the ultimate Mini, only 2000 of the JCW GP cars were ever built and there are only 457 in the UK. And Mick Walsh (AKA GP Mick) is one of the lucky owners - his car is totally standard apart from a strut brace and spotlights and is used on a daily basis. We spotted him at Mini Showdown where he’d just taken part in his first ever 1/4 mile sprint on the drag strip. “It was excellent, I really enjoyed it,” he confirmed. “ It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for some time. I’ve had a busy weekend - I was driving on the Top Gear track yesterday and I’ve finished the weekend with a run down the drag strip.” He set a time in the 16s and says that despite all his practice at traffic lights he lost a lot of time at the start when he got a bit over enthusiastic and sat there with his wheels spinning when the lights turned green.
Mine's a winner! Lee Allen from Kent is competing in the 2009 Mini Challenge, after a ten year gap in his racing career, and he’s already won two races this year - including this one at Castle Combe (19th July) where we spotted him. His car is a JCW which is prepared to Mini Challenge spec which basically means a standard 215 bhp JCW Cooper S with a stripped interior, adjustable suspension, and safety additions such as a roll cage. With identical cars the winning is all down to driver ability. Its the first time Lee's participated in a one make championship. "I am really enjoying it, we have had a very steep learning curve as the competition is very quick, but that only makes it more fun because even newbies can get a win if you prepare yourself properly," admitted Lee. And he’s certainly got back into the winning groove straight away. He’s currently lying 4th in class with races at Croft (22/23 August) and Snetterton (26/27th September) still to run.
Licence 2 Thrill Stephen Essex from the Midlands owns 10 Minis - a mixture of Coopers, Cooper Diesels and Ones, which might seem a bit greedy until you know they are for his company - A Licence 2 Drive. “It’s a very good car to learn to drive in,” said Stephen. “ There’s good all-round visibility and it’s very easy to manoeuvre. It’s an iconic car and it stands out from the crowd and attracts a lot of business for the company.” Despite a long line of learner drivers he says that he can still record 40 mph. He did experience some clutch problems on his earlier Coopers but the later cars are good for 50,000 miles before they usually need replacing - and amazingly all the work is cover by the warranty - without question. In fact his biggest problem is curbed wheels - an occupational hazard. He runs the cars for about two and a half years until they have clocked up 100,000 miles. When he set up the company he tested a wide range of cars before picking Minis and it’s a choice which seems to have gone down well with customers because business is booming.
Everyday racer Sue Ememy from the Birmingham Mini owners Club has owned her John Cooper Works for just over a year and had the body kit and graphics fitted before she took delivery of the car. Before that she’d owned two Mini Ones. “The One was fast enough for me until I tried a JCW and then I wanted one,” she explained. “I use the car everyday - it’s amazing, totally fantastic. It’s the best car we have ever had and we've had loads including Mercedes and BMWs.” Sue admits that she does like to drive the car fast when she gets the chance and especially likes to be first away from the traffic lights when they turn green.
Wow factor When Daniel Sturgess from Basingstoke saw his first Clubman he thought ‘wow’. At the time he already owned a Cooper but it wasn’t long before this Pepper White Cooper Clubman was parked on his drive instead. He’s left it pretty much standard aside from adding some graphics. Plans in the pipeline include tinted windows, spotlights and a graphic on the roof. Daniel says that although the extra space is handy for his kids, it’s certainly not the reason he bought the car in the first place - that was purely on looks. He drives his Mini at least 30 miles a day and says it’s fantastic.
On two wheels World famous and world record holding stunt man Russ Swift likes nothing better than to jump into his Cooper S, launch it off a ramp and then drive down the road on two wheels. Apart from his obvious skill and years of experience there are no mechanical tricks involved - it’s basically a standard car, albeit with the diff locked and the tyres pumped up to 90 psi. “A few years ago I did a rough count of how many times I’ve driven a car on just two wheels and I reckoned I’d done more than 8000 displays in over 50 countries,” said Russ. And he’s done many more since that last count. Thanks to power steering he says the Cooper S is a lot easier to drive than his classic Mini Minor and he quite often takes people along for the ride during his two-wheeling adventures - three passengers and event a fourth stuffed in the boot!
Ever changing Joe Klenk’s 221bhp Mini Cooper S never stays looking the same for long. Today (Easter 2009) it features a BMW Aero bodykit and a M7 front splitter and has been totally de-chromed. Inside it currently features Bentley red leather, although Joe’s in the process of changing the whole interior into something more sporty - at the moment there is a lot of missing trim such as the door cards; it’s very much a work in progress. Joe doesn’t know how much he’s spent on the car, just that it’s too much and says he’s wasted a lot of money by constantly changing his mind. For example he used to have Porsche brakes under his 20 in alloys, but when he changed to 17 in rims they no longer fitted so he had to sell them.
Super Cooper Barry Jones Barry's owned what he calls his 'Sooper Cooper' since late 2004 and it hasn't stopped putting a smile on his face since. He travels in it a lot and can't believe it's still running so well after the mileage he's clocked up. The graphics were designed by SignRiteGraphix.com in Aylesbury and you can also see his Mini on its website. Barry's son has just bought a yellow Mini One and has installed an Aero kit on it, which looks so good Barry's tempted to do the same. He's also thinking of modifying the air intake system and getting the wheels done in black. Yet no matter what he does, he's adamant he could never own any other car ever again!
Sleek and smooth Jose Tarin This sleek 2002 Mini Cooper S belongs Jose Tarin and is definitely a smooth rider! Jose has really worked on modifying the performance of the car by adding Dinan Stage 5 engine software, performance fuel injectors, an Alta V2 intercooler. A Dinan free flow exhaust and high flow throttle body is also present, as well as a strut brace, Short Shifter kit from Mini Madness and Brembo slotted brakes.
Daily driver Jason Pelton Jason has had his Mini Cooper 40 for two years, racking up 48,000 miles by using it as his daily driver. This 40th anniversary edition Mini has had a number of modifications which include a 15 per cent pulley, lightweight crank, cold air, front and rear strut braces, Zeemax body kit, oil catch can, racing header and Borla exhaust, remap, dash and vent gauges. All that is left is fitting the roll cage, which he is hoping will arrive soon!
Nice wheels! Seb has owned his Mini Cooper since May 2006 and in that time has made some changes to create his ideal car! The wheels are 18-inch black alloys with a chrome trim and low profile Nang Kang's. It has a Cusco carbon fibre front strut brace, Pipercross Viper air filter, JCW carbon fibre rear spoiler, Milltek exhaust and he has sprayed the engine bay red. Inside Seb is kept entertained with the 7-inch Kenwood screen and full sound system!
A dog's life Paula Reed Paula loves her Cooper S Convertible but not as much as her dog Moss does. He loves getting the wind in his fur as Paula drives him along. The car has funky bonnet stripes, which really sets it off.
Picnic paradise Lee and Paula Good Lee and Paula were seen at the 2006 Beaulieu Mini Cooper Day, chilling out with a picnic by their Cooper, which has an Aero bodykit and black bonnet stripes.
Simple Style Brian and Angie Good Brian and Angie own this 2004 metallic grey Cooper S. They have modified it with carbon fibre styling like the bonnet scoop and a strut brace in the engine bay, which "makes it a lot firmer and helps the handling," says Brian.
Flame thrower This is Tracy's Cooper S Works Convertible, which has fantastic flame stickers, chrome line pack and amazing chrome Wolfrace wheels. We spotted it at the 2006 London To Brighton Mini Run where it was getting a good wash as it was competing in the show 'n' shine competition.
Hard grafter Ben Jacobs Eighteen-year-old Ben has dreamed of owning a car like the New Mini since they day BMW started manufacturing them. He worked all the hours under the sun and saved every single penny he could to afford one for himself, but in the end his dad kindly helped him so he could finally get his hands on the car of his dreams. Ben absolutely loves it to bits.
Old skool Jon has taken a very cool old skool approach to his Cooper S by giving it a Monte Carlo theme. He designed the graphics in a 1964 Monte Carlo style and added a 4-spot light bonnet strap with lots of chrome all round and small detailing. The wheels are 17-inch League CMX in gunmetal grey with Dunlop SP9000 tyres. The engine has been treated with a panel filter, a smaller pulley and a remap as well as a front alloy strut brace. It has a standard gearbox and brakes, although he claims not to use the brakes that much!
Family of Minis Jon Morgan Jon's black Cooper S is only one of the Minis in his family. His girlfriend owns the white Cooper and his brother owns the silver one. He's only recently managed to get back behind the wheel of it as it's spent the last two years being rebuilt after it was in an accident. But it looks like it's back in top form now. It's totally colour coded and tinted all round and always causes a stir when it's on show.
Electric entertainment Mike Wildman Mike is the owner of newministuff.com that specialises in car electrics and in-car entertainment. This is a pic of his Cooper S out in the snow looking great. It's electric blue with 18in Dare wheels, Yoko rubbers and Halo front lights. Yet Mike's car is mainly full of electrical mods. Apparently it's one of only two in the world that has external door handle LED lighting and external puddle lights. It's also got interior accent lighting in the door handles and interior accent vent lighting. He's installed a motorised screen for navigation with Ipod, TV and DVD connections and the Mini's also got three amps, custom speakers and a custom Mini bass box with Mini logo grille. It's definitely a car to watch out for.
Get the look Nick Utley This pic of Nick's Mini was taken from a stand at Silverstone last year and at the time he'd only owned it for two months. Since then he's been busy. He saw a Cooper S Works on his local dealer's forecourt and decided that's the look he wanted. So he added an S Fuel cap, two BMW spots, colour coded arches, sills, grills and mirrors plus three-piece BMW white lights. His Mini's also got JCW 18in alloy wheels with Pirelli P Zero Nero tyres, Shark Gill indicators and JCW Sparco seats. The car has a standard engine but that's not what Nick was interested in. What mattered was all about getting the look rather than performance.
Back to her roots Kay Young This is Kay with her Mini Cooper at this year's London and Surrey Mini Owner's Club track day at Goodwood back in July. She had only been a member of the club for two months and although this was her first track event she was having great fun. Kay owned a Classic red Mini with a white roof 20 years ago, which inspired her to buy this one. Her favourite thing is the CD player and her current flava was Corinne Bailey Rae.
Get off my bumper! Spike Friedman The build sheet of Spike's 2003 Mini Cooper S is very impressive. The car has every available manufacturer's option, including sunroof and black space cloth interior. An H&R coil-over suspension has been fitted and the car also features Alta 13in drilled front rotors with four piston callipers and stainless braided brake lines. The exterior has been spoilt with 17x7.5in Minilite EV2000 'Classic' style wheels and Toyo Tis Proxes tyres. It's got an Alta Cat Back exhaust system with custom oval tip and Milltek high flow exhaust header and catalytic converter. We could go on with all the other mods but the list is endless, but more importantly Spike's also fitted a rather cheeky 'Get off my bumper' brake light warning switch.