What is the fastest / best Morris-Austin-Rover Mini Cooper?

The message from "Paul. A. Latham" contains these words:

Wouldn't fit. Much too tall.

It's the original Cooper S 1275. But probably outside your budget. ;-)

The old ones. proper set up 1340 A series will give modern stuff as good a run as it wants. Regular top 10 finishes in rallies against bigger stuff. See

This one would have been one of the very best set up ones and produces massive torque for its CC and age. Very little modern "hot hatch" would be able to follow this one to 120mph and definitely could not out handle it.. biggest problem is torque steer with the LSD.

Sadly the guy who raced it was killed in an accident not related to racing.

JK

just take two spaces and save yourself the misery of owning a mini :)

If you discount the few bored out (1298) 1360cc S probably the 1071 S or the

1293 S the 1071 would be the higher revving engine and there were 500 1275 GTs built to homologate for track saloon car events ( I owned one immensely silly machine even when detuned for road use) identify them by the ventilated oversize rear brake drums and vented discs, if you ever see a car with a YE1300 badge on it thats a good bet as they were a limited edition special built by a racer . Of the later models I couldn't really say as I have no experience of the 1.3 injection cars emission controls would not help IMO Derek for pure insanity I have photos of a car fitted with the austin maxi 1700 engine

Half the problem is they built an extension onto asda which took up all the parking space and increased the number of customers so the only spaces left when you go are in spaces you can't reverse out of because they're near the car park entrance full of traffic!

Thanks for all your replies, I had no idea the early ones were faster. I also expected better fuel consumption figures than the combined 43mpg quoted, Ka's get that!

Will consider it, my problem is I can never let go of a car, hence a SORN 91 Fiesta not been driven for a year on a family driveway. A lot of people don't look after cars and i'd hate mine to go to that type, although i'm fully aware that leaving them on driveways for a year is worse for them. There's also a guilt factor, how can someone who's just passed a test (the only people interested in a £250 fiesta) in a brand new micra fitted with ABS, power steering and those horrible close-together gear selectors be expected to stop a car with anvil steering and easy-lock brakes? Part of the driving test should be a skid course in a 10 year old fiesta/base model corsa/pre-bubble shape micra.

Will be looking at 91+ minis, the trouble with the Vitesse is yes it can get

46mpg on the motorway, but it can also use a LOT more fuel depending on driving style.

Thanks, Paul

Mine never did :D.

Get rid of the fester before it reverts to it's natural state.

Actually the 998 cooper was the real screamer....