my
pride and joy
Since there are a lot of Mini pages around
I'm not going to get into great detail concerning the
history, technical specifications and all that. What I'm
going to do is to tell a little about my personal
conflicts and episodes related to my 10 years experience
driving the Mini around.
 My interest in British cars are not
because of dependability or reliability or economy. If I
wanted these things I would buy a nice reliable Toyota
just like most other people do.
I own and drive British cars because I LIKE THEM.
I like knowing that my 37 year old Mini didn't get thrown
away like most other things - it got recycled.
British cars are not perfect cars. However, these cars
have something lacking in most modern japanese and german
cars. They have character, style, scents, grace, charm,
emotion and, dare I say it, 'quality'.
Some collect
stamps, others grow flowers or cook and so on; from the
ridiculous to the mundane to the deviant. For me, I'm
fascinated by mechanical things, but I do so much
thinking at work, that when I get home, I just don't want
to have to think very hard about anything at all. That's
why I like old british cars so much. The tech level of
these things is low enough to be human and the little
puzzles which you run into with them can usually be
solved over a good beer with an old friend.
 For those interested in the history of the
Mini I can recommend that you try What is a Mini?
The first Mini I bought was a 1973 Clubman,
which was in reasonable condition when I bought it. A
little bit rusty but the engine and mechanical parts were
ok and the car looked alright.
I decided to convert it into a 1275 GT
replica and after fitting the engine and gearbox from an
MG 1300, discbrakes from a Cooper and fitted a 1275 GT
interior, I got the rust fixed by a so-called Mini expert
welder and got it repainted red with a white roof.
 What I later found
out was that the expert was not-so-much-of-an-expert
after all, but some years later we got even.....
But the car turned out great, and I had it for almost
four years.
I used it mostly to and from work, it's an exellent city
car, but myself and three friends once drove it to the
Midtfyn Rock Festival in Denmark for a week.
 The Mini swallowed
four adults and a weeks gear, if not easily. We had a
great time at the festival. The weather was nice all the
time, the music was good, and everybody was happy.
We even had a Tequila Slammer competition one evening
which I won, I think.... At least it felt like I had won
the next morning.
We were heading for home on a tuesday and my
friend Lill had been to a flea market and bought a chair
which she intended to bring back to Norway in the Mini. I
couldn't imagine how we could find room for a chair, so I
said we'll have to leave it behind.
 She then looked at
me as only a woman can, and I just had to find a way.
So I put my sleeping bag on the roof and tied the chair
to those little holes in each corner of the roof. The
added drag must have cost twice the price of the chair in
increased fuel comsumption, but Lill was happy, and she
still has got the chair. It's a nice chair too.
Eventually I sold the Clubman to the expert
who called the next day complaining about the bad
workmanship concerning the rust
fixing job ........!!!
I then got
hold of a Mini pickup with Cooper S engine and brakes, it
was British racing green, of course, with Minilites,
negative camber front and rear, Hi-Low suspension
adjustment, Spax shock absorbers, the lot!It was very fun
driving the pickup, but it soon got crampy but otherwise
excellent for chair transportation, and I traded it for a
Mk. II Cooper S replica which I still has. It is now
stored awaiting restoration.
 The car I
drive today is a 1961 Austin 850 which is completely
original down to the floor mats.
Not a bolt has been touched on it since it was new,
except for routine maintenance.
This Mini has
a floor mounted starting button which some of my
passengers find amusing!This is the Mini I will keep
forever, although I have promised my six year old nephew
that I will give it to him when he's 18. So he was quite
sore when I moved from Oslo taking his car with me.
But I will keep the promise!!
 The most rotten Mini I've ever bought was a
1971 Mini 1000 which I bought from a neighbourhood girl
who had had a minor accident with it.
The reason for the accident was, to put it mildly, lack
of braking action. It also had the most gruesome colour
I've ever seen on a Mini.
The girl had painted it herself in pink, or more
correctly, some kind of lilac colour. I hadn't the heart
to tell her it was awful.
But the car had a set of Minilite wheels so I considered
that they were worth the money I had to paid for it.
What a disappointment, except for mechanical parts, which
I already had more than enough of, the only useful thing
except the wheels, was an alarm clock I found in one of
the rear seat pockets. The most expensive alarm clock in
the world.
I eventually managed to give the car away,
but kept the wheels and the clock.
For those who would like to see some more
pictures of Mini's click here!
and, as I haven't got the heart to use the
Mini during winter, I needed a car for everyday transport
and bought a Rover 214Si. At least it is British.
If it had been possible I would have bought
a brand new Cooper but the Mini has not been sold in this
country since 1977, and BMW Norge who imports Rover cars
to Norway was not interested in importing a single car.
background music is Bob Marley "One
love"
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