1965 Austin Mini Cooper S 1,275cc Sports Saloon

• Single family ownership from new
• In current ownership since 1968
• Outstandingly original and unmolested
• Full matching numbers
• Recently recommissioned
• Extensive history file

To many - its designer Alec Issigonis included - the notion that the Mini might have a future as anything other than basic transport was anathema, and the idea of a high-performance version was laughable. One man though, saw it quite differently. Racing car manufacturer John Cooper already knew quite a bit about tuning BMC's A-Series engine - he was running the company's Formula Junior effort at the time - and a test drive in a prototype Mini convinced him of the car's competition potential. The result, launched in September 1961, was the Mini Cooper. Its prodigious roadholding and excellent power-to-weight ratio enabled the Mini Cooper to compete successfully with larger-capacity rivals, and on tight twisting circuits the car was often a candidate for outright victory. Indeed, Warwick Banks won the European Saloon Car Championship outright in 1964 driving Ken Tyrell's Mini Cooper. Spectators everywhere delighted in the spectacular, sideways cornering style adopted by the car's main protagonists, and the Mini's supreme driveability and user-friendliness have kept it in the forefront of Historic saloon car racing ever since.
The remarkable most desirable specification 1,275cc Cooper S offered here has enjoyed single family ownership from new; it was purchased in 1965 by our vendor's father, from whom it was purchased by our vendor in 1968. 'JPK 175C' is a rare full matching-numbers example, retaining its original bodyshell, floor, boot, boot lid cardboard, and interior (except the carpets). The car was repainted in its original colour combination of Almond Green and Old English White in 1974.
Used as a daily car throughout the 1970s, the Cooper was also used in the 1969 ACSMC Sprint and Hillclimb championship. This resulted in an outright class win for the season and 4th in the overall standings across all classes. After the 1969 season the car continued to be raced and there are pictures on file of the car at Silverstone in 1972 before the vendor purchased a purpose-built racing Mini but the Cooper S offered here was used as the tow car. In 1972 the suspension was converted to a dry specification due to the hyrdolastic pipes starting to rust. The vendor notes that this drastically improved the handling. The car remained the vendors daily transport up to 1975. Since then, the car has mostly been kept in storage and used sparingly. Around 8 years ago, new master cylinders were fitted and the wheels repainted. 'JPK 175C' has never been restored but it was recommissioned/serviced recently by Barkaways. Barkaways' invoice is on file and the car also comes with a BMIHT Certificate and an extensive history file, including the warranty booklet and other original purchase-related documentation; a quantity of expired MoTs; various photographs; and the owner's hand-written logbook of fuel and oil consumed and the mileage covered. An increasingly rare opportunity to acquire a highly original and unmolested Cooper S.