‘64 COOPER S
imply that the shell is late 1962. However,
the chrome handbrake and gearstick
match the 1964 spec.TRACK RECORD
As we all know, racers favoured the
earlier shells as they were significantly
lighter which could easily explain why the
shell isn’t in keeping with a 1964 model.
However, the strangeness doesn’t stop
there. We found three factory punched
holes on the driver’s side of the seat cross
member. Yet the whole f loor is clearly
from the factory and of the same time
period. The car doesn’t look like it has
been used much for road use as there is
little rot, no filler and we all know how
these cars are prone to rust! The fact that
the shell has been looked after further
suggests a history as a racer. This is
something we are looking forward to
uncovering as the year progresses.
Andy “Ace” Harrison has some
thoughts on the car. “It’s an odd shell but
not as early as thought as it has recessesWhen we looked even further it turns out
that this car has probably been reshelled
(probably in the 1970s), because we think
it has a much earlier shell (possibly a ‘61
or ‘62 shell) and quite possibly from a
Mini 850. That doesn’t really matter,
because every thing that is running
underneath... the engine, the steering,
the brakes... is from a Cooper S.
Strangely, there’s plenty of the body shell
that’s still Cooper S but none of that
matters because I’m not one of those
aficionados that wants to get the exact
matching code on everything! People out
there obsess over this stuff. I just want a
car that I can enjoy every day and drive
every day, so that’s what I bought!”
Some elements of the car are clearly
Cooper S (take the boot board plinths and
all the runing gear), however the speedo
is wrong (a ’64 1275 Cooper S would have
had markers that went to 130 mph). The
recessed rear window would suggest that
this is not one of the earliest shells yet the
sills, f lat f loor and lack of double gutter“One fairly large credit card bill
later... my dream car came home”
Engine wears three layers of paint as
far as Mike can see - its real secrets
will only be revealed on stripdown...the registration document and heritage
certificate say that matters. Lots of cars
have been adapted and changed over the
years. The way this car presented itself
put some people off but to me it was what
I had always wanted. So I put my hand up
at the auction and one fairly large credit
card bill later... my dream car came home
with me.”
At first glance you think it’s a standard
1964 Cooper S, but after a little digging
around we soon realised that this car has
had quite a history.
At some point in its past this car has
been through some changes. For
instance, it’s got the leather seats and
wooden dash out of a Riley Elf. “It smacks
of the corporate boss making a nicer little
Mini for his wife to use in the 70s or 80s.All ancilliaries are right for the Cooper S.‘64 COOPER S
imply that the shell is late 1962. However,
the chrome handbrake and gearstick
match the 1964 spec.TRACK RECORD
As we all know, racers favoured the
earlier shells as they were significantly
lighter which could easily explain why the
shell isn’t in keeping with a 1964 model.
However, the strangeness doesn’t stop
there. We found three factory punched
holes on the driver’s side of the seat cross
member. Yet the whole f loor is clearly
from the factory and of the same time
period. The car doesn’t look like it has
been used much for road use as there is
little rot, no filler and we all know how
these cars are prone to rust! The fact that
the shell has been looked after further
suggests a history as a racer. This is
something we are looking forward to
uncovering as the year progresses.
Andy “Ace” Harrison has some
thoughts on the car. “It’s an odd shell but
not as early as thought as it has recessesWhen we looked even further it turns out
that this car has probably been reshelled
(probably in the 1970s), because we think
it has a much earlier shell (possibly a ‘61
or ‘62 shell) and quite possibly from a
Mini 850. That doesn’t really matter,
because every thing that is running
underneath... the engine, the steering,
the brakes... is from a Cooper S.
Strangely, there’s plenty of the body shell
that’s still Cooper S but none of that
matters because I’m not one of those
aficionados that wants to get the exact
matching code on everything! People out
there obsess over this stuff. I just want a
car that I can enjoy every day and drive
every day, so that’s what I bought!”
Some elements of the car are clearly
Cooper S (take the boot board plinths and
all the runing gear), however the speedo
is wrong (a ’64 1275 Cooper S would have
had markers that went to 130 mph). The
recessed rear window would suggest that
this is not one of the earliest shells yet the
sills, f lat f loor and lack of double gutter“One fairly large credit card bill
later... my dream car came home”
Engine wears three layers of paint as
far as Mike can see - its real secrets
will only be revealed on stripdown...the registration document and heritage
certificate say that matters. Lots of cars
have been adapted and changed over the
years. The way this car presented itself
put some people off but to me it was what
I had always wanted. So I put my hand up
at the auction and one fairly large credit
card bill later... my dream car came home
with me.”
At first glance you think it’s a standard
1964 Cooper S, but after a little digging
around we soon realised that this car has
had quite a history.
At some point in its past this car has
been through some changes. For
instance, it’s got the leather seats and
wooden dash out of a Riley Elf. “It smacks
of the corporate boss making a nicer little
Mini for his wife to use in the 70s or 80s.
All ancilliaries are right for the Cooper S.