BMW recently marked the 50th anniversary of the launch of the original Mini with the release of limited edition Mini 50 Camden and Mini 50 Mayfair models. It took my mind back to 1970s when I was working for Leyland as a product planning engineer…I had not long left Technicar (CAR’s sister magazine) to take up a challenge to enter the local industry. The marketing people had identified a need to invigorate Mini sales, so our department thought up a series of limited-run models to boost sales. We struck a deal with Webasto to produce a series of themed Minis based on the 1 098 cm3 Deluxe fitted with its folding sunroofs.
We started with the Sunshine Mini, which was painted Dolomite Yellow with matching wheels fitted with chrome hub caps and trim rings, matt black bumpers, wipers, inner grille and “racing” wing (not door!) mirrors, monogrammed rear mudflaps, chrome exhaust tip and huge “sun’s rays” decals along the bodysides. Inside we added a Sharp FM pre-select radio with whip aerial mounted at the rear of the body, contoured front bucket seats, exclusive striped cloth upholstery and fully-fitted brown carpeting. It sold for R2 995 – just R300 more than the standard Deluxe. What a bargain!
Next up came the Moonlight Mini, painted in Zircon Blue metallic with silver wheels and chrome trims, matt black inner grille with three bright centre bars, matt black wipers, tinted glass all round, rear mudflaps, twin exterior door mirrors, chrome exhaust tip and prismatic decaling on the bodysides, bonnet and boot. Inside the radio carried over, and upholstery was a silver vinyl/blue cloth combination with matching blue carpeting. Oh, and a full tool roll: in those days, local content was based on mass and a heavy tool kit had more value than it cost to provide… It sold for R3 305, a relatively substantial R500 premium.
Finally we developed the Mini vanden Plas. Leyland was the owner of the famous coachbuilding company, so we were entitled to use the name. The bronze metallic VdP was “the most luxuriously-equipped Mini ever seen in South Africa… the ultimate and least expensive luxury small car…”
Inspired by the UK’s Radford Mini de Ville that was made famous by Peter Sellers, who had commissioned the car – it was at the time the most expensive Mini – we copied the Radford’s basketweave panelling with a decal, but did not cheat on the inside. It had cashmere wool upholstery that we had developed for the range-topping Rover SD1 – it was a tremendously hard-wearing fabric that was wool-rich enough (more than 80 per cent, I think) to have the Woolmark. A full-width French-polished walnut facia lifted the interior along with a leather-covered steering wheel, cut-pile carpeting and tinted glass all round. It sold for R3 555, an increase of just R355 over the deluxe.
I believe we made around 144 of each – each CKD pack from Britain was for 12 units, and metrication in SA was only just beginning to be implemented – and I wonder if any of these specials still survive. If anyone owns or knows of any, phone me on 021 530 3155 or e-mail me.
Finally, at that time the local industry was forced to “go it alone” in many ways because of world sanctions and it bred a lot of ingenuity. For instance, behind the scenes we developed a Mini Moke that was essentially a rolling chassis with a number of glass fibre body panels that could convert it from a saloon to a coupé to a station wagon to a pick-up to a van in a matter of minutes. We called the project Chameleon and we had a lot of fun with the prototype. The project was still-born, however, but it makes modern-day “crossovers” appear rather limited in their scope…