MY 1974 INNOCENTI MINI COOPER 1300 EXPORT
| My first mini, the Innocenti Mini 1000 has made me become a real mini fanatic over the years....and the result is that I couldn't keep myself to only one mini so I finally bought the mini I had always desired, a 1300 Cooper. I now keep the 1300 in Italy where I'm studying while the other is in Ethiopia for when I go on vacation. It's great to be able to drive a mini wherever I'm staying, hehehe.. |
| One of the excellent
characteristic of this model is its interior. The six instrument dash, that is: an ammeter
gauge, oil pressure gauge, fuel gauge, big rev counter (7500rpm) and speedometer
calibrated to 200kmh, all give a very sporty look together with a sporting three spoke
steering wheel. The interior is black with attractive grey carpeting making it quite
luxurious compared with other minis. The original engine was also quite powerful. Less
powerful than the British Cooper S but still one of the best 1275cc engines that were
produced. Basically it was a hibrid of the Cooper S engine and the 1275GT engine. I say
was quite powerful because after a few mods I did it's now much more powerful than any
production mini. Check the tech spec below.....
Click here to see some interior pictures Engine: 1275cc, Longman 1275cc modified competition head with 37.2mm inlet valves and 31mm exhaust valves, Hi-Lift 1.5 ratio rockers, twin split Dellorto carbs, LCB exhaust manifold with RC40 silencer, ultra light Mini Spares flywheel and backplate, race/rally clutch plate + orange clutch diaphragm. Everything else is standard but when it's time to strip down the engine it will be time for some more mods like crank, pistons, rods, cam etc... Performance: Transmission: Standard 4-speed rod type gearbox with 3.44 diff. Suspensions: Dry
suspension, Orap shock absorbers, negative camber front bottom arms. Cooper S 7.5"
front discs with Mintex C-Tech racing pads, rear drums with built in spacer, standard
shoes. Tyres are Yokos A008 165/60 fitted on GB 6"Alloys. |
| Other
mods: Wood + Picket wheel arches, Momo steering wheel, sport pedals, Pioneer Ice
system with CD changer and two front 160W speakers mounted in front doors. I don't fancy
doing too many mods to the non-mechanical parts as it's still a classic car and therefore
the more original it is the better. However some of the classic parts that are likely to
get spoilt by using the car every day like I do are better kept somewhere safe except for
shows and meetings.... The seats for example are in excellent conditions and it's very hard, more like quite impossible to find other ones in such an original condition nowadays. So they'll be going in my mini store (or mini museum) as soon as I find a replacement.... |
