Back to back: Cooper convertible or Cooper pursuit vehicle?

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Two Minis are offered for sale by Coys of Kensington this Thursday, and apart from their estimates (both £30- to £40,000) they are miles apart. First there’s a rare Police version of the Mk2 Cooper ‘S’, as used by the Liverpool forces in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This example is a very late car, registered in March 1970 when the Mk3 was already there, and said to be one of 27 Police Minis to be delivered there. This rare survivor has been fully restored in recent times. If you prefer to drive it in less notable guise to events, all the bells and whistles can be taken off. The auctioneer states: “The Mini can be dressed as a Police car within a few minutes, or used and enjoyed as a regular Cooper ‘S’.”

On the other side of the spectrum is an equally rare Crayford Mini Sprint. That’s a Mini converted into a convertible by Crayford Engineering of Gloucestershire. First of the Crayford Minis was built up from a very early 1959 Mini when that was two years old, but quite a few followed when Crayford started to market the conversion at £129, providing you supplied them with your own Mini. Fully built cars came at £690. Survivors are quite rare, though, with some 15 of them known to the Crayford Convertible Car Club now. This Tweed Grey 1964 car is an outstanding example. It benefits from a 998 Cooper engine and a private plate since new and another very thorough restoration since more recent times. Time to ask you what your favourite is: a Mini to chase the sun or one to chase villains?

(Words Jeroen Booij, pictures courtesy Coys)

 

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