I didn’t get the Mini bug from a stranger. My parents have owned a whole range of Mini’s, from a Mk.1 850 to an 1100 Special. In 1991, they turned to the dark side, buying a brand new Seat Marbella (Fiat Panda clone) for my mum to drive in (my dad had already made the switch to Alfa Romeo’s). Almost 12 years later, in november 2002, they found the straight path again and they bought a 1997 Mini Cooper Brooklands as a daily driver for my mum.
The Brooklands is a German Special edition car issued in 1998, only available in Charcoal, a metallic dark grey. It had a Sport Pack as standard, and came with a white roof, wing mirrors and bonnet stripes. The example owned by my parents is an early showroom demo and received some slight modifications, some by previous owners, some at the time the car was bought by my parents.
Engine
- 1275 cc
- Rover Multi Point fuel injection
- K&N replacement airfilter
- Richard Longman Stage 4 cylinder head
- MiniSpares 1:1.7 roller rockers
- ICON ignition computer
- MiniSport MPi oil cooler
- Maniflow Long Centre Branch (‘LCB’) exhaust manifold
- RC40 exhaust end pipe, stainless steel, side exit
Gearbox
- Standard manual gearbox
- 2.96:1 diff
Brakes
- Front: standard 8.4 inch discs
- Rear: standard drums
Suspension
- Dry rubber cones
- Koni dampers
- MiniSport adjustable tie-bars front
Wheels/tyres
- Rover Sport Pack 13×6 inch wheels
- Bridgestone 175/50R13 front, Yokohama 175/50R13 rear
Exterior
- Charcoal body and roof (roof resprayed from standard white)
- All original Brooklands livery (inc. bonnet stripes) removed.
- Rover Sport Pack wheel arches
- Chrome grill, bumpers, doorhandles, boot-lock, side mirrors, numberplate surrounds, rear fog light
- Two beam lights and two fog lights in front of grill
- Roof aerial
- Folding sunroof
Interior
- Black leather seats with cream piping
- Cooper instrument panel with tacho, speedo, fuel, water temp, oil temp, voltage and clock
Here’s some more pics of the car.
