EX-WORKS & COMPETITION CAR REGISTER

Although British Motor Heritage at Gaydon houses the three most famous Monte Carlo winning Mini Coopers, many enthusiasts will be aware of all the other rallies and motor racing championships that were won by Mini Coopers in the glorious 60s. There were approximately 71 “Works Minis” built by the factory over an 11-year period, and the whereabouts of nearly all of these wonderful and unique cars are known to the Clubs Registrar. Some of these cars have been traced and carefully restored by fortunate club members, keen to maintain these historic cars for posterity. Some however are mothballed in private collections for the sole enjoyment their owners. Fortunately, a good number are owned by Club members who frequently display their cars for all to see under the banner of the Ex-works & Competition Car Register. These cars are highly prized and very valuable.

 “Ex-Works” refers to those cars on record as having been built and campaigned by the BMC/BL Competition Department at Abingdon, the home of the MG Car Company. Private owners could order cars prepared to a similar specification as Works cars from the BMC/BL Special Tuning Department situated next door. They could also order parts similar to the Works, from their local dealer, to fit himself or herself.

Due to the finite quantity of these rare Works cars, some members have built “Part number perfect” replicas of the Works cars. These are often displayed along side the Works cars and are a credit to their fastidious owner. These cars are essentially brand new Works Minis and the level of research and detail that goes into building one of these cars should never be underestimated. The knowledge gained by these members is encyclopedic and can be called on by others trying to achieve the goal of building and owning one of these superb cars.

The Register now also encompasses Competition Cars. These are cars that have a known Competition History but may well not be built to the same specification to the Works race or rally cars. They are generally cars that are actively used in competition. The Register also embraces ‘Special Tuning' cars. These are cars that have been modified by using the relevant Special Tuning parts that were available to the public from Special Tuning in the 1960’s and early 1970’s.