1972 Austin Mini Van

‘BRY 779K’ is a fabulous example of a very rare and much-loved vehicle, the fabled Mini van.

Finished in Teal Blue, you might think this is just another restored commercial vehicle, albeit an uncommonly well finished one.

If so, you’d be wrong, because this is 1972 Mini van has a hidden side to its nature; delve deeper, and you’ll discover that its engine has been fitted with Hillman Imp pistons, a little-known trick from the 1960s and ‘70s that helps boost the four-cylinder engine’s capacity to 1220cc.

As you’d expect of such a carefully conceived example, the extra power and torque the conversion unleashed is at least partially tamed by Mini Cooper S front disc brakes.

It’s also been in the seller’s family since 1993 and is a well-proven workhorse having helped him move house back in the nineties. Slowly deteriorating and limping from one MoT to another, it eventually went into storage, staying there for almost a couple of decades.

And then, like so many of us, the seller ended up looking for a post-Covid project and embarked on restoring his much-loved Mini van in 2022 – and in a pleasing piece of symmetry, it’s now being sold to help provide a deposit for his daughter to buy a house of her own. 
 

As you can see, the body panels are incredibly straight – and not just for a commercial vehicle: The seller estimates that he probably invested a couple of thousand pounds on new panels alone before going on to spend an inordinate amount of time getting them to fit this well.

And he was then equally conscientious in keeping them looking good.

Because the tight and consistent shutlines are reinforced by panels that are still free of dents, dinks, and ripples. It’s a shape many of us probably only remember vaguely but its condition is as good now, if not better, than it would have been when we saw them trundling around the place when we were kids.

The Teal Blue paint was applied as the result of a full-blown, bare-metal respray and was done – again – with uncommon attention to detail. It looks absolutely stunning, inside and out, and needs nothing doing to it apart from continued regular polishing.

Well, unless you’ve got a small business you’d like to promote because the large side panels would also make the perfect canvas for some hand-painted signwriting; thus  branded, it would make the perfect mobile billboard.

The brightwork is just as impressive; while it might be restricted in its use – the front grille, for example, is simple painted metal rather than anything more gaudy – the condition and quality of the chrome finish is generally very good.

The diminutive ten-inch steel wheels are not only in great shape, they’re decorated with a set of good chrome hubcaps AND fitted with a matching set of 145/80R10 Falken Sincera SN8-07 tyres, all of which have good tread on them and are date-stamped 2021.

We will never get tired of telling you that experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly.

The pressed aluminium numberplates, which pick up the silver-and-black colour scheme of the wheels, also look perfect on a car of this age.

The Triplex side windows, whose design frees up more space than conventional wind-up windows would allow, move effortlessly fore and aft.

The lamp lenses are good too, being bright, colourful, and free of cracks and chips.

A roof vent is also fitted, as are a pair of wing-mounted mirrors that all but eliminate the blindspots we’ve all come to think of as being inevitable since they migrated to the doors to facilitate remote adjustment.

Speaking of mirrors, the stalks that support them are pitted on the offside and dull on the nearside. The chromed headlamp surrounds are also dulled, the rubber seal on the fuel filler neck has some overspray on it, the numberplate lamps have seen better days, and the front bumper has a few spots of rust on it as well as a dink on the offside.

If these things bother you, they could all be easily and cheaply replaced. 
 

The interior is as remarkable for what it doesn’t contain as for what it does.

There are no door cards fitted, for example, nor carpets. Only a tiny headlining above the front seats, too – and those seats are mismatched, and the cover on the slightly tatty steering wheel is coming adrift.

But, on the positive side the lack of carpets, door cards, and a headlining in the load space allows you to inspect the underlying metal more easily – and the floorpans and many of the panels are, you might recall, new and only recently fitted.

And the door cards are actually in the back of the van and just need fitting.

As for the seats and steering wheel, no model is better served for spare parts than a Mini, so we doubt a pair of refurbished seats and a full-width rubber mat would break the bank – and if you were to throw on a smaller and more sporting steering wheel, few would accuse you of spoiling what is otherwise an attractively original vehicle.

Apart from this, the floor is missing a couple of rubber bungs, the headlining above the front seats is stained, the seals on the Triplex side windows have perished, there are a few runs in the paint on the inside of the driver’s door, the cranked gearlever is a little more patinated than anything else, and the rubber gaiter at its base needs fastening down properly.

The rest is a masterclass in space efficiency, offering the driver and passenger far more leg and elbow room that the car’s pintsize footprint suggests should be possible.

There’s oodles of space in the back too. Cleverly, the loadspace floor is asymmetrical, with the offside being slightly shorter than that of the nearside to allow the driver’s seat to go back a little further. 

Even slightly truncated it would be ideal for carrying the stuff you need for your business or, perhaps, to be turned into the cutest micro-camper on Instagram as you embrace the freedom of #vanlife.

Either way it is ridiculously clean and completely unsullied; despite its working-class roots, we doubt it’s transported anything more heavy-duty than a lightly-filled shopping bag in years.

Other delights include a Smiths heater, which was probably an extra-cost option at the time. Kangol seatbelts too, plus what looks to be a new rearview mirror and fresh rubber door seals.

Finally, the instrumentation in the central dashboard might be sparse but do you really need to know anything more than speed, distance, fuel level, coolant temperature, and oil pressure?
 

Speaking of oil pressure, as you can see from the video, the Mini not only starts and revs as it should, it also shows very good oil pressure, even at idle.

And what an idle it is; to the seller’s credit, the 1220cc engine runs more like a sewing machine than a car engine – but then he invested a lot of time and money in getting it so.

He’s a mechanic by trade, and after trying a few different engines over the years became intrigued by the Hillman Imp piston-trick. Information on precisely what is involved was sketchy, and it turned out to be a bit harder than he thought, but he got there in the end via a rebore, a different crankshaft, and a £1,000 unleaded head conversion.  

He said the result is a much torquier engine that pulls especially well out of slow corners and roundabouts. In other words, exactly the sort of places you will appreciate the extra drivability the most.

As for its cosmetic condition, the big stuff like the inner wings and bulkhead, the engine block, underbonnet, and air filter housing are all excellent.

Sure, you could pretty-up some of the brackets and fasteners, and spending no more than a few hours tidying it up would probably bring it to a potentially show-winning condition.

However, the video does show what looks like water vapour/steam escaping from somewhere, so you might like to look at that before you embark on any long journeys. That said, he drove it from his home to us without any issues and he thinks that was easily the longest journey it’s done in a couple of decades.

The underside, which received new floors during its restoration, is finished in a Teal Blue-tinted Raptor underseal. It is, therefore, as well finished as the coachwork, looks sensational, and should stay that way for a long time to come.

There’s evidence of plenty of new fasteners too, plus recent front dampers and a good exhaust system. Overall, it exudes an air of wellbeing that’s almost impossible to fake.
 

Paperwork is sparse but it does have a V5 in the seller’s name, some old MoT certificates and tax discs, and a clear Vehicle History Check.

It also comes with a car cover and a few spare parts; please take a look at the photos to see what’s included.

The Mini doesn’t have a current MoT certificate, and while it is exempt by virtue of its age, we would strongly encourage the new owner to have it MoT’d at the earliest opportunity. The cost of an MoT is a small investment when offset against the purchase and upkeep of any classic vehicle, and it gives an independent, third-party assessment of the car’s condition, which not only provides reassurance to the owner (and any subsequent purchasers) but might also be invaluable in the event of a bump when negotiating with the police and any interested insurance companies… 
 

In need of a little tidying up, what’s left to do is the nice stuff, the clean stuff, the cheap ‘n’ easy stuff like seats, steering wheel, and carpets.

The important thing is that the heavy lifting has been done: The hard jobs, the dirty jobs, the expensive jobs are behind you.

Which leaves you in the enviable position of having the entire summer to decide what you’re going to use your new commercial classic for – and as we suggested, the possibilities span the spectrum from workhorse to temporary home.

And the good news continues because the estimate is as tiny as the Mini itself: We think the virtual hammer will fall somewhere between £8,000 and £12,000, but as it is being offered with no reserve, it’s going to sell from the very first bid.

It’s a tempting proposition, isn’t it?

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.