1988 Austin Mini Designer

This 1988 Austin Mini 998cc Designer limited edition with a four-speed manual gearbox has to be the luckiest car around - especially if you’re into Chinese omens - for starters it is red and also it was first registered on 8-8-88 (8 August 1988) in South Wales. Little else is known about the car, aside from it having had 10 owners including the vendor.

The car has recently been subject to a thorough restoration and rebuild by a talented and meticulous mechanic, who built his own rotisserie frame to fit a Mini into whilst he strips it down, repairs, repaints and reassembles it.

It is being sold by a retired garage owner who knows the restorer and his father well through the trade.

If bright red’s not eye-catching enough - have a look at the yellow Rover Mini we’ve got for sale which is almost identical spec, in pretty much the same excellent condition and comes from the same source.

The bright red paint finish on this car is very, very strong - there’s barely a blemish - having been given a stripped down respray during its recent restoration. The body panels too are straight with good alignment and shutlines.

To portray a more sporting appearance, the body colour is contrasted with a black roof, black mirror caps, black bonnet stripes, twin coach lines and ‘Designer’ decals plus black wheel arch and sill trims. Twin rally driving spot lamps mounted in front of the grille complete the competition look.

The exterior chrome on the bumpers, grille, lights and window trims looks in good order with no discernible pitting. This car also has a Webasto ‘Skyview’ glass tilt sunroof which appears to have been installed well - possibly a factory-fit - and also operates as it should.

The car sits on 12-inch Classic Mini 4-spokes in black with diamond rim from Revolution Wheels and all are fitted with matching Falken tyres.

We believe we’ve built a reputation for the honesty and transparency of our descriptions, particularly when we’re looking after a car during the sale, but we’d still encourage a personal inspection so you can see for yourself how good this Mini and its yellow stablemate really are. To arrange a visit, or a video call if your travel is restricted, use the ‘Contact Seller’ option.

The interior of the car isn’t quite as good as the outside, but it’s still remarkably tidy. The carpets and headlining are in very good condition - believed renewed - and the door trims and dash present very well, although the lining in the dash recess could be better fitted.

The seats are vinyl backed with black ‘Crayons’ pattern cloth facing, accented by red, white and green flashes. Although the car has exterior ‘Designer’ decals, the seat fabrics are more akin to those found in the later Racing, Flame and Checkmate editions.

A Pioneer CD Radio with Aux input has been fitted under the dash, with its speakers installed neatly into the rear parcel shelf.

In terms of what else is not so good, the speedo doesn’t appear to be working and one of the carpet protector plates that sits under the passenger seat runner is broken.

Under the bonnet, the yellow painted engine block and body-coloured engine bay are clean and tidy with everything where it should be and with all cables and hoses renewed where required. A distributor shield is fitted to cover the ignition system and to keep oncoming rain or spray off of the electrics. The bonnet lid itself appears in a great condition with no rust to be seen, even around the hinges and catch.

The undersides of this Mini are also very tidy and clean - if it weren’t for us taking it out in the wet for photographs it would look immaculate. All floor panel undersides are freshly painted in a body-colour stone-chip/underseal coating and the sub-frame assemblies and suspension components are painted black with not a speck of rust. The engine sump has also been painted in a silver/grey. There appears to be no discernible damage to the underneath, save for a few dents here and there and what looks like a stainless steel exhaust is in good condition. Brake and fuel lines look newly replaced, as do the poly bushes all round.

Dropping the bootlid, the compact luggage compartment is again clean, tidy and painted in body-colour. Under the floor lining is the battery compartment and a full-size (well it is only 12-inch) spare steel wheel fitted with a serviceable GT Radial tyre.

This Austin Mini has a current MOT valid until November 2021 - passing with no advisories. The car has no online MOT history (MOT records went online from 2005/6) as the restorer had the car stored awaiting attention for many years, but when a Mini has been prepared as well as this one has, it’s the car’s condition now that matters much more than what’s gone before.

The entire car was fitted into a custom-built rotisserie frame before being fully stripped, repaired and repainted and everything reassembled having either been reconditioned or replaced. The vast majority of new parts and fittings are believed to have come from Minispares in Potter’s Bar.

The clutch has been changed, gearbox inspected and serviced and the engine too has been serviced and given a full health-check. As it wasn’t an engine rebuild, we can’t say that the car has undergone a full restoration but it is an amazing transformation nonetheless.

The car comes with a set of keys on a Mini-branded keyfob.

As you can see and hear in the accompanying video, this lovely red Mini starts and runs sweetly. The car drives beautifully too with a deliciously rorty exhaust note when accelerating up through the gears.

Classic Minis are always popular and, whilst early cars and Cooper models are fetching high prices, the look of the Mini didn’t change a great deal in over 40 years of production. So when a car from the last decade or so of production is reworked and refurbished to look as good as this one, we think it’s going to fetch between £10,000 and £12,000.

Don’t forget, there’s an all but identical yellow one also for sale from the same stable, so you might fancy picking up a brace of sporty Minis to make a fun two-car garage, or otherwise hedge your bets by putting your best bid against both.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.