Richard Appleby's '68 Deluxe

This could be one of the most exciting car profiles you have ever read, but the chances of that are pretty slim. This is my car, a 1968 Morris Mini Deluxe. I've had it for about two years now and it really should be looking better than it does, but as these things generally seem to go, it hasn't quite come together yet.

The engine is a possibly the least exciting part. It's a completely standard 998cc. Standard filter, standard head, standard everything. The exhaust is standard too, as are the extractors. I took it out for to a dyno day and it managed an amazing 12.7kW at the wheels.

Speaking of the wheels, they are not standard. My intention for this car was always to take it out to a couple of super sprints and hill climbs, and approaching the hairpin at Mallala on drum brakes, braking and having the car veer a meter to the left, leaving one wheel on the ripple strip and my life flashing before my eyes, I decided discs would be a far better option. I picked up a set of 8.4" discs from a late model imported mini and had them fitted. 8.4" discs don't actually fit under the standard 10" wheels, so I was forced to go to 12" rims. The particular wheels I have are "Minitor" wheels and the center caps are held in with sticky tape. The for tyres come in two brands, and all came with the wheels second hand. The fronts are Rikens, and the rears are something else. So far they've lasted about 15,000km and three rounds of motorkhanas as well as a practice, so they're not doing too badly considering the punishment they've taken. The disc brakes are a worthwhile addition to any Mini. The increased reliability and reduced fade they have over drums is invaluable.

The suspension is standard hydrolastic front and rear, but I've fitted competition bump stops to the rear. The 12" wheels rub on the rear guards with passengers in the rear seats, and the bump stops prevent this. The also help turn in by preventing the car from rolling too far before it settles. At around $70 for the kit, it's a bargain for any hydrolastic mini.

The interior really is something special in this car, and I don't mean special in a good way. For a start, the previous owner decided to respray the car. The colour from the factory is 'Lake Green', but they decided to respray it in British Racing Green. Unfortunately, they only resprayed the exterior, and the interior is still Lake Green. As you can see from the picture above, the tacho is indeed a work of art. It's mounted in a $2.75 elbow of PVC pipe, available from your local Bunnings. The tacho is firmly secured with 'race tape' it a startling blue which really doesn't match anything.

As you can see above, the other side of the dash is just as impressive. The interior is finished in left over sound proofing brown which really has a lovely texture. The exposed wiring, bolts and screws really finish it off I think. Originally, the car had a wood grain dash, but it was falling out and the laminate was coming off, so I removed it and replaced it with the Cooper style center oval. I haven't quite got around to cleaning things up yet.

Future plans for this car are ambitious. First of all, the 998 engine is being replace with a 1275 unit from an MG Metro, with a supercharger. At the time of writing this is actually happening thanks to Adrian and Morris Mania and Ben Afford who makes the supercharger kit. The car will undergo a full respray and I'll probably put some shocks on the front to prevent the front end lift under acceleration.

That's about it for my car, hope you enjoyed the read and I'll see you out there!

Summary

Pics

Custom ventilated battery box

Lovingly maintained and cleaned bonnet

Website address dodgy application

I can't believe it either