CC Outtake: MINI Coupe–What Brings You Here?

CC 186 005 1200

There’s a new car in the neighborhood, which doesn’t happen all that often unless it,s a Subaru or Prius. This is the first MINI Coupe I’ve seen; let’s just say I haven’t exactly gone out of my way to find one either. When I first saw pictures of it, it seemed a wee bit silly; another excuse to make another MINI variant. But why not; it’s not like I’ve ever seen a regular MINI with someone in the back seat. And it does reminds me of something, from 1965…

Mini Broadstreet blk

The Broadspeed GT was made for a couple of years starting in 1965, and their methods are obvious: rake the windshield, chop the top, and graft a whole new tail onto an Mini Cooper S.

Mini Broadspeed r

The tail had a decidedly Aston Martin DB6 vibe to it. The Broadspeed competed with a whole raft of Mini-based pocket rockets, and obviously, none too successfully, as it lasted just two years. Presumably the MINI Coupe will be around a bit longer.