Mini

Which classic Mini should you buy, and what should you check before you do? A plain-English guide to choosing between the standard Mini, the Cooper, the Clubman, the Traveller, the Moke and the rest, where these cars rust, the mechanical points to check, and how to avoid a cloned Cooper.

Across its long life the classic Mini wore dozens of special and limited editions, from the 1979 1100 Special to the Mary Quant Designer, the anniversary cars and the 1990s Cooper revivals. A guide to the most notable Mini special editions, why there were so many, and whether they are worth more.

The classic Mini was the most influential small car ever built and one of the best-loved British classics of all. Alec Issigonis's 1959 design put four people in a ten-foot car, won the Monte Carlo Rally and ran for forty-one years. A guide to the standard Mini, the Cooper, the Clubman, the Traveller, the Moke and the rest, what they are like to own, and what they are worth.

The Mini Clubman gave Issigonis's car a longer, squared-off nose for the 1970s, and the 1275GT version took over from the Cooper S as the affordable performance Mini. A guide to the Clubman saloon and estate, the 1275GT, what to look for, and what they are worth now.

The Mini Cooper turned Alec Issigonis's economy car into a giant-killer, and the Cooper S won the Monte Carlo Rally three times. A guide to the 1960s Cooper and Cooper S, the 1990s revival, how to tell a genuine car from a clone, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The Mini Moke began as a failed military vehicle and became a doorless, open-topped fun car beloved on beaches and film sets. A guide to the British, Australian and Portuguese Mokes, its screen fame, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The classic Mini is one of the best-supported classics in the world, with almost every part remanufactured, from a service kit to a complete bodyshell. A practical guide to Mini parts availability, panels and bodywork, mechanical and trim parts, and the club and specialist network that keeps these cars running.

The Mini Traveller and its Austin Countryman twin were the estate versions of the Mini, the early ones framed in decorative timber like a miniature Morris Minor Traveller. A guide to the woody Mini, the Traveller and Countryman badges, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The Mini Van and Mini Pick-up were the commercial members of the Mini family, cheap, economical workhorses built on the longer estate wheelbase that sold by the hundred thousand. A guide to the van and the pick-up, why they survived so long, what to look for, and what they are worth now.

The Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet were the upmarket Minis, the same little car given a longer boot, a traditional grille and a walnut-trimmed cabin. A guide to the two badge-engineered luxury Minis, how they differ, what to look for, and what they are worth.

The life and cars of Sir Alec Issigonis, the engineer who designed the Morris Minor and the 1959 Mini, pioneered the transverse-engine front-wheel-drive layout, and was knighted for reshaping the small car.

What a transverse engine is, why mounting it sideways unlocked compact front-wheel drive, and how the Mini made the layout the template for the small car.

The Mini Marcos is a tiny glass-fibre monocoque coupe built on Mini subframes, sold mostly as a kit, and famous as the only British car to finish the 1966 Le Mans 24 Hours. A guide to its tangled origins, the Le Mans car that was stolen and found again, the model lineage, what to look for, and what they are worth.