A 1964 Mini that was kept in a shed for 34 years has been sold for a not-so-mini £53,000 after a bidding war broke out at an auction. It belonged to Elwyn Watkins, 84, who had paid £800 for the green MK1 Morris Mini Cooper S 1071cc in 1965, around £16,000 in today's money.
The car was one of only around 4,000 made with the performance engine by British Motor Corporation in the year leading up to it winning the Monte Carlo Rally. The Kidderminster motor enthusiast celebrated the sale with his brother Julian and a strong cup of tea.
Classic Car Auctions were stunned when the Mini fetched £52,875 - well over the estimated sale price of £32,000 on Saturday September 24, BirminghamLive reports. Despite needing renovation work, a bidding war broke out for the single fuel tank car that had only done just over 39,000 miles.
It only travelled 113 miles in the past 36 years since its last MoT certificate was issued in October 1986 at 39,031 miles. The Almond Green car came with original features including Porcelain Green and Dove Grey trim.
Retired Mr Watkins, who ran Elwyn Watkins Transport company, bought the car nstead of a Jaguar E-type because he needed a car with back seats to take friends to the Isle of Man. But over the years, he kept it stored away, preferring to use other cars.
His brother, retired schoolteacher Julian Watkins, who lives near Bewdley, said: “My brother is a motorbike and rally enthusiast and just kept it in the shed and used other cars. I told him it was time to sell the Mini as he’d never use it but we never thought it would get this price. You just don’t know what you’ve got lying in the garage.
“We umm-ed and arr-ed for 12 months over it as we weren’t sure whether to restore it or sell it as it was, but Richard at the auction house was great. We knew the car was rare but it was still a shock. I think Elwyn may buy another newer Mini in homage to it, to replace it.
“Apparently, classic car prices are booming at the moment. I think it’s down to a lot of baby boomers retiring and wanting to relive what they had before.”
Although the pre-sale condition report scored the car just 61 out of 135, it is all original including Cooper S 4.5J wheels and the DON 55C registration plate. The excited new owner plans to fully restore it and then take it for a spin to show the Watkins brothers.
Richard Greenhalgh from Classic Car Auctions, the specialist classic car auction house near Leamington Spa that sold the Mini, said: “The car had sat in that garden shed for over 30 years before we sold it. We had to roll it out the shed to take a photo of it.
"When the owner bought this Mini Cooper, it was quite the car of its day. The family are delighted with the sale and the buyer has told us that the car will be sympathetically restored and soon back on the road."
