I hear you. I get it. I wish Photos would allow embeds on other sites. Also wish the forum software would allow more than 10 photos in a post. I'll upload photos to the Ausmini server in the future.

viperrwk

I will measure and get back to you. It will be a few weeks before I am back to the shop where the body is and can take the measurement. Is there significance to those holes?



I would welcome knowing the purpose of each hole and those that are extra so I can close them up. Thank you!

viperrwk

All vehicles used by New South Wales Police (an Australian State police force) were identified by a unique number, an asset number if you like. On the BMC Mini, whether an unmarked Cooper S pursuit car or a standard Mini saloon or van used as a station car, a brass ID tag with four digit number was fixed to the leading edge of the parcel shelf in that spot. For those tags the holes are 42mm apart.

Photos of the holes and brass tag in my ex-NSW Police Cooper S below.





The presence of those suggest your car may have seen service with NSW Police after it rolled off the production line. This is contrary to your statement that it was first registered in Western Australia. What evidence do you have of that? Is it possible it went to WA after first being in NSW?

Being a monotone rather than duotone painted Cooper S in a bland colour (white) is also reasonably rare and another indication of possible NSW Police use. You will have seen Bill B mentioning above that his Cooper S is also monotone white. His car is an ex-NSW Police unmarked pursuit car.

_________________
ex-NSW Police 1970 MK II Cooper S
VMCI #43

I've been meaning to produce a detailed layout of an unmolested Australian flitch panel so it can be used as reference when making repairs. Production changes would have been made during the life of the round-nose Mini but I think these would have been confined to the presence of additional holes. For example an alternator replaced the generator in 1969 so additional holes were needed for the Lucas alternator's 8TR or 4TR regulator. To avoid the need for multiple panels for different applications obsolete holes would be left in place so the same panel could be used for both pre and post alternator cars with some holes simply being left unfilled. The change in power brake booster on the Cooper S also required holes in a different position. Non-Cooper S models without a booster still used the same panel so those holes would be unfilled on those cars.

Below is a first attempt at identifying the holes in the flitch panel of my September 1970 Cooper S. I'd welcome the input of others in confirming or challenging what I've said so a comprehensive diagram can be produced. I haven't tagged some extra holes unique to my car, such as a small hole at the front where an electrical relay for driving lights was fitted, I believe.

Tooling holes were used during the manufacture of a panel to hold it in place as it is pressed.

_________________
ex-NSW Police 1970 MK II Cooper S
VMCI #43

Hi Doug, flitch panel from my S - maybe 2 extra holes. You may want to move this to a new thread.

_________________
1970 Mk2 Cooper S under restoration

Wow - well that may explain the body damage then. From the layers of paint and looking at the damage, it appears the car was hit when it was still white then repaired and later on painted green. That is great insight! Are there other mounting holes or brackets or clues I should be looking for?

Other than what I was told and the presence of the Western Australia registration sticker on the passenger window, I have no other documentation about what happened to it after it rolled off the assembly line, so it is possible it spent its early days in NSW.

Also, I had my body guy measure the distance between those holes this morning - it is indeed 42mm.

I'm assuming there are no records of the vehicles the NSW Police purchased new and then later disposed of.

Thanks Doug!

viperrwk

You could try this...

https://www.ppsr.com.au/?utm_source=goo ... gLwbvD_BwE

_________________
"Show me the Mini!"

That was illuminating!

First, the PPRS report confirms that it is a Mini Cooper S.
It also shows that the "State Vehicle Registered" is NSW. Is that when it was new or when it was first registered in that state? Would a vehicle that was originally sold to the police from the factory be "registered"? The reason I ask is that it shows March of 1971 as the month/year of "compliance."
Lastly, it shows the color as being "red" which is the color of record when it first entered the UK and it was then painted green in the UK. I'm wondering if it was originally a white police car it would have then been painted when the police disposed of the vehicle...

viperrwk

The Red would have been the last colour it was painted when registered by the RTA. The police would not have repainted it another colour to send it to Auction. At best they would fill the hole in the roof and repaint the roof.

As for the March 1971 year of compliance. I suspect thats because it was a car without an ADR and that was the date it was first registered after being sold off at the Auctions.

Would all NSW police cars have holes in the roof even the unmarked Cooper S pursuit vehicles? I'm asking because I would look to see if the top has any evidence of being cut and patched. And would they ever had unmarked vehicles be red with white top? Thank you!

viperrwk

Winabbey will be able to confirm but I believe that country cars had the 2 way radio from Mid 1970. I cant find any photos of MK1s with the roof antenna. Some GTs did and some didn't.

Some info here - viewtopic.php?f=2&t=98507&p=1045038&hilit=police+hole#p1045038

Here are some photos of some holes that current owners have come across. One looks to be soldered up and another has a steelo pad and Bog.

Not all NSW Police Cooper S had a radio. My blue car doesn't and the previous one did. Both are late 1970.

In all my research I've never seen or heard of NSW Police S being other than monotone in a "bland" colour. The whole idea at the time was for them not to be easily recognised as a Police vehicle, and certainly not seen as a high-speed pursuit car.

_________________
ex-NSW Police 1970 MK II Cooper S
VMCI #43

Agreed...and if you were lucky enough to have a monotone Mini (or sometimes, just ANY Mini, of any description)...the oceans parted for you as people got out of your way!

_________________
"Show me the Mini!"

Back in the late 60s my mates had white Mini Deluxes, they enjoyed roaring up behind unsuspecting people at night and playing copper by tailgating them.
This in the then rural hills district of Sydney.
Of course road rage had not yet been invented..

_________________
DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

A careful examination of the roof shows no repairs or patching of any holes - it looks unmolested.

I've also attached a picture of the underside of the parcel shelf in case it shows any holes that would have indicated something was mounted there by the police. Anything else I should look for to indicate this might have been a police vehicle?

As to the paint, I am 100% convinced the car was originally all white. From the PPSR report it lists the vehicle as red as it also does on the report I have from when the car was first registered in the UK. While it was in the UK it was painted green by the person I bought it from.

I have pulled the seam covers on the body. Under the seam covers the only colors there are green over white, there is no red there. This tells me the car was originally white, was painted red before it was registered in 71 and was later painted green in the UK in the 90s by the previous owner.

viperrwk