Just hope the front section doesn't have the high centre tunnel. I'll be asking them about that.

What do you mean by the high centre tunnel?

The floor was the same for all Aussie cars from memory?

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I got All Car Carpets to make up a set of rubber mats to help protect my 850’s floor mat about a year ago. They are very good quality and fit well.


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1970 MK II Cooper 'S' Supercharged 1310 with Megajolt.
1970 MK II Cooper 'S' Original resto project (SOLD)
1962 850 Original. (Under restoration)
1973 Leyland S (My first car. Now rebuilt, so my kids can learn how to drive a real car).
VMCI # 215.

I’m not sure Tim, but my floor is like this:


As opposed to this:



The new one I bought last year, although supposed to be for MK1, was moulded for the higher tunnel for the remote gear shift. And no allowance for the floor start button. So doesn’t really fit.

I’m pretty sure they’re the same for Aussie cars? But could be wrong

The later UK cars didn’t have the starter button hump

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Thanks Tim, and I don’t really know much, I’ve only ever had early Mk1 minis, and what confuses me more is when mini guys see mine, they all comment that it’s an English body. When I asked the last guy that commented, he said because it’s got the wide rear number plate. But it was bought new in Sydney in 1962.

I’ll ask All Carpets if it has the starter button hump, that should clarify it hopefully?

Until about 1964 all the panels for minis were stamped in the UK and then assembled here into cars. From the beginning in 1961 they started making more and more parts here, and the wide boot lid was changed to the narrow one during 1964.

So yours (and mine) were made in Australia using imported parts - so does that make it Australian or English? I’d still say its an Australian car as there are still many Australian parts and they are different to English ones.

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I believe that generally the "Australian mini" is considered to be the 64-onwards with winding windows and smaller number plate holder.
Those before are considered "British style bodies" and are considerably easier to get parts for.

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68 Mini-Matic with a bit of patina, named Turtle

I have 2 “English” cars and my touchstone feature as to origin has always been the four drain holes in the corners of the roof gutter.

My observation is that UK built cars have a kind of dimpled slot punched through the bottom of the gutter whereas Oz cars have two drilled holes. All the versions of both types that I have seen definitely appear to have been installed after the shell has been assembled.

It would be interesting to know whether the early CKD 997s with Oz serial numbers have punched or drilled drain holes....

The boot depression is not an identifier as by 64 Oz 850s were Made in Oz but still had the wide number plate flap.

The UK and Oz bodies didn’t diverge in any real way until the introduction of Deluxe with its wind up windows....There are minor differences earlier; in 63 UK cars adopted plastic catches on their sliding windows whereas Ox cars retained the metal catches. I suppose there are other detail differences (interior trim styles for example) as Oz local content ramped up but I can’t think of any significant variations..... UK cars changed to the MK II style in 67 but by then we were off on our own evolutionary line...

Cheers, Ian

Check the cross member. Later style pressings had folded abutments / folds to the door slam panel; earlier went through, and are what I believe to be the earlier UK pressings.

This is the rain channel hole drilling as mentioned. You'll see this feature was released into production in October 1962.

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

So I wonder what they did between June 62 and October 62?

Cheers, Ian

Normally the release of the approved drawing meant the part or modification could then be used in production, but it's possible production started earlier and the drawings is a catch-up.

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

Unfortunately, many a Mini boot were attacked/leaned on by large chrome-bumpered cars in the day...wreckers were plentiful, so that's another way your car might have ended with an English boot lid...

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"Show me the Mini!"

As he’s said in the post it’s a 1962

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