drmini in aust wrote:
Ian,
Here's the 850 I was riding shotgun in, back in Dec 1965.
The tree went straight through the radiator and kept going. A good 12" or more into the roofline. (It missed the crank, so I put this bored & stroked 997 motor into MY 850 when I could walk unassisted, 10 months later).
I was sitting in that front seat, my left leg got badly smashed. No belts were in the car.
Good thing we hit the gumtree about 1M off the ground and it was a small one, otherwise I would NOT be here.

Seeing as how Kev showed us his, I have decided to show mine
This was a life changing crash for me (almost a life-taking crash). I flinch every time I see it, and for a long time did not want to see it plastered all over the internet. I STILL DO NOT WANT TO SEE THAT (please respect the copyright).
The background to the crash is simple, I was riding motorbikes and the Mini was a rain-proof (mostly) way of socialising with members of the opp sex who were bike-averse. It was a bodged-up unit disposed of by a large car sales company through a couple of stooges. I was gradually correcting all the faults (eg shim brass sleeved wheel cylinders) and had a rack on order.
The rack failed and Mick collected the mother of all telegraph poles.
It is a great testament to the tough construction of the Mini that I survived.