BL MINI PRICES SURGE
1970s models were the bargains of the Mini line-up, but that’s changing
‘Buyers who once avoided BL Minis are now prepared to pay good money for the right cars’
Just a few years ago the very earliest Minis were the hottest ticket in Mini ownership, with a demand frenzy that outstripped any interest in even the finest Cooper and Cooper S models. At a pinch 1960 models were just as prized, but it was the first-year cars that generated big interest and, consequently, big prices.
At the same time the very last 2000/2001 cars were popular and they still are, with low-mileage examples still being sought out, allowing the vendor to put a tidy sum in their piggy bank.
Yet while the first and the final cars were the most prized, those from the British Leyland era struggled to make strong money.
That is no longer the case, with buyers who once avoided the BL cars now reappraising those models and prepared to pay good money for the right cars.
Recent examples of this have included a pair of Mini Clubman estates offered by Brightwells and CCA within a few days of each other in September.
Brightwells’ 1975 example had been driven fewer than 56,000 miles from new and had been resprayed in its original Citron colour. Undersealed from new, the panels were in good order and the blue interior had lasted well. Hammered away for £6050, it was a bargain compared with earlier ‘woodie’ Mini estates.
Also performing well at Brightwells was an 18,000-miles 1977 Mini 1000 saloon. Three owners, the last buying it from the Leominster auctioneer in 2009, had clearly looked after it well and it had been MoT’d and serviced even though, in some years, it had hardly been used. Until recently it would have attracted some interest, but with the tide for BL-era Minis changing it was sold for a very healthy £9020.
Just a few days before Brightwells’ sale CCA led the Clubman estate charge with a 1974 Teal Blue 25,500
miler. In fair-to-good condition it had plenty of paperwork and was said to be running smoothly. With scope for light external smarteningup, it was off for £6875.
Offering a more affordable way into 1970s Mini ownership, Charterhouse offered a longterm stored 1974 1000 that, while needing plenty of recommissioning work, still made £3740.
Recent sales have shown that after some time stuck in the doldrums, the BL Mini is catching up with the values of its earlier and later siblings. But while prices are on the march, they still offer a great value.