£53k Cooper coup
1964 motor sat unused in shed for years
A CAR fanatic whose 1964 Mini sat unused in his garden shed for 34 years and had to be pushed to get it to auction has seen it fetch a mighty £53,000.
Owner Elwyn Watkins, 86, paid £800 for the car, equal to roughly £16,000 today.
The green MK1 Morris Mini Cooper S 1071cc was one of just 4,000 made with the performance engine by British Motor Corporation in the year leading up to one winning the Monte Carlo Rally.
Despite needing renovation work, a bidding war broke out for the car that had only covered 39,144 miles.
Auction staff were shocked when the hammer fell at £52,875 – well over the estimated price of £32,000.
Richard Greenhalgh, from Classic Car Auctions in Leamington Spa, 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 car, in original almond green paint, comes with a porcelain green and dove grey trim.
Retired Mr Watkins, who ran Elwyn Watkins Transport company, bought the car in 1965 instead of a Jaguar E-type because he needed a car with back seats to take mates to the Isle of Man. After that he kept it in his shed in Kidderminster, Worcs, and it had only been driven for 113 miles after 1986.
Elwyn’s brother, Julian Watkins, 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 knew the car was rare but it was still a shock.
The retired teacher added: “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, who snapped it up on September 24, plans to fully restore it and then take it for a spin to show the Watkins brothers.
Auctioneer Mr Greenhaulgh, added: “The family are delighted with the sale and the buyer has told us that the car will be sympathetically restored and soon be back on the road.”
You just don’t know what you’ve got in the garage. It was a shock
JULIAN WATKINS MINI OWNER ELWYN’S BROTHER