Press kit

Dakar Mini

Press kit: Story, photos and video of the Dakar Mini. Free for editorial use with credit.

01Story

Lots of power, strong brakes, soft suspension. A true recipe for grand touring.

What we have here is a bespoke creation from Brooks Build, born from a 1971 Innocenti Mini Minor MK3 COOPER we personally brought straight from Sicily, Italy. Under the hood, we find a revised 998 Twin Carb engine with significantly more power as some other 998cc around, with factory figures of around 61hp and lots more to gain. To bring this power to a stop, disc brakes are installed from factory at the front. The suspension of this Mini is hydrolastic, making the car very comfortable. The good sound insulation, high plush carpets and comfy seats, which was standard with the COOPER's in Italy, also helps a lot.

A classic yellow car parked on a road near a body of water, with trees in the background and a hazy sky.

THE CAR

•998cc COOPER engine
•Legendary 12G295 cylinder head (also referred to as 28G222 in production manuals)
•D-topped pistons, giving a 9.0:1 compression ratio
•Crankshaft 8G2733 (forging number 12A595)
•AEA 630 camshaft (also found in 1098cc models)
•Twin HS2 carbs (fully renewed set) with new fuel hoses, filters, etc.
•No rust, freshly from the bottom up
•hydrolastic suspension
•Geniune 7” disc brakes (only seen on 61-69 COOPER models and therefore super rare!)
•Engine block overhauled about 5000 km ago at FONTANA
•MOMO steering wheel and shifter
•COOPER dash with 5 Clocks
•COOPER seats with extra bolsters
•COOPER rims in Anthrazitbruanmetallic M8S

•998cc COOPER engine
•Legendary 12G295 cylinder head (also referred to as 28G222 in production manuals)
•D-topped pistons, giving a 9.0:1 compression ratio
•Crankshaft 8G2733 (forging number 12A595)
•AEA 630 camshaft (also found in 1098cc models)
•Twin HS2 carbs (fully renewed set) with new fuel hoses, filters, etc.
•No rust, freshly from the bottom up
•hydrolastic suspension
•Geniune 7” disc brakes (only seen on 61-69 COOPER models and therefore super rare!)
•Engine block overhauled about 5000 km ago at FONTANA
•MOMO steering wheel and shifter
•COOPER dash with 5 Clocks
•COOPER seats with extra bolsters
•COOPER rims in Anthrazitbruanmetallic M8S

Guiseppe has imported this very Innocenti into Sicily and took ownership of the car several years ago, luckily he didn’t leave her unattended! Guiseppe has redone the full paintwork of the car and build her op from bare metal. making the car as beautiful from the underside as on the upside. Repainted subframes, refurbished suspension, new bushes etc. During the full restoration the engine was also given good care, brought away to Mr. Fontana, a known Mini Specialist right in the center of Palermo, the capital of Sicily. They come from all of Italy to get their engine built by his hands. Visiting Fontana is definitely a must when you get yourself to the Island.

Under the hood, we find a 998cc with significantly more power than you’d expect, with standard power figures for this engine reaching over 61hp and still lots more to gain! More about that here: https://brooksmotors.elementor.cloud/innocenti-mini-1001-vs-mini-cooper-998-1964-71/

The development of the 998cc was done by COOPER, first featured in both the Austin / Morris and Innocenti 998 MK2 Cooper ( of which a truly unique example can be find here: https://www.instagram.com/noel.mk2/ ) This engine was a huge success and is compared to its 1275cc brother the more balanced, less vibrating, ultrasmooth alternative which is even said to be more at home on a twisty road then the 1275. We know from experience these engine’s can be found with 150k + mileage without any problems, and that from an engine developed in the early 60’s!

To bring all that power to a stop, she’s installed as standard with boosted 7” disc brakes at the front, this combined with some fresh YOKO-rubbers will make sure you can definitely smash this one into the corners.

A MK3 Cooper sits on the famous wet-suspension, also known as hydrolasts, originally produced for the ‘super deluxe’ cars to give the highest comfort available. As a reference, this is the same technique Citroën used on their DS and if you ever sat in there you’ll now that’s some comfort. We would even say these cars are more comfortable to drive as a late MPi! The good sound insulation, which was standard behind the firewall in Italy, also helps a lot.

On the interior we find a leather covered steering wheel, a 5-clock dashboard and beefy seats solely delivered on the COOPER models. The carpet is renewed and finished with the original INNOCENTI floor mats.

02Photos

15 selected · full set in the ZIPAll photosZIP

Photography by Noël van Bilsen (@noelvanbilsen) · Please credit Brooks Motors / Noël van Bilsen