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NOW SOLD!
Regrettably I am selling my much-loved 1991 Rover Mini Neon, aka Bertie the Mini, to free up funds for another Mini project (and a house deposit if there's anything left after that!).
Bertie is one of 1500 Neon limited editions produced by Rover in 1991, of which there are now less than 120 left on UK roads. Painted in stunning metallic Nordic Blue and fitted from factory with velour seats, colour matched grey interior, opening rear windows and special Neon badging, this particular car has also been tastefully upgraded with genuine Cooper 12x4.5 minilite wheels, stage 1 tuning kit, genuine Hi-Lo suspension and brand new "Evolution" cones & KYB shocks on all four corners.
I've owned Bertie since February 2020, and over the past 18 months I've done a lot of work and spent a lot of money to keep this mini in top shape. Work done to date includes the aforementioned upgrades along with a replacement rear subframe, new rear brakes & pipes, new Falken 165x60r12 tyres all round, new CV boots & steering rack gaiters, new clutch slave cylinder, and the usual required maintenance items such as spark plugs, HT leads and regular oil & filter changes.
For complete transparency, Bertie was involved in a minor accident earlier this year - another car crashed into the rear while I was stationary at a roundabout back in April 2021. Following this, the at-fault insurance company paid upwards of £5000 to repair the car to a very high standard (it was fortunately not written off - a testament to its excellent condition beforehand!) with brand new heritage panels and trim at the rear, and a colour matched partial respray. While this work was ongoing I also paid extra for the bodyshop to replace the bonnet and repaint this for me, and they stripped back and undersealed the bottom of the car for me to protect it from future corrosion. As a result the car is now extremely solid and presents very well. A detailed record has been kept with photos of all of the work done as part of these repairs which I'm more than happy to share on request.
The A+ 998 engine runs without fault, and offers surprisingly brisk performance now that it's been paired with the upgraded "stage 1" inlet & exhaust system - I've often been able to outdrive other Minis with much larger engines while driving in convoy around the local B roads! Along with this the brakes work well and the 4-speed manual gear change feels smooth and direct.
The exterior styling has been tweaked slightly to my personal taste, so the original plastic black arch extensions, black mirrors and pink Neon stickers have been removed in favour of a more classic look with simple chrome edge trim, a rare Leyland bonnet badge and "Downton" chrome mirrors for a '70s look. It's also had the roof painted black which I think really sets off the Nordic Blue paintwork beautifully. This could all be reversed back to factory original styling very easily should that be desired by the new owner.
The only bits of bodywork which haven't been addressed in recent years are the wings, the passenger door and the front panel; while the paint does still look good, there are some imperfections with cracked paint & filler and light corrosion just starting to show through. Apart from this, the car is extremely solid both in terms of bodywork and mechanicals. I wouldn't hesitate to jump in this car tomorrow and drive up to Scotland for example; it's a real nimble machine down the back lanes but is also more than happy sitting at 70+ mph on the motorway for hours on end. In fact I did take it on a 300-mile round trip toward the end of last year which was an absolute blast.
Located in Fareham, Hampshire, please get in touch with me to arrange viewing. Accompanied test drives are welcome with proof of insurance or I'm more than happy to take you out for a spin.
I'll be sad to see Bertie go but it's time now for this lovely Mini to find a good new home.
High-res album of photos including imperfections on the front wings and passenger door: https://www.flickr.c...157719695964217
TMF project/car thread: https://www.theminif...ini-neon/page-9
DSCF2502-1 by Jack Dolley, on Flickr
Edited by MiniCarJack, 04 September 2021 - 01:15 PM.
