BMC Australia (remember them? ) released the Morris 850 (eventually renamed Mini but forever lovingly known as The Brick) in 1961, promoting it as a perfect town runabout but also tough enough to cope with the bush. The manufacturer advertised it as a five-seater but with respect three in the back seat needed to be children or very friendly.
This is a 1964 Morris 850 ad. It brought back a lot of very good memories, recollections of a little buzz bomb that cornered almost as if on rails. I bet this brings memories for many of you.
Cheers - John
aussie_paul said
11:57 AM Jun 24, 2015
It sure does John, one of my younger sisters had a couple and having to change the exhaust gasket was a pain. Fortunately she was very mechanical on the farm and her smaller hands could reach spots mine wouldn't!!!! We put an 1100 engine in it and gave it a bit more go..
Aussie Paul.
hako said
12:58 PM Jun 24, 2015
My big brother bought one new just after they were released - bright yellow with sliding windows, salt and pepper upholstery and floor starter button. Anyway we took it on a run up from Sydney to Bourke then across to Kingaroy and back down the coast freecamping all the way. Naturally it attracted heaps of attention on the way. Only spot of bother we had was when camped on a sandy creek bed and the 10" wheels and front wheel drive could not move us - had to enlist the aid of other campers to lift us out.
Good Luck.
Dougwe said
07:48 PM Jun 24, 2015
I had a orange one many moons ago. I won't tell you I had bathers like that bloke getting out, nope, no way.
My first car was a Morris Minor 1000. Same colour as the one in the first photo.
ST391GQ said
09:15 PM Jun 24, 2015
I had 3 ..
First one was a sliding window 850...which I converted to a key start...extracters ....2 inch exhaust ...and 2 spring washers in the suspension to give it clearance on dirt roads.
Next one was a 1000 cc mini cooper ...went like a shower of........ ! ...Same thing again as the first one as far as mods go.
Third one (wish I had kept this one ) was a 1971 Morris Cooper "S"...1275..twin carbies ...extracters...2 inch exhaust ...next to no muffler.. Candy Red with a white roof and Contessa mags ...would do 100MPH in third....115 in top ...and I loved it!!! But things change (Kids!) and it went .
I hear that 20000 bux would only get an average one these days...if it can be found.
Cheers Keith
-- Edited by ST391GQ on Wednesday 24th of June 2015 09:18:01 PM
capricorn and pisces said
10:37 PM Jun 24, 2015
I had one of those too with a new baby! Second hand, in pretty good condition. It was much the same colour as the one in the add.
That must have been some time ago as the baby is in his forties now!!!!
Capricorn
The Doo crew said
10:50 PM Jun 24, 2015
My favourite Dad helped me buy when I was 17 was a British racing green 69 Cooper, 1275cc bored to 1310cc, twin su's, electronic ignition, 2" system with a Lukey muffler, neighbours hated when I came up our street late at night exhaust burbling all the way to the driveway.
An odd "S" bend on beginning of our street, the mini went through it at speed like it was on rails, nothing could come close to matching it. We were a real Mini family, between mum, myself & my 3 brothers we owned a total of 16 of these little gems in sedans & panel vans.
Many an hour cursing over skinned knuckles repairing exhausts & replacing CV joints, have a photo album somewhere full of photos, including a few we crashed.
Desert Dweller said
05:45 AM Jun 25, 2015
This is a TRUE story! I failed my licence test in a Mini, failed the parking component. They moved the beacons in closer, but I couldn't get close enough to the kerb.
sufil said
10:00 AM Jun 25, 2015
We also had a 69 Cooper S, when we married 45 yrs ago. Kid came along and we couldn't get the bassinet in it so it had to go!!
Joe50 said
12:16 PM Jun 25, 2015
Sighhhh ... one of my life's regrets is not owning a Mini, closest I came was my first car, a Morris 1100. Memories of the time include highway police in unmarked Cooper S's (don't think it was called Highway Patrol in the late 60s) - they were easy to spot as they all had metal sun shades across the top of the windscreen and were all registered in March. Also was fascinated watching them race at the old Warwick Farm circuit in Sydney where the Mustangs and Camaros would blast past them on the straight and the Minis would sail past them under brakes into Creek Corner and pull away through the esses.
Joe
-- Edited by Joe50 on Thursday 25th of June 2015 01:17:09 PM
done dreaming said
05:11 PM Jun 25, 2015
I had a Cooper s but traded it in for my ford panel van as i wasn't a contorsinist.
WollyandPete said
08:28 PM Jun 25, 2015
First of three Minis we had, a 61' 850 then 69' panel van (our shaggin wagon) then a brand new Mini S in 1976. My wife pines for another one these days but I don't.
Pete
03_Troopy said
11:59 AM Jun 26, 2015
capricorn and pisces wrote:
I had one of those too with a new baby! Second hand, in pretty good condition. It was much the same colour as the one in the add.
That must have been some time ago as the baby is in his forties now!!!!
Capricorn
Was did a second hand baby set you back in those days?
aussie_paul said
12:22 PM Jun 26, 2015
Was it a Mini that they used to lift with one drop of Supaglue when Supaglue first came out?
Aussie Paul.
Ontos45 said
12:55 PM Jun 26, 2015
Remember this Joe50?
Delivering papers round Sydney suberbs with a Rottie sitting on top of the papers...no thefts.
aussie_paul said
01:11 PM Jun 26, 2015
An Auntie of mine won a Mini Moke in a local raffle, and her mother, had a couple of mini's after her retirement.
Aussie Paul.
Joe50 said
12:28 AM Jun 27, 2015
Ontos45 wrote:
Remember this Joe50?
Delivering papers round Sydney suberbs with a Rottie sitting on top of the papers...no thefts.
Ah memories, colour is a little different from the pink one we had (must have been a refugee from the Think Pink cement company). Would have made a great float for the Mardi Gras along Oxford Street!
capricorn and pisces said
11:51 PM Jun 27, 2015
Thank you 03 Troopy....read that and couldn't stop laughing!
Like all of one's off spring he was cheap to start with but the expenses grew as he fast as he did!!!!!!
The second hand mini was definitely cheaper to keep!
cheers Capricorn
Peter_n_Margaret said
12:18 AM Jun 28, 2015
We started our travels around Australia together in Minis. We drove an 850 to Darwin and back to Adelaide in 3 weeks for our honeymoon in 1967.
The 1968 'Deluxe' did several bush trips including driving west from Coward Springs on the Oodnadatta Track in 1970.
The "Mini K" went to Uluru a couple of times.
When our son needed his first car, I gave him an 850 with the engine in pieces in the boot and told him that if he could fix it he could have it. He always looked after his cars after that. Great cars.
Cheers, Peter
Cheers, Peter
-- Edited by Peter_n_Margaret on Sunday 28th of June 2015 12:20:06 AM
Gday...
BMC Australia (remember them?
) released the Morris 850 (eventually renamed Mini but forever lovingly known as The Brick) in 1961, promoting it as a perfect town runabout but also tough enough to cope with the bush. The manufacturer advertised it as a five-seater but with respect three in the back seat needed to be children or very friendly.
This is a 1964 Morris 850 ad. It brought back a lot of very good memories, recollections of a little buzz bomb that cornered almost as if on rails. I bet this brings memories for many of you.
Cheers - John
It sure does John, one of my younger sisters had a couple and having to change the exhaust gasket was a pain. Fortunately she was very mechanical on the farm and her smaller hands could reach spots mine wouldn't!!!! We put an 1100 engine in it and gave it a bit more go..
Aussie Paul.
Good Luck.
I had 3 ..
First one was a sliding window 850...which I converted to a key start...extracters ....2 inch exhaust ...and 2 spring washers in the suspension to give it clearance on dirt roads.
Next one was a 1000 cc mini cooper ...went like a shower of........ ! ...Same thing again as the first one as far as mods go.
Third one (wish I had kept this one ) was a 1971 Morris Cooper "S"...1275..twin carbies ...extracters...2 inch exhaust ...next to no muffler.. Candy Red with a white roof and Contessa mags ...would do 100MPH in third....115 in top ...and I loved it!!! But things change (Kids!) and it went .
I hear that 20000 bux would only get an average one these days...if it can be found.
Cheers Keith
-- Edited by ST391GQ on Wednesday 24th of June 2015 09:18:01 PM
I had one of those too with a new baby! Second hand, in pretty good condition. It was much the same colour as the one in the add.
That must have been some time ago as the baby is in his forties now!!!!
Capricorn
An odd "S" bend on beginning of our street, the mini went through it at speed like it was on rails, nothing could come close to matching it. We were a real Mini family, between mum, myself & my 3 brothers we owned a total of 16 of these little gems in sedans & panel vans.
Many an hour cursing over skinned knuckles repairing exhausts & replacing CV joints, have a photo album somewhere full of photos, including a few we crashed.
This is a TRUE story! I failed my licence test in a Mini, failed the parking component.
They moved the beacons in closer, but I couldn't get close enough to the kerb.
Sighhhh ... one of my life's regrets is not owning a Mini, closest I came was my first car, a Morris 1100. Memories of the time include highway police in unmarked Cooper S's (don't think it was called Highway Patrol in the late 60s) - they were easy to spot as they all had metal sun shades across the top of the windscreen and were all registered in March. Also was fascinated watching them race at the old Warwick Farm circuit in Sydney where the Mustangs and Camaros would blast past them on the straight and the Minis would sail past them under brakes into Creek Corner and pull away through the esses.
Joe
-- Edited by Joe50 on Thursday 25th of June 2015 01:17:09 PM
Pete
Was did a second hand baby set you back in those days?
Was it a Mini that they used to lift with one drop of Supaglue when Supaglue first came out?
Aussie Paul.
Remember this Joe50?
Delivering papers round Sydney suberbs with a Rottie sitting on top of the papers...no thefts.
An Auntie of mine won a Mini Moke in a local raffle, and her mother, had a couple of mini's after her retirement.
Aussie Paul.
Ah memories, colour is a little different from the pink one we had (must have been a refugee from the Think Pink cement company). Would have made a great float for the Mardi Gras along Oxford Street!
Thank you 03 Troopy....read that and couldn't stop laughing!
Like all of one's off spring he was cheap to start with but the expenses grew as he fast as he did!!!!!!
The second hand mini was definitely cheaper to keep!
cheers Capricorn
We started our travels around Australia together in Minis.
We drove an 850 to Darwin and back to Adelaide in 3 weeks for our honeymoon in 1967.
The 1968 'Deluxe' did several bush trips including driving west from Coward Springs on the Oodnadatta Track in 1970.
The "Mini K" went to Uluru a couple of times.
When our son needed his first car, I gave him an 850 with the engine in pieces in the boot and told him that if he could fix it he could have it.
He always looked after his cars after that.
Great cars.
Cheers,
Peter
Cheers,
Peter
-- Edited by Peter_n_Margaret on Sunday 28th of June 2015 12:20:06 AM