Mike Wilsdon (more here) must be one of Britain's best kept secrets, as he manages to create a near Sir David Livingstone-like status of myth here. As you may know by now I'd love to get in touch with Wilsdon about the Mini based Mobi-One - the car that can virtually park on a postage stamp - that he owns, or owned (more here) plus his Status Minipower. Actually, fellow Minipower owner and reader Andy Downes was in touch with him years ago. More recently he wrote to me: "I thought you might like these Status Minipower pictures – they were sent to me by Mike Wilsdon in 2004, so please credit him if you publish! They are of one of his cars (he told me he had two at one time) in a barn with loads of other stuff. You can clearly see the ‘orrible orange spaceframe in some of the pictures." That does indeed look pretty much similar in colour to Andy's! (here). At least it tells us the bright green car survived until some 7 years ago. Andy lost touch, so what happened to it (them?) afterwards..?
UPDATE 16 December 2020: The car survives. More here.
Very dusty but very much the real thing: Wilsdon's Status Minipower
Picture courtesy Mike Wilsdon
Orange was a signature colour for Status' spaceframes, 20 were built
Picture courtesy Mike Wilsdon
Mini power at the rear for Status Minipower, it appears to be complete
Picture courtesy Mike Wilsdon
I am 99% certain this is the Status I built from new in 1974-5 when I was a medical student. The registration was HON 893N. I still have a file of documents. Does the car still exist?
ReplyDeleteNigel Harper
Nigeljnharper@btopenworld.com
Thank you Nigel!
ReplyDeleteI sold a status minipower to Mike in 83/84. Mine was an orange one so not the one in the pics, but do remember him saying he had another. He lived near Kew Gardens at that time. I have loads of pics of my one in my loft somewhere.
ReplyDeleteStu Hards
Stuhards@aol.com
I sold this status car [ HON 893N] to Mike Wilsden in the mid eightes . I kept in contact with him for about ten years after I sold it. The car looked worse every time I saw it.There was a nice hard top with the car when I sold it [black with lexan side and rear windows ] he told me it was the only status hard top he had ever ever seen.I do not remember what he told me happened to it.The owner before me was a Chinese student who abandoned the car and went to live in Singapore The car had been abandoned in the front garden of his landladies house and was in poor condition with most of the engine missing when I bought it.The engine I fitted was 1275 cc and the car ran very well for the 3 years I owned it. I have some photographs if anyone is interested and i will help if I can. Arthur Bills
ReplyDeleteHi Arthur. Thank you very much for your reply. Could you drop me a line on jeroen@jeroenbooij.com ?
DeleteI am in touch with Mike if anyone requires an update
ReplyDeletePlease do ask him if he knows where the cars are.
DeleteYes he knows where the cars are. I don't think he is going to dispose of them anytime soon. He was on that dreadful fake show 'American Pickers in LOndon' He was not paid but at least he did not sell those charlatans anything which they wanted.
DeleteHi there, this maybe a bit of a long shot as it looks like this article is a number of years old but I was hoping to get in touch with someone who can contact me regarding the status minipower. If someone could email me at jason@westlake.co.nz I'd really appreciate it
ReplyDeleteMike Wilsdon now lives in Weston-Super-Mare (2018)
ReplyDelete