Biota's claim to fame (1)

You may have thought the Biota was a comical looking funster, meant to impress your friends in the 1970s beer garden, but it wasn't all that. Biota instigator John Houghton actually was a keen motor sports enthusiast who raced his buggy-like creation hard. A works prepared car (a Mk1/Mk2 hybrid) did in fact surprisingly well in hill climbing. The car used a lightweight space frame chassis with go-kart sourced disc brakes all round and a 100bhp A-series engine. It is said to weigh just over 300kgs. The car was run in the 1972 Castrol/BARC Hill Climb Championship and was mostly entered twice with not only Houghton himself at the wheel, but also racer Chris Seaman. At Harewood the latter made a run in 45.06 secs and won his class. Houghton made 46.55 coming home second. They were in fact so quick that they (Seaman) won that year's Championship and came third too (Houghton)!

Now, almost 50 years later Maximum Mini fan and Biota collector (yes, really) John Rayner found it time for a commemoration run. He wrote: "It is the 50th anniversary of Harewood hill climb and the 40th anniversary of the Biota winning the British Hill Climb Championship and on the 23rd of September this year at least three Biotas will be present along with John Houghton (the former owner of the Biota motor co & second driver finishing 3rd in the Championship) and Chris Seaman who won in 1972. It is thought this is the first time so many running Biotas have been together since the factory closed. Although I have 4 of these ***ing things!" I hope to be there, too. If not I'm sure John will send over some pictures for a follow-up. For now I have taken a deep dive into the archives to see what I had on the hill climb car. Enjoy it!

The Biota lightweight hill climb car with Houghton's work men on a test run in Dinington

Picture courtesy Rob Mellaart

Here the car is being raced at Harewood hill climb as part of the '72 championship

Picture courtesy Rob Mellaart

This is John Houghton driving it. Note head rest and road registration number

Picture courtesy Tim Dyke

Ad from a 1972 magazine showing the lightweight car

Picture archives Jeroen Booij

This ad was made right after the Biota won the Championship in '72

Picture archives Jeroen Booij

The winning car next to the numbers 2 and 3 on the cover of Yorks club mag

Picture archives Jeroen Booij