Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #125

New pictures of Unipower GT at Spa-Francorchamps

Lost Unipower GT has been hiding in basement for 54 years

 

Crashed Unipower GT repaired and raced in Denmark

Missing Unipower GT road test found

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #124

2026 Season in Swing

The intrepid IMM trio: McCoy GT

The intrepid IMM trio: Heerey GTM

The intrepid IMM trio: Ranger Cub 4

The Otematata Engineering Elin

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #98

Biota newsflashes

Update: Mini Marcos at the Nurburgring

Coldwell in colour - at Shelsley Walsh

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #95

Getting ready for Poland 2026: 3 men, 3 project cars

Coldwell GT in its earliest stage

Happy Halloween 2025!

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #42

How a lost Outspan Orange Mini turned up again

The Biota in the field - still there!

O'Youngs Unipower GT at Macau - where is it now?

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #29

The Best of 'Minis at Le Mans'

The Ogle that almost made it to Le Mans

Le Mans' coolest trick: the Marcos' modified roof

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #24

Restored Méan Sonora BMC spectacularly presented

Events: from Blyton Park to Shelshley Walsh

New film footage of MoBi-One found

Now in maximum Mini Newsletter #17

Big update on the Le Mans Mini Marcos project - full picture report

A rainy afternoon with a Unipower GT

Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #5:

 

Biota Mk1 from its 1st owner: Find of the Year 2023

And yet another Biota barn find!

Story revealed: Why the last Biota built still has just 80 kms on the clock

A present from John Houghton himself for building the above car

Meeting up with Julien Vernaeve

I just drove 500 kilometres to pick up one single photograph. Have I gone mad? Probably! But then it wasn't just anybody who handed the picture over. I got it from Julien Vernaeve, the 1960s BMC works rally and racing legend plus BMC and Jaguar dealer and... Belgian concessionaire for the Ogle SX1000 in 1962. Vernaeve was the man to import my car to Belgium - still the only SX1000 sold new to the European mainland as far as I know. So, yes, I was very eager to speak to him. When he told me on the telephone he'd also found an old picture of the car with himself and his personal registration on it, nothing could stop me.

Vernaeve is 92 years old these days and does remember the Ogle well. He did recall it was the same bronze colour as it is today, and I learned about some more details and how he got to import it. A book about his racing career was written a couple of years ago and he gave me a copy of that. In it many pictures of racing cars, Mini Coopers and Cooper 'S's with his private plate '3995.N' and with co-drivers such as Rauno Aaltonen, Andrew Hedges, Paddy Hopkirk, Tony Fall, John Fitzpatrick, John Handley, Geoff Mabbs, Henry Liddon, Tony Pond...  His daughter Eveline had arranged the meeting at the family Jaguar dealership which is run by herself and her brother Luc today. When we were finished Julien and his dog jumped into his Jaguar F-Pace and were off. What a man! 

Julien Vernaeve, 92, at the family Jaguar dealership with the Ogle SX1000 picture

Picture Jeroen Booij

Me and Julien in the showroom. Vernaeve drove with all the big names in the 1960s

Picture Eveline Vernaeve 

A signature in the book about him that I was handed over. Thank you very much Sir

Picture Jeroen Booij 

And off in his Jaguar F-Pace again. Vernaeve Jaguar of Ghent has been a dealer for decades

Picture Jeroen Booij

Another Dutch Peel Viking reappears - and disappears again

You may remember the Peel Viking GT that was built by Dutchman Ben Konst back in 1966/1967. I was very eager to find that car back and my search was finally rewarded in February 2018. What was even better about the whole saga: Ben bought it back himself and so was reunited with his old car after almost 50 years (all about that here).

But this car registered '88-49-EP' notably wasn't the only Viking Ben imported to The Netherlands. There were at least two more and I have been digging into these for quite a while also. There were some rumours that one had ended up with a man in the south-west of The Netherlands but I was unable to locate it. One person who told me he knew more was Aad van Beekum. As a matter of fact Aad told me years ago he'd seen it and even made some pictures of it. Trouble was he couldn't find these anymore. I wasn't expecting much. So imagine my surprise when he dropped me a line earlier this week with some good news. He wrote: "After a lot of searching and thinking I found the photos on an old phone and hope you can use them."

The pictures show a rolling shell, left hand drive, that's been modified with wider wheel arches and sills. Was this car ever on the road? It seems unlikely. Apart from its bonnet the shell seems to be unpainted, primer only, while there's no glass and no holes for lights and a petrol tank. Apart from a few gauges there's no interior either. It does have a larger than usual cut-out for a rear screen, just like Ben's own car, which used a Fiat 850 Coupe's rear screen. Could it be the body shell sold by Ben to a customer in the late 1960s? (click here). 

What's a real pity is that the thing has disappeared from its hiding now once more. Aad added: "Meanwhile the garage has been closed and emptied and I understand from the stories that the cars were moved to Belgium with an address unknown. Whether the owner had control over the cars I don't know. His daughter took the Mini Moke, which was there also, and she probably paid for the lease debt. I have tried to find out details but in vain."

And so the search is on. Belgian friends, keep your eyes out please!

A Peel Viking GT is a real rarity. This one has been hiding for ages

Picture Aad van Beekum

Apart from the bonnet it seems to be in its primer and remain unbuilt

Picture Aad van Beekum

Arches have been widened but I wonder if it was ever on the road

Picture Aad van Beekum

Sills, too, are a lot wider than usual. Who undertook these modifications?

Picture Aad van Beekum

Back shows there are no holes for rear lights and tank

Picture Aad van Beekum

While a larger cut-out was made for a (Fiat 850?) rear screen

Picture Aad van Beekum

Steering column has been fitted but furthermore the interior is empty

Picture Aad van Beekum

Could it be this lhd empty shell, sold by Ben Konst in the late 1960s?

Picture Ben Konst

And how about this car registered 'FZ-04-14'? A Dutch plate of 1968

Picture Ben Konst

Zagato Mini Gatto in Jidéhem's Starter

Look what was sent to me! Another page from the old Belgian comic / motoring magazine Starter, which used to be so richly illustrated by the artist Jidéhem. I wrote about it before as some Mini based had made it to the magazine's motoring reports in the 1960s (Mini Jem, Ogle SX1000 and Quasar Unipower - click here). Somehow I'd missed out on the Zagato Mini Gatto, which was featured also in 1961. A great favourite car here and one I still regret not having bought many years ago. Thank you very much Frank Lannoye!

Spirou behind the wheel of the Zagato Mini Gatto as drawn by Jidéhem

Picture Jidéhem, via Frank Lannoye

It's named BMC 850 Zagato here. "While the design is well carried out, it can be accused for having an unusually long bonnet to house the famous small transverse engine"

Picture Jidéhem, via Frank Lannoye

Ogle SX1000 number 8 - where are you now?

There have been a few brochures for the Ogle SX1000 and one of them clearly shows the car registered '201 ANW', which was chassis number 8 or so I have been told. I don't know much about what happened to it after 1962, but do know that it was owned by Mark Butler in 2008, in who's workshop I saw it at the time. It needed a full restoration but just about all of the parts were there. Mark, however, concentrated on the Unipower GT projects he had at the time (two cars no less) and sold the car.

Then there's another gap of eight years before another sign of life of chassis number 8 came. Reader Bart Vanreusel spotted the Ogle at the InterClassics motor show in Brussels in November 2016. The restoration was nearly finished by that time and the car was offered for sale once again. Asking price was a rather staggering 120,000 euros. I have no idea if the restoration was ever fully finished or if the car was sold. Who can tell where it is now?

UPDATE 21 November 2022: A nice message from Bertrand Smets, who has been - and still is - restoring this SX1000 in Luxembourg. He wrote: "Dear Jeroen, first of all I would like to thank you for the quality of your Maximum Mini blog. Here is some news about the Ogle SX1000 number 8: The restoration of the car is not finished! The car is part of my collection and will not change owner for a long time. I will send you some pictures of the car when it is finished. Sincerely yours" Thank you Bertrand!

Ogle SX1000 '201 ANW' was a brochure car back in 1962

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

It wore chassis number 8 and was supposedly gold in colour

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

This picture must be from the same shoot as the ones used for the brochure 

Picture Ogle Noor

Fast forward to 2008. Repainted red at some stage and needing full restoration

Picture Mark Butler

Strip down had begun but work stopped. The car was complete though

Picture Mark Butler

Note that hinges have been cut out from the body. Not a simple job to repair

Picture Mark Butler

Austin engine was there and seemed to be original, too. This was in the Midlands

Picture Mark Butler

And there it is again! Almost fully restored and on display at InterClassics Brussels

Picture Bart Vanreusel

Body repaired and fully repainted, the golden colour perhaps a bit light?

Picture Bart Vanreusel

Big carb, but engine bay looked good again. The asking price? 120,000 Euros...

Picture Bart Vanreusel