Meredith Mini Special goes Dutch

It's good to know that the Meredith Mini Special survives. I did receive a few pictures of it recently, showing the car on its Dutch registration '03-YD-10', which it received after it was sold from the UK 10 years ago and imported to The Netherlands next. Yes, it's a bit of a Triumph-Ford-Mini-hybrid, which was made by Douglas Meredith of Welshpool (click here). 

Anybody who knows where in this country the car is now? It doesn't seem to come out very o=ften, but I'd love to see it in person one day.

The 'Mini by Meredith' mixes body elements of Ford, Triumph and Mini

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Blurred plate seems to be the British one (KEJ 411P) here, taken prior to re-registration?

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

It is on Dutch plate '03-YD-10' since 2014 and does come out rarely, or so it seems

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Outside seems most unusual, but there's no doubt this is a Mini engine, an 1100

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Seats and more bits of the interior came from a Mini 1100 Special also. Where is the car?

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Home grown Specials (5)

Why on earth would anyone take three totally different cars from three different eras and cut 'n shut them together into one motoring mix, previously unseen? The late Douglas Meredith provided us with the simple answer: "I wanted something different", or so he said back in 1997. And with plenty of time on his hands as a pensioned panel beater, Douglas from Welshpool set himself to the task of grafting together three cars to build one most unusual special back in 1989. The base was provided by a 1979 Mini 1100 mated to the rear end of a 60's Triumph Herald convertible and the front end of an 80's Ford Escort. Doug strengthened the Mini's floor, chopped back a set of Mini Clubman front wings and fitted these, narrowed and shortened a Escort Mk3 front and mig welded that on. The bonnet became a mixture of Mini Clubman and Escort. Next, he chopped the roof and rear end off the Mini, took a Herald and cut the rear off that, narrowed it by one inch, mig welded that on the Mini and made the convertible roof fit the Mini windscreen surround. Easy eh?! The wheel arches were subtly widened and the car was painted in a bright cellulose red. It took the much experienced Meredith three years of work and an estimated 2,600 GBP in costs. The Herald leftovers were used as a greenhouse to grow tomatoes and strawberries, so that was a nice bonus! He did sell the car not too long after that, though, and I understand that it recently made it over to The Netherlands. 

That's a strange bumper on a Triumph Herald isn't it? It looks narrower too.

Picture courtesy ebay.co.uk 

Hang on, it's an Escort with a Mini badge. Or not? Bonnet is a mixture of these

Picture courtesy ebay.co.uk 

There's no doubt that there's a Mini in the Meredith special. The conversion is all-steel

Picture courtesy ebay.co.uk

Meredith wanted a convertible and that's were the Triumph rear came in

Picture courtesy ebay.co.uk

The hood fits the Mini windscreen surround. Imagine the work going in it!

Picture courtesy ebay.co.uk 

The late Douglas Meredith with his unusual Mini special back in 1997

Picture courtesy Martin Vincent