Now in Maximum Mini Newsletter #126

New Zealand racer Rhubarb 1 survives

New Zealand Status Minipower info found

New Zealand mad Mini Coupe used Atkins supercharger

Le Mans Mini Marcos - 60 Years ago exactly

Status Minipower spotted - in 1984

This great picture of a Status Minipower at show in the UK in 1984 was posted recently by Richard Dean. The car is the one registered 'YVF 904L' and despite having been in touch with some of its previous owners and despite a sign of life dating back to 2020, I still don't know where it is now. 

Stuart Hards owned it from late 1982 until August '84 when he made a deal with Mike Wilsdon who took it over at the Hindhead show, possibly when this picture was taken? Ten years ago he wrote: "It was fitted with an Austin 1100cc engine but was pretty quick due to the lack of weight. Handling was very good, ride was a bit harsh! Don't know how it would cope with all the speed humps we have now, as it was quite low!" (full story here) and for its last sign of life click here.

Also note the Lotus Seven kind of car next to it, which looks pretty big. I don't know if you ever saw a Seven yourself but compared to just about anything on the road today that is a very small car...  

Status Minipower 'YVF 904L' at a show (Hindhead?) in 1984. Where is it now?

Picture Richard Dean

ESC's Edgar Salwegter speaks (2)

Following yesterday's discussion with Edgar Salwegter of ESC (here), I was eager to find out which of the Status Minipowers had been the one that made it over to New Zealand. Edgar recalled it was red and was seen in a book. There had been two red Minipowers in a number of publications, wearing the registrations 'PNG 433M' and 'VCL 738K'. We found out it was the latter, as seen in Peter Filby's 'Amazing Mini'.

Edgar bought the car in The Netherlands, took only the chassis to New Zealand and... scrapped the body! Edgar: "Then it became the white ESC in NZ. At least you know what happened to it. I will try and find out what happened with the next chassis in the jig."

A couple of days later he came back: "Hi Jeroen, I spoke to Angus Fogg and he has the jig for the chassis, but he does not know where the spare chassis went to. We have an all-Brits and Euro car show this weekend I will have a look and see for any new things pop up in the mini section. Angus also said he has had a few e-mails from you before."

That's right. I'd contacted Angus before about one car in New-Zealand in particular, which I had labeled as a Minipower also (this one) and showed Edgar the pictures, too. He replied: "It does look like a Status chassis from the pictures, looking at the top arm and chassis. The chassis was ahead of its time back than, with the inboard suspension. But we can rule it out as an ESC." That makes two Status Minipower-related mysteries in New Zealand. Who knows more about them..?

'VCL 738K' was a Status Minipower demonstrator that was used for a number of publications

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Peter Filby famously drove it for several of his articles, but it was also seen in a brochure

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Here it is when it was owned by Edgar - just before the body was sent to the scrappers..!

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter

The chassis was re-used in the first ESC, now with an aluminium body

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter

The wherabouts of the car remain unknown today. Do you know where it is..?

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

ESC's Edgar Salwegter speaks (1)

If you have Maximum Mini 3 you may have read about a car named ESC. I have always been intrigued by it, not only because it was built by a fellow-Dutchman who'd moved to New Zealand back in the 1980s, but also because it was believed to be built on an existing Status Minipower. It wasn't until recently that I finally got in touch with Edgar, who is still involved with cars over in New Zealand. He wrote:

"Hi Jeroen, Yes I am that Edgar. I started at Donkervoort, than built the Lotus Seven in NZ - only 2 of them. Then built ESC Mk1 what was the Status I brought to NZ from The Netherlands. Mk2 was a Lotus Seven chassis with a Holden 6-cylinder, Mk3 was a small race car built from scratch with a Suzuki 1300 GT engine and had a lot of racing fun, Mk4 was the Ferrari 333 body with a front engine Honda S2000 with what I won the North Island endurace champion ship in 2005. I also built a few MB6 McLaren replicas. went to Aus 2006 for a few years back to NZ 2014, now selling performance parts at FPP Speedshop. Ik speak Nederlands fluent, just find it hard to write."

There's no doubt that the Mk1 ESC was the one I was eager to learn more about, and Edgar was kind enough to answer all my questions. He added: "I made a jig for the Status and made one chassis and sold that to Richard Gray. I have now heard the jigs were sold to Angus Fogg who has raced Minis all his life and is a famous racing driver in New Zealand. I do know him well and I gave him the original Status badge I had kept all those years. The Status I bought, was the one that had a photo in a kit car book from the UK, but I don't have that book any more. I will try and dig up some old pictures as I gave them all to Angus."

We did find out which Status car it was in the end, as I learned what exactly happened to it. There is more to follow soon.

THE New-Zealand-built ESC Mk1 used a Status Minipower as its base

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

Seen here from the back without the aluminium body but with the Mini engine in place

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

Plans to make more cars followed. Here's a brand new chassis for one

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

It still shares many similarities of that of the Status Minipower but remained a one-off

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

Edgar did manage to market his cars in NZ newspapers. 

"I build all my cars to the European standards I learned at Donkervoort"

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

Aluminium bodied Mk1 ESC - for Edgar Salwegter Cars - remained a one-off

Picture courtesy Edgar Salwegter 

Mystery Mini derivative (72)

I'd totally forgotten about this sporty little two-seater, parked in the folder 'Unknown' all the way back in 2009. It's a real mystery of which I still know nothing after all those years. The registration is part-blurred although we can make out 'STF ***H', which would indicate it was registered on a 1969 plate. 

So... anyone who recognizes anything in it? Could it be another Status Symbol or Status Minipower chassis built up with a home-made body? The wheels seem unlike anything I've come across before also. Who knows more..?

Two-seater sports car has been in the 'Unknown' folder for years now

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

No doors, flat glass as well as most of the body parts. Surely a DIY creation..? 

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Mini engine caged at the back with exhaust making some fancy turns

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Registration is unknown but STF***H indicates it's on a 1969 plate

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Design seems to have been inspired by Status Minipower. Chassis possibly from that?

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Narrow cockpit, simple dashboard layout. What is this mystery Mini derivative?

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Status Minipower surely seems to have been an influence but was more sophisticated

Picture Jeroen Booij archive

Status Minipowers do survive

It doesn't happen all too often that a message on here produces replies many years after being published, but it certainly goes for the little piece I wrote about Mike Wilsdon and his eclectic collection of cars, back in 2011. Among these not one but two Status Minipowers (or Status Symbols as they were named initially). See the original piece here. I later wrote: "Mike Wilsdon must be one of Britain's best kept secrets, as he manages to create a near Sir David Livingstone-like status of myth here."

That was in late 2011 and many more messages and leads would follow. I still never spoke to the man, though. But more recently Barnaby Holmes got in touch. He is a family friend of Wilsdon and recently visited his barn where many of his cars are stored now or were until recently. Barnaby was also kind enough to take some photographs of the two Statuses that Mike still owns. He wrote: "Hi Jeroen, we spoke some time ago and I'm a family friend of Mike. I've recently been to the barn where he has some of his collection. The vehicles are being moved and ultimately, put up for sale. I thought you might like a couple photos of his Brian Luff Status Symbols! Apologies for the poor quality. Regards, Barnaby."

That is, of course, much appreciated. It's good to see the cars are still about and I wonder what will happen to them in the near future. Earlier sleuthing work proved that the green one was previously owned by Arthur Bills, who got in touch about it in 2014 (click here), while the red one was at around the same time by Stuart Hards, who also contacted me back in 2012 about it (click here). To be continued.

Still owned by the illusive Mike Wilsdon and tucked away in a barn: a Status Minipower

Picture Barnaby Holmes

And another... This car was owned by Stuart Hards in the early 1980s and used an 1100 engine 

Picture Barnaby Holmes

Mini 25 at Donington Park - the variants

I was tipped off about this cool video by Pete Flanagan. It shows the 25th anniversary party of the Mini held at Donington Park in August 1984 as it was filmed by members of the Mini Club Oldenburg in Germany. From their arrival at the shores of Blighty (per hovercraft!) to the parade laps at the track. What's most interesting to me is that the filmers had a keen eye for the Mini based cars. 

Skip to 3.20 minutes to see a duo of TiCis, one of them being the works demonstrator, followed by a duo of Stimson Safari Sixes, one of them still being owned by Maximum Mini fan Colin Baines (this one). Then over to a Mini Marcos, an interesting hatchback Mini Cooper 'S', a Status Minipower (owned by Arthur Bills at the time, more here), an LDD Monaco and early Midas. Go ahead to 8.15 to see a Hustler Six, Hustler in Wood and - I think - Hustler Sport. Then at 8.50 there's that funny green mystery roadster seen here before (click here and here) and a Gecko, again the works demonstrator I think. The parade laps shows even more stuff such as the Michelotti Mini (ADO 70) and a Scamp six-wheeler. Pete wrote "You're gonna love this..." Well... I do! 

Status survivor

Good news coming from New Zealand regarding a Status Minipower covered in some mystery until recently (this one - click). Paul Wilkinson is the man to know more about it. He wrote: "Hi Jeroen. Just making sure you know we've found the NZ Status Minipower from your March post. I assume the owner has been in contact or that you at least know who it is? Cheers, Paul Wilkinson."
I haven't heard from him yet, but would love to! Best thing is to know that it survives, though.

Status Minipower survives in New Zealand. More info would be appreciated

Picture Paul Wilkinson

Where is New Zealand Status Minipower?

Status Minipower owner Nick Gale contacted me a while ago, writing: "I very much doubt you know of it as it's been at the back of my garage since the late 1980s" (picture here). He also told me he had more Minipower related stuff lying around, and did even sent over some of it. What I found particularly interesting were pictures of a car in New Zealand. Nick wrote: "The race car, with real body so one of the eight made, was owned by Jason but I cannot find any of the long email thread I had with him when he was selling his car. All I have is his email and a few pictures."

That is an interesting car and I wonder if it is the one that was in The Netherlands for some time prior to be shipped over to New Zealand in - I think - the early 1980s. I have tried to contact Jason, but so far to no avail. I hope that somebody else may know more about it.

A Status Minipower in New Zealand. It has one of the few original Brian Luff made bodies

Picture via Nick Gale

Nose section is modified, though, as this car was built up as a racer. And used, too, or so it seems

Picture via Nick Gale

It is said to have been for sale in New Zealand with a man named Jason. Where is it now?

Picture via Nick Gale

Who needs a cushion when sleeping in a car as spacious as a Status Minipower..?

Picture via Nick Gale

One Minipower was exported from The Netherlands to New Zealand. Could it be this one?

Picture via Nick Gale

Status Minipower hidden for decades

I got in touch with Nick Gale recently, who happens to be the owner of a rare Status Minipower, or at least of a rolling chassis of one such car. I wondered if it was a car I'd seen before. Nick wrote: "I very much doubt you know of it as it's been at the back of my garage since the late 1980s. From correspondence with Brian Luff many years back, and based on the stamped chassis number, he thought mine was probably the second chassis built in 1972 by Arch Motors." And he is right. It certainly is a car I never knew about before. He sent over two pictures of it taken before it was put in storage. Thank you Nick for sharing them!

Nick's Status Minipower is one of 20 chassis' sold. Note orange paint under that black layer, typical for the Minipower chassis

Picture courtesy Nick Gale

It has never been on the road and has been hidden in the back of Nick's garage since the late 1980s

Picture courtesy Nick Gale

Arthur owned that Status Minipower

It's really nice to get in touch with people who have found these pages through searching for more information about a car they used to own. One of them is Arthur Bills, who came here looking for all things Status Minipower related. Arthur owned one of these great little cars in the 1980s. In fact it was this car, at one time owned by this man.

Arthur wrote: "Hi Jeroen, These photo's do not answer the question as to the current location of the car because they were taken in 1984, when I owned it. The owner before me was a Chinese student who abandoned the car and went to live in Singapore. It was parked in the front garden of his landladies house and was in poor condition, missing its cylinder head, radiator, manifolds, carb and exhaust system. There was a small amount of damage but it had not been vandalised. The cylinder bores had rust damage so I fitted a complete engine from a donor car (1275 Austin), single 1 1/2 SU on an inlet manifold made by sawing the exhaust half off a standard BL cast iron manifold and welding a water pipe to it. I fitted a 3-into-1 exhaust manifold and an exhaust system bolted up with parts from the local repair shop, as I could not find a local Status dealer! The radiator was replaced with the one from the donor car and I had to replace steering column lock and ignition switch because the key had gone missing. Triumph Herald steering column if I remember correctly. A few other minor repairs had to be done mainly because it had been parked outside exposed to the weather for so long."

"The Status was my daily drive for more than 3 years and the only problem I can remember was excessive play in an inboard wishbone bush discovered at an MOT test. These tests usually consisted of 10 minutes checking brakes lights, steering etc, followed by the mechanic taking it for a 30 minute test drive! Punctures could have been a big problem - no spare wheel - but I only ever had one and that was conveniently across the street from a tyre depot. Driving the car was amazing even with a 1275 engine acceleration was very good and the faster you drove around corners, curves roundabouts etc the happier the car felt and the drivers smile got bigger. Car park barriers and similar obstructions did not stop you as the car was so low it was easy to drive underneath them. One disadvantage was the amount of attention you got from almost everyone. A 15 minute trip could take twice as long because somebody wanted to look at the car and talk to you about it. Once I escaped a well deserved ticket when 2 policemen spent so much time checking out the Status and talking to me, that they just let me go without even a caution."

"The last time I saw the car was approximately in 1993 looking as it does in the other photographs. I have many happy memories of the Status and would like to thank Brian Luff and Nigel Harper for designing and building such a wonderful car. I have had many cars over the years and the Status is one of the few that I wish still belonged to me, writing this article has bought back many memories of the good times I had with the Status."

That's a great story Arthur, thanks a lot for sharing it here. The pictures have now also confirmed the car's registration number 'HON 893N' and I am happy to tell the DVLA still recognizes the number as a green Status. It's been off the road since 1985, or so it seems, but chances are its still out there. The hunt goes on.

UPDATE 16 December 2020: The car survives. More here.

Arthur with the Status Minipower at Stoneleigh in '84. He used it as a daily driver for 3 years

Picture courtesy Arthur Bills

Only 8 out of 20 Minipower chassis were sold with the purpose made body

Picture courtesy Arthur Bills

Designer Luff said that this is how the Lotus 7 S4 should have looked like

Picture courtesy Arthur Bills

This particular car was built up by Nigel Harper and later owned by a Chinese student

Picture courtesy Arthur Bills

Mystery closed coupe may become reality

It's been nearly three years since I posted about Andy Downes' modified Status Minipower chassis, which came with some intriguing scale drawings from a mystery company named ABH Design Group - see the article here. Andy has now sold the project to a friend who plans to finally finish the car - hopefully as the ABH it was one day meant to become. Andy wrote: "He is planning to sprint/hillclimb it, sharing it with his suspension guru and put it on the road. I’ve given him all the information and the drawings and also your details, I will keep an eye on it and send you some updates. We have worked out how the elegant gear linkage operates, and he has a log book to register it plus a 1275cc engine and box – he’s quite excited!"

"He likes the design for the ‘closed wedge’ body and is going to see about the possibility of getting it made, although it may become too expensive and end up as a ‘roadster’. He has now already partly dismantled the Minipower but has had to remove it from his business workshop as it is distracting him from his race-preparation work. Everyone who has seen it is very excited for him so hopefully it will finally get finished in the next couple of years…"

The Status Minipower chassis dates back to 1972 but has clearly been modified, too

Picture courtesy Andy Downes

And there it goes… The new owner may put it on the road as the planned closed car 

Picture courtesy Andy Downes

Design drawings for wedged closed coupe may turn into reality after 42 years

Picture courtesy Andy Downes

Mystery Mini derivative (25)

Well well. Here is the 25th mysterious Mini derivative that I'd like to share. And there are many more Mini based cars of which next to nothing is known - by me at least. This 25th certainly fits that bill, too. It came via regular reader Roald Rakers and may not be the prettiest of cars, but then beauty is in the eye of the beholder I hear you think. And right you are, as this oddball is interesting never the less. It looks to be an autocross special and is said to be Mini powered, although the front suspension appears to have been sourced from another car. Could it be another Status Minipower chassis (one here and perhaps another here), built up by a privateer in the 1970s? All I have is a name, and what a name it is. This, boys and girls is the Gallopping Maggot. It has 'Chess Valley' written on its Spartan body, which may suggest something about its wherabouts? Who knows more about it?

'Galloping Maggot' looks uncompromising. could its chassis be a Status Minipower? 

Picture via Roald Rakers

More Minipower remarks

I have lost count how many articles I spent on Mike Wilsdon and his Status Minipowers meanwhile (click the Status Minipower label at the very bottom of this article to find out). But that doesn't matter really as another puzzle part of the Minipower story fell into place when Stuart Hards contacted me. Stuart wrote: "It's strange but I haven't thought about my Status Minipower (or the other kit cars I owned back in the 80's & early 90's) for probably 15 years. But I was looking through my bookcase a few weeks ago and just happened to look at the book 'Amazing Mini' by Peter Filby. After seeing the Status in there again, I thought I wonder if I google it what would come up? So that was how I came across a few web-sites with pictures of the Status on and in particular my old car YVF 904L."

"I owned this car from late 1982 until August '84. This is all from memory as I didn't keep written records from then, just a load of photos. I live near Norwich, Norfolk and bought it from a local guy who lived between Norwich & Great Yarmouth. I was just 17 at the time, probably too young to really appreciate this car properly! When I bought it, it had a private number plate on: YCL 2. This stayed on the car for a month or so until the guy could transfer it. So I know that the photos that I have seen on the internet of YVF 904L were after I owned it (it's also the car that was featured in Maximum Mini - JB). Anyway, I drove the car for the summer of '83, going to most of the kit car shows of the time. It was whilst at Hindhead kitcar show that I met Mike Wilsdon. We chatted and he told me he had another one (I'm guessing its the green one) and if I ever wanted to sell mine, he'd be interested in buying it. At the time I didn't want to sell, but kept his number anyway. It was either late '83 or early '84 when the car was involved in an accident with a tractor. It pulled out of a field and didn't see me (probably being so low, i was hidden behind the hedge, he claimed!). The front of the Status sustained some damage, mainly to the fibreglass front. Nothing too serious! Being only 18 and short of money, I needed another more practical car. And so thats how I came to call Mike and do a deal with him to buy the car as it was, with the damage (although still drivable). We arranged a collection date to coincide with the Hindhead '84 show. I traveled down with the car and we went to the show. It is probably the only car I've owned that I regret selling, and I have owned a lot of cars over the years!"

"As for driving it, well it had a right hand gear change. A sort of sliding one, with the gears back to front eg. first gear was where 4th normally was. This didn't bother me, even when swapping between cars with a normal gear change. Handbrake was also on the right. It was fitted with an Austin 1100cc engine but was pretty quick due to the lack of weight. Handling was very good, ride was a bit harsh! Don't know how it would cope with all the speed humps we have now, as it was quite low! I've dug out all the photo's from my loft, but they're all on 35mm film & in albums. I need to scan & put them on the computer. This may take some time as I have a lot of albums! I also owned a Mini Marcos, GP beach buggy, GTM Coupe, Dune buggy and others, so there's a lot of pics in total. Hope this is of some interest to you." You bet it is Stuart! Thanks very much for all this! The last owner I managed to track down was Chris McMahon, but I am not sure if he still has it and cannot reach him anymore. Who may know where it is now? Stuart would love to find out.

UPDATE 16 December 2020: The car survives. More here.

National colours galore! Hards' Minipower plus Arkley SS and Mini Marcos in '84

Picture courtesy Stuart Hards

'YCL 2' registration was on the car when bought, but was soon to be changed to YVF 904L

Picture courtesy Stuart Hards

Mini mill was an 1100. Pretty quick, says Hards. Note wide track and signature orange chassis

Picture courtesy Stuart Hards

Is this Status Minipower still alive?

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

What exactly is this Status Minipower?

It's not very often that a Status Minipower (also known as Status Symbol) comes up for sale, and I remember well that one came on the market in 2004. In fact it was not a complete car but one of the 20 ingenious chassis' built by Status founder Brian Luff in the early 1970s, and I have never seen another one being offered for sale since. Brian told me that of these 20 chassis sold only 8 buyers bought a body from him, too, turning them into proper cars. He recalled that most of the chassis' went to autocrossers who made a body of their own which was a lot cheaper.

Anyway. Meanwhile I have been in touch with Andy Downes who bought the Status chassis in 2004, and is eager to find out more about it now. But in fact it seems that this particular Minipower chassis was meant to have become something rather special. Andy wrote: "It is chassis number AS 72 and although similar to the one in the magazine (an article on the car that I sent to him-JB) it differs in that it is all square section tube (the magazine one has some round tubes at the front and round the ‘dashboard’). Also it has a roof/windscreen section (cut off by a previous owner) that can be seen in some of my pictures. Looking at my chassis it is markedly different to the one in the magazine article, in particular the roof bars which were clearly attached when new but cut off later and also the front rocking wishbones. So I presume there was more than one version of the chassis."

Naturally, these modifications could also have been carried out by somebody else. But the most interesting thing, perhaps, is that this actual chassis came with some intriguing design drawings that clearly seem to have been meant for this car. These drawings show the altered Status chassis plus a wedged body for it and they are marked 'ABH Design Group' and dated 1972 and 1973. Could ABH possibly have made production plans for this Mini based car? Andy would love to find out, and so would I.

Andy's Status Minipower chassis seems pretty much straightforward...

...untill the cut off roof and windscreen section is put in its place

Design drawing is dated 1972 and clearly shows the same chassis

And there is a drawing for a wedged body, too. Who were ABH Design Group?