Lot details
Registration No: H3 ERA
Chassis No: SAXXL21T20447119
Mot Expiry: Sept 2011

ERA originally stood for English Racing Automobiles and, courtesy of its A, B and C Type models driven by such schoolboy heroes as Prince Bira, Raymond Mays, Dick Seaman and Earl Howe dominated voiturette racing in the mid to late 1930s. The sale of the company's G Type project to Bristol in 1953 brought its racing days to a close and the following year it was absorbed by the Zenith Carburetter Company and the name changed to Engineering Research & Application Ltd. However, none of the engineering skills were lost and, 35 years later ERA decided to embody them in the design and manufacture of a new performance car - the ERA Mini Turbo. Conceived as an '80s replacement for the Mini Cooper S, it was intended to combine the speed, handling and excitement of the mainstream product with a far greater level of refinement and comfort - in short, it was to be the fastest and best engineered Mini ever produced. The body modifications and spoilers were styled by Marcos designer Dennis Adams. The interior was trimmed in a combination of Connolly hide, cloth, ambla and deep sound-deadening carpet. It featured retrimmed MG Metro seats, a glass sunroof and a range of traditional VDO instruments. Power was supplied by a deliberately torquey version of the Austin Rover 1300cc Metro Turbo engine that produced 94bhp at 6200rpm. The suspension and brakes were suitably upgraded and the newcomer placed on special one-piece 6x13-inch alloy wheels. Factory records show that 99 UK and 337 Japanese specification cars were built all told.

The Mini Turbo being sold was constructed at ERA's Dunstable works in 1991 and the relevant maker's plate, R1065, is evidently mounted to the left of the bonnet catch assembly. The vendor informs us that the Mini enjoyed an external restoration and respray in 2009. It is finished in Black (apparently one of only nine ERAs produced in this colour) complemented by a Grey leather interior. The only non-standard parts are a Rover bonnet badge and a racing-style fuel cap. This mighty Mini is taxed until the end of August and MOT'd into September.