1970 Mini K (Broadspeed Tribute)

Description

Ralph Broad was a Mini exponent who raced with great success from soon after the car’s debut in 1959 until well into the 1960s. Broad designed a more aerodynamic version of the car. The roof and the tail were cut off and replaced with a new fibreglass unit for a saving of about 150kg. With a 1310cc Cooper S engine and five-speed gearbox, the Broadspeed Mini was very successful wherever it was raced. About half a dozen of these cars were built under licence in Australia and marketed through Brian Foley Motors in Caringbah NSW, Foley himself being a highly successful Mini racer. Foley advertised the car as the ‘Broadspeed 2 + 2’ – at the time the ‘2 + 2’ concept (two adults plus two occasional rear seats) was all the rage in Europe – and offered it in two versions, the Deluxe based on the Mini Deluxe (the Australian version which was the first Mini in the world with wind-up windows) and the Super Deluxe which used the Cooper S as its starting point. Foley also invited enquiries on a special G.T.S fully modified competition version. Laurie Stewart drove one of these to a Mini world record speed at Bathurst where he clocked 127.8mph (204km/h) down Conrod Straight.