6 minute read
1999 ROVER MINI MAYFAIR AUTO
SHARING IS CARING
A retro-styled Mini Mayfair Automatic is the perfect car for the Yamagami family to share.
Words and photos: Yoshio Takeno. Translation: Tetsuo Tsugawa
Sisters Ayako and Akari love the Mini which is being enjoyed by their whole family.
The retro Mk1 styling is really effective and the wing mirrors really add to the overall look.
Ryuji Yamagami bought a 1991 Mini Sprite around 30 years ago. “I used to take my two little sons for a drive,” he recalls. He drove it for five years until the family grew with the addition of two daughters, Ayako and Akari, who are now in their 20s. A sensible family minibus was required and the fun Mini Sprite was sold on.
Time passed and his sons left home. He hoped that he would be able to return to Mini ownership when he retired but, in his late 50s, he became impatient. Thankfully, with approval from his wife Yoko and their daughters, Ryuji was able to return to Mini ownership in March 2020 when he bought a 1999 Mini Mayfair Automatic. He chose automatic as his daughters are not used to driving a manual car. “I couldn’t wait until my retirement so I decided to buy a Mini. When I was young, I couldn’t modify my Mini to Mk1 style so I made the plan to build my Mini Mayfair into the Mk1 style.”
He looked around for Mini specialists, in his local area of Tokyo, to give the Mini a classic colour and Mk1 Cooper looks. After much searching he found KidsCompany, in Iruma, in the Saitama prefecture of Japan. Ryuji liked the idea of painting the Mini Smoke Grey, a colour that looks blue in some lights. However, the Mini was bought with the family in mind so the final colour choice was given to Ayako and Akari. The sisters were even involved in mixing the paints at KidsCompany to create a unique colour for their Mini, which actually is very similar to Smoke Grey. An Old English White roof adds to the Cooper look.
Externally, this Mini has been given a Mk1 grille, Mk1 rear lights and bumpers with overriders plus Mk1 badges. LED headlights have been fitted for safety and a 1964 Tokyo Olympics badge is fitted to the grille. Both Ryuji and Yoko were born in that Olympic year.
Ryuji admits that, when he was a child, he wanted a Mini with 10” wheels so the Mini has been converted to run Mini Cooper S wheels with Dunlop SP10 tyres. Round mirrors have been fitted to the wings, a fashionable alternative to the clip-on seam mirrors which are more popular in the UK. A clear reversing lamp has been fitted below the rear bumper to replace the Rover one and the front and side indicator lights have also been given clear lenses.
Inside the Mini, earlier seats without headrests have been trimmed in grey vinyl, as chosen by Ayako and Akari. There are also chequered floor mats and a Moto-lita wood-rimmed steering wheel and matching gearknob have been fitted. The dash houses the air conditioning controls and a centre console has been fitted for a CD head unit. Delta pedal covers have also been chosen. The Rover line-of-sight gauges have been »
Ryuji’s Sprite, which he owned in the 90s, with his two sons Ryosuke and Tatsuya, who are now grown up.
removed in favour of a central Super/ Cooper oval binnacle and there is an additional pod to the right of that for a rev counter, voltage and vacuum gauges. Aluminium door furniture has also been fitted. Mr Shimizu, of KidsCompany, fitted a traditional-style hazard switch and toggle switches in the white-painted switch panel to preserve the retro vibe. A wire basket, from Kent Garage, sits over the exhaust tunnel in the rear with cup holders and room for travel essentials.
The 1275cc MPi engine and gearbox were overhauled and the neatlypresented engine was topped off with a green-painted rocker cover with a Morris badge to continue the retro theme. “There are no more tiny gremlins anywhere,” smiles Ryuji.
“I love old cars. Mini is especially my favorite,” says Ayako. “I was so excited when my father told us he was going to buy a Mini. I am not worried that it has no power steering. It is the same as a Mario Kart to drive. It is so cute, isn’t it?”
Younger sister Akari thoroughly enjoyed her first experience of driving a Mini. “I can feel the speed more than the Toyota Noah previously owned by our family. I enjoyed choosing the body colour and mixing the paint in KidsCompany. That felt like we were really building our own car. I love it. I saw a lot of pictures of my brothers with father’s old Mini. Now we can enjoy the same Mini life as
Automatic transmission means that the Mini is easy for all the family to drive. These chequered mats are very popular in Japanese Minis.
Mk1 stle seats look fab and the wood-rim wheel adds to the traditional look. Cup holders were big in Japan before they came to the UK.
Sisters Ayako and Akari enjoyed mixing the paints to create a custom colour for the Mini at KidsCompany. Ryuji and his wife, Yoko,. She also enjoyed driving the Sprite and loves their new Mayfair.
The Mini is well and truly one of the family.
my brothers. I’m so excited.”
The family feels that the Mini, as a common interest, has brought them closer together. “After I went to the seaside with my friends I was talking with father about seaside views and which photo positions would be nice for photographing our Mini, etc.,” says Akari. They are also planning trips to Mini events. “I never went to any Mini events when I had the Mini Sprite but now I have this Mk1-spec. Mini I’m looking forward to going to Mini events with my family,” says Ryuji.
MiniWorld would like to thank:
Classic Mini Magazine of Japan (https://lovemini.net).
Special thanks
to: Kids Company (http://kidscompany.boy.jp)
