Honestly, I didn’t know anything about this special edition MINI when I spotted it on the CarMax website, just that the big old #37 on the door looked peculiar to me, and I wanted to know more. Turns out CarMax has no idea either. It’s the MINI Paddy Hopkirk Edition, a unicorn, of which only 237 were sent to the USA in 2021 to commemorate young Irishman Paddy Hopkirk and MINI’s epic first-ever overall win of the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964, back when the MINI was British. His car was #37. Sadly, he died of cancer a year after this car was launched.
(There were also 100 sold in the UK, 65 in Australia, 64 in Belgium/Luxembourg, 37 in Canada, 15 in India, and 10 in Taiwan, the web tells me, so really 1 of 463 if my arithmetic adds up.)
The MINI Paddy Hopkirk Edition has a whole bunch of cosmetic and appearance modifications: a paint scheme and stripe, 17-inch John Cooper Works light-alloy wheels in the Track Spoke Black design, John Cooper seats, a blacked-out grille, air intakes, a gas cap, and door handles. Nice commemorative stuff if you’re into that. Apparently, 237 owners were.
Here’s the hilarious part. The allure of the MINI Paddy Hopkirk Edition is that you get Paddy’s autograph on the left front hood stripe (above) and the dashboard (below). The CarMax marketers have included a photo of the hood under “Imperfections“. I imagine some photographer, as ignorant as me, thinks a previous owner signed the car?
The signature on the dash was not listed as an imperfection, however. The other commemorative decal is on the rear pillar.
Below, Mr. Hopkirk himself celebrates the launch of his commemorative car. The photos above and below were “borrowed” from the good folks at MotoringFile.com, and I highly recommend going there if you want to read all about why the 1964 Monte Carlo win was a big deal for MINI and Paddy.
Elsewhere, I got a kick out of reading his comments on the experience. Hopkirk thought, “We didn’t think we had a chance in hell of winning in reality, in all fairness. We were simply told to get out there and do our best.” and about the MINI, “It was an amazing car that did everything you asked it to do.” He added, “It was quite surreal at the time… even The Beatles sent me a signed picture and a telegram stating I was one of them now and I’m reminded of that almost every day… it’s on the wall of my downstairs loo.”
It was also more than just racing. “We weren’t just driving to compete, we were driving for Queen, for Country, and everything that stood for British manufacturing, engineering, and design. Great Britain was very influential at that time to the world, and the Rally made front page news, so a lot was at stake… if we did well, Britain did well, and BMC would do well.”
Rest in peace, Mr. Hopkirk.
I couldn’t find any performance upgrades to the Mini Cooper, even though it’s an “S” model under the packaging – not a bad thing. The base model had a 1.5L turbo inline-3 with a measly 134 hp, the “S” had a 2.0L turbo inline-4 with 189 hp, and the real John Cooper Works had a 2.0L turbo inline-4 bumped up to 228 hp. This MINI Cooper S should hit 60 mph in about 6.5 seconds – a second faster than the base model and a second slower than the JCW.
Not easy to see, but I found two more of these Paddy Hopkirks on Cars.com and Autotrader. Both in Florida, with a lower price and higher miles. Of course, the CarMax advantage is that you can buy the Maxcare warranty for near bumper-to-bumper coverage for another 80,000 miles and five years of spirited driving.
CarMax changed its web display again, making details hard to find and read. The car has 42,000 miles and is currently selling for $22,998. It spent much of its time with two owners in Utah and Delaware, accident-free, before being auctioned off in Manheim, Pennsylvania. This rare car is currently on reserve in Laurel, Maryland. Track it here if you’re interested.
Stock No: 28478006 VIN: WMWXR5C09M2N86833
