The LAMM Cabriolet - Mini Cabriolet Register

BUYING
Classifieds | Buying guide ...everything you need to buy a Mini
1. Mini Cabriolet
If you’re planning a summer of Mini motoring you might be
tempted to buy a convertible. Check out our ultimate
buying guide to make sure you find a good one.
Want to buy one?
Individuality, rarity, fun to drive, attentiongrabbing looks, wind-in-the-hair motoring
Expensive to buy, fabric hood an easily
vandalised liability, impractical except as a
two-seater, lacks power for motorway driving
Words by Martin Vincent
Photography by Paul Smith
S
urprisingly it took over 30
years before a convertible
Mini went into production,
even though both BMC and the
later BL and Rover Group
management would have been
aware of the aftermarket
conversions available.
Crayford had developed a
convertible conversion as early as
1963, while Auto Design’s wellengineered open-top conversion
was still available in the early ’90s.
BMC had the open-top Moke in
the ’60s but, despite design studies
for overseas markets, there was
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never any indication that a true
open-top Mini would be available
from the factory.
That changed in 1991 when
LAMM Autohaus produced 75 rhd
cars to be sold in the UK through
12 selected Rover dealers. All were
snapped up within just a few
weeks of going on sale despite a
considerable price tag of £12,250.
This success highlighted a gap in
the market and plans were made
to develop a similar open-top Mini
at Longbridge. At this time the
existing Mini was selling in very
small numbers, so the Cabriolet
was the perfect way for Rover
to improve the image of a car
living on borrowed time.
LAMM continued to build
open-top Minis for European
markets for a number of years
but, rather than form a closer
relationship with this company,
Rover Special Products division
brought in two design and
engineering consultants,
Karmann of Germany and
Tickford of Newport Pagnell.
Their brief was to develop a
Mini Cabriolet based on the
concept of the LAMM car.
Karmann already had a
reputation for engineering droptop versions of the VW Golf, Ford
Escort and Jaguar XJ-S and
Tickford had produced hood
assemblies for the Jaguar XJ-S, the
fwd Lotus Elan and the MG RV8,
so with the former beefing up the
bodyshell and the latter designing
the hood, a pre-production car
based on the Cooper 1.3i appeared
at the NEC Motor Show in October
1992. Apart from some detail
differences and a better hood
arrangement, it was remarkably
similar to the LAMM Cabriolet.
BUYING
classifieds | buying
IT’S MY MINI
Tracey Lippett
1995 Rover Mini Cabriolet
If you’re a regular at Mini shows you’ll
have spotted Tracey and her multiconcours winning Cabrio. With more
trophies under her belt than Chelsea
and a comprehensive knowledge of
convertibles, her Mini was a perfect
candidate for our buying guide.
Have you always wanted one?
“We were at Mini In The Park about
five years ago and I thought: ‘I’ll
never have one of those — I could
never afford it!’ We came across this
one about two and a half years ago
though and it was a real bargain so
we got it. We had to really — it was
the same colour as the one I’d seen
at MITP!”
What should potential buyers look
for? “Look for the bits that are
difficult to replace. The fabric for the
hood is £600 alone! There’s a Rover
stamp in each arch where it meets
the ‘bumper’, so check the styling kit
is genuine, and there’s a bit of plastic
on the bottom of the rear window
mechanisms that tends to snap, so
make sure they work OK. The joins on
the top of the windscreen panels can
rust, too, but otherwise they’re pretty
much the same as standard Minis.”
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ig
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buying guide
PRODUCTION HISTORY
1991 LAMM Mini Cabriolet
75 cars were produced for the UK market in 1991, based
on the 1.3 carb Mini Cooper. All cars came in Cherry Red
with dark red hood and can be identified from the later
Mini Cabriolet by flexible plastic windows for the hood
and LAMM Design decals on doors. Many others were
produced in lhd form for the German market up until the
mid-90s. The LAMM Cabrio was used as the basis for
Rover’s production model two years later.
That show car was just a taster
as Rover wasn’t in a position to
manufacture the car at that time;
in fact the first cars rolled off the
Longbridge production line in
June 1993. Two colours were
available, Nightfire Red (with a red
hood) or Caribbean Blue (with a
grey hood). Later, a British Racing
Green option (with a grey hood)
was added.
It was envisaged that 700-1000
cars would be built in the first year
of production but there simply
wasn’t sufficient demand for a
£11,995 luxury convertible when
1993-96 Rover Mini Cabriolet
Less than 300 cars were produced between June 1993 and
end of production in mid-1996. The Rover Cabrio was
based on the Mini Cooper 1.3i and available in Nightfire
Red or Caribbean Blue, with British Racing Green metallic
a later option, and identified by wind-down glass rear side
windows. The LAMM and Mini Cabriolet share the same
Mini Cabriolet badge on the bootlid and have a similar
bodykit and wheels.
you could buy a Cooper saloon for
£6,995. This was slightly less than
the LAMM Cabriolet that had sold
out so fast in 1991 but while
people were prepared to pay a
hefty premium for the LAMM’s
exclusivity, the same wasn’t true
for a run-of-the-mill production
version. At such a price it was
never going to sell in large
numbers, a fatal flaw that
Rover never addressed.
Production of the Cabriolet
quickly slowed to a trickle, even
stopping for months at a time,
until the last batch of 20 cars was
Best thing about owning one?
“Nothing prepares you for the
reaction — people come to look at
it in car parks all the time — and
nothing beats bombing around in the
sun with the roof down!”
Any downsides to owning one?
“You daren’t leave it anywhere!
They just attract so much attention.”
How much should people pay?
“I think ours is worth about £8000
now, but you might get one in poorer
condition for as little as £4000.”
built in summer 1996. The price
remained unchanged at £11,995 in
the three-year production period
and less than 300 Mini Cabriolets
were made in total, a far cry from
the 1000 a year that had been
hoped for. It’s a pathetic sales
figure when you consider that
Rover had over 700 dealerships at
that time and the firm must have
lost a lot of money on the project.
These days the Mini Cabriolet
is a rare beast indeed, ensuring
that it remains one of the most
expensive and sought-after
variants around.
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BUYING
classifieds | buying
BODYSHELL
HOOD
Based on the Mini saloon shell, it also
benefited from extensive strengthening
underneath and around the B-posts. It kept
the original windscreen (reinforced) but
everything above the waistline was
removed. The sills were strengthened
and a beefier crossmember fitted to the
floorpan, while the B-posts and the area
behind this were modified to take the
mounting assemblies for the wind-up rear
windows, which curve down into the body in
an arc; this is the only Mini ever to have had
wind-up rear windows. The Rover Mini
Cabriolet was built entirely at Longbridge.
Where LAMM utilised a simple frame design
that pivoted from the B-pillar and folded in a
straightforward arc, the Tickford-designed
hood for the Mini Cabriolet was far more
complex, with its principle pivot point at the
very rear of the cockpit. Also, where the
LAMM design had flexible plastic rear and
side windows the Mini Cabriolet featured
glass wind-up side windows, although the
rear window remained flexible plastic.
BODYKIT
A close copy of the LAMM Autohaus design and
arguably the Cabriolet’s most striking feature. A
set of extremely wide plastic wheelarch extensions
were linked by a pair of shapely sill extensions, with
separate mouldings for the front and rear bumpers.
Foglights were set into the lower section of the front
bumper while the rear bumper carried a foglamp
and reflector. The front grille was in polished
stainless steel, matched by chrome door/boot
handles and chrome bezels for the front foglamps.
ENGINE
The LAMM Cabriolet was based on the
carburetted Mini Cooper 1.3 but by the time
Rover’s Cabriolet appeared the 1.3 engine had
SPi and 63 bhp. Despite the extra power and
torque it still faced a tough task pulling along the
Cabriolet’s extra 50 kg and top speed on the flat
was only about 90 mph. Nevertheless, it was still
enormous fun to drive as the Mini Cabrio had a
lower centre of gravity than the tin-top saloon.
An auto version was also available.
Sharing the sporty 1.3 SPi Cooper engine means there’s a decent 63 bhp to play with.
With the Cabrio being slightly heavier than a normal saloon, it needs that extra oomph.
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With either type, the folded hood
occupied a lot of space and affected the rear
view from the driving position. A separate
hood cover was clipped into place using studs.
Fitting this cover often took longer than
lowering the hood itself, which was a very
quick and easy operation after detaching the
two clips on the front rail. An electrically
folding hood was listed as an option, although
it’s unclear whether any were actually built.
WHEELS
All Mini Cabriolets were equipped with 12
inch Revolution five-spoke alloy wheels as
original equipment. These featured the Mini
logo in the centre cap and had lockable
wheel nuts. LAMM cars had 175/50 tyres
whereas Rover-built cars used narrower
165/60 tyres. Tracey’s added these shiny
chrome ones to her Mini — cool, eh?
BUYING
classifieds | buying
WHAT TO
LOOK FOR
INTERIOR
The Mini Cabriolet was by far the
best-equipped and most luxurious
model offered at the time, featuring
a full-width burr-walnut fascia with
matching wood for the door cappings,
door pulls and gearlever knob; speciallydesigned seats trimmed in grey velour;
deep cut-pile carpets; and a leather-rim
wheel with red contrasting stitching.
There was also a glovebox, face-level
ventilation, colour-coded seatbelts,
stainless-steel kickplates, wind-down
rear windows and even a clock, but build
quality and the fit of components were
never particularly good.
The first thing to check is whether the
car you’re looking at is the genuine
article. Just because a Mini has a
convertible roof doesn’t mean that it’s
a Rover or LAMM. Several one-off Mini
convertibles have been made over the
years, some with insufficient structural
strengthening to cope with the effects
of chopping off the roof. Most of these
more amateur efforts have a very
crude hood system. You may also come
across one of the Auto Design Mini
convertibles, which were well
engineered (later ones even had a
T-top roof for improved integrity)
but, although good, are still not a
genuine LAMM or Rover conversion.
Rust
Any Mini is prone to rust and the
Cabriolet is no exception. The usual
places apply (front wings and A-panels,
floor, boot floor, bottom of doors, sills,
subframes, scuttle panel by windscreen
— in fact almost everywhere) but also
beware of a leaking hood producing rust
from within in unusual places. Bodywork
repairs are more difficult than with a
normal Mini due to the additional
strengthening underneath, so restoration
costs are higher. These cars are more
likely to have seen very little use and
were often garaged, so finding a good
one is easier than you might expect.
Cars that have been rustproofed from
new are worth seeking out.
No roof to mount the internal light, so
you’ll find one under here on the cab...
Hood
...and another one inside the glovebox.
Ideal for finding all your bits and bobs!
The overall look of the Cabrio’s interior was pretty plush. Make sure all the trim is
clean when buying one of these though; that velour is often exposed to the elements.
Although the Mini Cabriolet hood is very
good, it’s by no means immune to leaks.
The odd drop coming through in a
downpour is to be expected, but seams
and seals will need close inspection.
Also, make sure the hood opens and
closes smoothly as it may require
adjustment or lubrication on the pivots.
The hood will eventually wear and
require replacement, which costs
about £600 for the materials alone.
Bodykit
The plastic bodykit was bonded and
screwed to the shell and never fitted that
well straight out of the factory, so don’t
expect a perfect fit. Look carefully for
any damage, especially the front bumper.
Practicality
The Cabriolet’s rear seats are notoriously
difficult to get into or out of. It’s almost
impossible for an adult to use them with
the roof up because the bulky front seats
don’t fold forwards; they only tilt from
the front mounting, which combined with
the seatbelt impedes access. The boot
is tiny, although there is some space on
the rear shelf when the hood is raised.
167
BUYING
classifieds | buying
Driving the Cabriolet
What Minimag though of the Cabriolet in 1996:
“The chop-top Mini is every bit as lithe and nimble and because it
has decent grip and a low centre of gravity together with wonderfully
responsive steering and a raspy exhaust note, you find yourself driving
like a hooligan without ever intending to.
“Raising or lowering the hood is simplicity itself. To lower it, you
simply unclip the two fastenings at the top rail and fold the hood
rearward. The folded hood still appears bulky and cumbersome,
though. The Cabriolet’s design means that this is a true convertible
rather than a targa top, and this all-open feeling is enhanced when
the side windows are wound down.
“Roof up or down, the Cabriolet constantly draws attention.
It’s expensive but few cars can claim to attract so many admirers —
at any price. For this money though, we would expect detail finish
to be better. The interior looked lavish but the dash panel didn’t fit
properly, the left-side door rubbed on the paintwork of the windscreen
pillar and one of the hood cover studs came adrift. Noise level at
motorway speeds reach a level where the radio struggles to compete
and makes long journeys tiring, and you need to work the engine hard
at times to maintain decent progress. But despite these few niggles,
the Mini Cabriolet is a thoroughly appealing little car.”
Value
Buy on condition, not year or even mileage. A tatty example in need of
a new hood can be picked up for as little as £4000, but expect to pay
£6000-9000 for a minter. LAMM versions are scarcer and generally
worth more, but all Cabriolets are very rare. If you find a good one,
buy it quickly. In 1996 a 1993 car was valued at just £6-7000, so
values have actually risen since then.
Which to buy: LAMM or Rover?
The LAMM hood design is not as good as Rover’s, so you could end
up paying more for a car that is not quite so easy to live with. Rear
opening windows are a bonus on the Rover version, but they can go
wrong. LAMM has the carburetted engine whereas the Rover has the
injected engine, with many enthusiasts preferring the carb version.
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The
LAMM Cabriolet
When LAMM Autohaus, a German Rover dealer, developed a well
engineered and neatly styled convertible conversion of the Mini Cooper
for the German market, it quickly came to the attention of Rover. The firm
commissioned LAMM to build 75 rhd cars for the UK market in 1991 and
Rover’s own convertible was closely based on this design.
LAMM’s Cabriolet was strengthened underneath along the sills and the
main crossmember, while the steel roof was removed and replaced with a
folding fabric hood, hinged from the B-post, with clear plastic side and rear
windows. It had the Cooper’s 1.3 carb-fed engine but the seats and trim
were from the plush Mayfair model. The interior also featured a full-width
wood dash with three dials, wood trim for the doors and gearknob, a
leather-trimmed Cooper steering wheel and a Clarion stereo unit.
The distinctive bodykit featured extremely wide arches and a boxy
front and rear bumper design, while Revolution 5x12 alloys wearing wide
175/50 tyres filled the arches nicely. There was only one colour, Cherry
Red pearlescent with gold pinstriping along the waistline and a
matching dark red fabric hood, and there was Mini Cabriolet badging
on the bootlid and LAMM Design decals on each door. The cost of
£12,250 was a huge amount at the time but this limited edition was
extremely popular and sold out within weeks.
BUYING
classifieds | buying
Spec: Rover Mini
Cabriolet 1993-96
BODY: Two-door convertible
DIMENSIONS: Length 3090 mm,
width 1580 mm, height 1364 mm,
wheelbase 2036 mm
WEIGHT: 750 kg
PERFORMANCE: Max speed 93 mph,
0-60mph in 12.3 sec
ENGINE: Four-cylinder OHV,
single-point fuel injection
CAPACITY: 1275cc, bore 70.6 mm,
stroke 81.3 mm
MAX POWER: 63 bhp at 5700 rpm
MAX TORQUE: 70 lbf.ft at 3900 rpm
TRANSMISSION: Four-speed manual,
all-synchro, optional four-speed auto
SUSPENSION: Independent rubber
cone type with telescopic dampers
STEERING: Rack and pinion,
2.4 turns lock-to-lock
BRAKES: 8.4 inch discs front,
7 inch drums rear
WHEELS AND TYRES: Cast alloy
Revolution 5x12 wheels, 165/60R12
radial ply tyres
SECURITY: Full alarm system, VINetched glass, security coded stereo
Mini steering wheel came as standard
but you did get a wooden gearknob.
Boot space is still usable and not too different to what you’d get with a saloon...
...although you will find the rear
seatbelt mounting taking up space.
The Cabrio came with a decent sound
system, with tucked-away speakers.
A head unit also came as standard,
fitted in the full-length walnut dash.
Next month
everything you need to
know about the Wolseley
Hornet and Riley Elf
169