00:00 The thing I love the most about the car really is the reaction I get from other people.
00:05 People love the car.
00:06 My name's Chris and this is my classic Mini Limo.
00:12 For me the word limo conjures up images of luxury which isn't really what you get when
00:20 you own a Mini.
00:22 But Chris has managed to create a vehicle where the words Mini and Limo come together.
00:28 This is the Mini Limo.
00:30 You'll see that we have an extra door.
00:32 This door is exactly the same size door as this one.
00:38 Inside we've got two rear facing seats.
00:40 These were donated from a Land Rover Discovery.
00:41 They're the seats out the back that fold down.
00:44 The rear seat has actually been extended by four inches to make it four inches deeper.
00:51 Right, let's take it for a spin.
01:11 Because it's got a longer wheel base, rides bumps more smoothly and it's got a bit more
01:27 stability.
01:28 Top speed, it'll cruise at about 85 kilometres per hour.
01:34 It costs approximately £13,000 to £14,000 to build a Mini Limo, including the parts
01:39 that we used at the time.
01:41 We have a slightly modified 1275 GT engine.
01:46 This has been bored out to 1293 and then it's got a long gearbox in it so that it cruises
01:51 at a high speed quite nicely with a few extra trip bits on it just to give it a bit more
01:55 power.
01:58 And what was the reason for building such a unique Mini conversion?
02:02 For love of course.
02:05 I had a classic Mini and I joined a Mini club.
02:08 I met Chris and then you asked me out.
02:10 I was trying to date.
02:12 And the rest is history.
02:18 I'd say it was my idea.
02:19 I thought it would be a nice wedding car for us seeing as the Mini's brought us together.
02:23 But we struggled to find one, didn't we?
02:26 So Chris thought he would just build one.
02:32 Easy.
02:34 I did a lot of the assembly of the car.
02:37 She built the one piece headlining that's in it and she recovered all the interior.
02:42 Working very late at night, working weekends on it.
02:45 It was a lot of stress and a lot of expense.
02:49 It was ready three days before the wedding.
02:54 It made the wedding.
02:55 It did make the wedding.
02:56 It made it very personal to us, didn't it?
03:00 After all the effort building this car, it's served the couple well as their family has
03:04 expanded.
03:05 It provides the perfect vehicle for family days out.
03:10 Albeit with the occasional difficulty.
03:17 You don't really want to do a three point turn in it.
03:20 It's really heavy on the steering.
03:25 There is no power steering and it's long.
03:28 You really just want to back it up until you find somewhere where there's a space to back
03:32 it into.
03:40 And it's not just Chris and his family that love the car.
03:43 It picks up new fans at every turn.
03:46 It gets a lot of attention wherever you go.
03:50 People love the car.
03:51 My kids love it.
03:52 My wife loves it.
03:54 This car is part of my life now.
04:01 you
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