Chris Chapman
Thanks to AROnline reader Chris Chapman for this week’s rather quirky discovery, which puts a whole new slant on the concept of grey imports…
When is a Mini not a Mini? There’s certainly some Mini DNA in this week’s online auction discovery, but under the skin it’s a 660cc Daihatsu Mira – one of Japan’s most popular K-cars. Building on Japan’s love of the original Mini, the front end of BMC’s finest is grafted on to the body of Daihatsu’s commercial variant of the Mira – the Mira van, popular among roadside traders in the country’s congested capital, Tokyo.
At six grand, this is a reasonably affordable way of creating a distinctive and quirky business vehicle, or for transporting all your Mini bits to an autojumble – even if it is faking it somewhat. And as for the coffee van idea? It wouldn’t surprise us if these start cropping up at classic car shows across the country next season, as the dealer is importing others as well…
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GREAT FIND!
Could have been a Popemobile!
Popemobile did spring to my mind as well
You’d have to hum the theme tune to “Postman Pat” as you drove along if you got one in red!
Okay but not as much fun as the Citroen H van or the Nissan S-Cargo
Looks like UPS bought it (brown hue) and awaiting to fit the logo’s on it? 🙂
Aaagh my eyes! That is ugly!
Very quirky, I’m sure there is a niche for them.
To continue the Mini connection, is that a Mini van roof vent stick in the middle, above the windscreen? Looks like it’s open at the moment.
By the looks of the driver, it’s also got a Citroen connection – brakes from a DS. Just look at the brake button on the floor, and suddenly become intimate with the windscreen!
That’s odd, but not downright hideous like many of the Japanese homages to classic British cars. It reminds me a little of the VW type 147: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/VW_Fridolin.jpg
If you think this is ugly, search ‘peugeot 205f’ I think the Mira just pips it in the style stakes by virtue of its front end, that’s as far as it goes though
It reminds me of the Walls ice cream vans of my youth that were based on a Mini Van. They were so top heavy that they looked like they’d fall over when the icecream man leant out to pass you your 99!
Horrendous, tie with the Fiat Multipla of the `90s .
I kind of like it- after all, box van versions of small cars are rarely elegent- probably only the much larger Astramax could be described as good looking. They are designed to do a job.
That said, it could have done that job just as well with a plain Daihatsu front end, but it certainly is quirky and interesting.