We’re quite used to seeing classic cars imported from South Africa to the UK these days. The warm and sunny climate there often means their survival rate is much higher than their UK counterparts and with classic car values constantly rising, many have ended up on these shores.
While models available in SA often resemble those we had in the UK, the addition of certain native tweaks here and there along with a desirable badge we never had often tends to spark a little curiosity among seasoned enthusiasts. And while Ford fans drool over Cortina XR6 Interceptors and Sierra XR8s, it’s less widely known Leyland’s f lagship Mini was also treated to a unique South African makeover back in the ’70s. We bring you the Mini 1275 GTS.
Andrew Grabowski has always had a fascination with Minis and bought his first example in 1988, aged just 15. “I bought a Mini 1000 from a local breakers,” he remembers. “Every other weekend I’d make a return trip to the same scrapyard buying replacement parts to put it back on the road.” Andrew has particularly fond memories of being the only kid sat on the bus with his school
