“When I was in my early 20s I thought that the MPis were amazing when they first came out in 1996. I thought they were absolutely brilliant,” exclaims Keith Miller, who was a mechanic working in a garage at the time. “I was in awe that they had made an A-series which had twin-point fuel injection and all this modern wizardry.”
Keith’s passion for Minis started early; he even passed his driving test in one so, when these ‘modern’ Minis came out, he had to buy one, especially when he read in about the Cooper Sport 5 Si model which was available from John Cooper Garages with its 5-speed Jack Knight gearbox. “I could afford a brand-new standard one, not an S, so I bought a Nightfire Red Sports Pack but I just couldn’t afford the insurance for a converted one, or John Cooper upgrades at the time, but I found it later on.” Yes, Keith now owns such a Mini in the Amaranth Pearl colour that he would
