Description
Kermit the 1962 Green Morris 850 has been in our family since January 1971.
It was first registered in Brisbane Qld on 23rd February 1962. My sister purchased it for $375 when she started teaching, and I got to do the regular maintenance on it so was allowed to “borrow” it on weekends.
In 1976 Jack Read of Readspeed, Brisbane, did its first engine overhaul, but my sister soon after decided she would buy the last model Mini Clubman, so I bought the 850 from her in 1978 for what she was offered as a trade in ($500!).
When I got married in 1980, the Mini was our family car, and we made several long trips from Brisbane to Adelaide for Christmas with my wife’s family, as air fares were expensive in those days. My wife decided the original seats were not comfortable for the long trips so I fitted Recaro seats and upgraded the wheels to Aunger alloys.
In 1983 our first child arrived and was driven home in a baby carrier on the back seat of the Mini. This worked until number two arrived in 1985, so the Mini became Dad’s car and a Ford Meteor was the new family car.
A burst bypass hose in the mid 1980’s resulted in a seized engine, so a second engine rebuild by Ron Richards Engine Centre in Brisbane saw the 850 bored out to a 960cc with A40 Devon pistons and a compression increase to 9:1.
We moved to Tasmania in 1994 and the engine was overhauled again in late 1994. However the cast iron oil rings never sealed properly, so I decided to re-do the job and started dismantling the engine in 2000. By this time I was busy with my business, and the children were in high school, so Kermit sat neglected until my wife gave me an ultimatum in January 2018 that I had to ?get it going by Christmas or it had to GO!?.
Kermit was dusted off and trucked to Westbury Automotive for a complete mechanical overhaul with subframes removed, blasted and painted, new brake lines, hoses and cylinders, and engine rebuilt and sleeved back to an 850 to return it to original specifications. I had planned to sort the body with dents removed and new paint, but was persuaded that a cut and polish, and wax treatment would preserve the original paint and “patina” and so preserve Kermit’s history.
There are still ongoing little jobs to be done but driving Kermit again these past few years to Mini events always get me grinning! Kermit travelled to Sydney in March 2022 for the Covid delayed Mini 60th celebrations, and in 2023 to take part in the Bay to Birdwood Classic Car event in Adelaide. Image credit: I. RossSale History
Plate History
