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MINI 1965 Victory Edition special celebrates iconic rally win, with stickers

With what is literally a stickers-and-stripes special, MINI wants to remind us it’s still sporty

MINI has revealed a trio of new 1965 Victory special editions available on its sporty three-door Cooper models. Comprising a specific livery, plus unique stickers and interior trim pieces, each variant will be available to order from March this year, but it won't be available in the UK.

The 1965 Victory Edition has been designed in celebration of the original Mini Cooper S’s win at the Monte Carlo rally of that year. Timo Makinen and co-driver Paul Easter outperformed far more powerful rivals to take the outright win, creating one of motorsport’s greatest stories of the underdog triumphing. 

Each of the liveries is based on a Chili Red base, fitted with contrasting white mirror caps and roof paint. Unique to these models, though, is an asymmetric stripe on the nose that continues down the tailgate, plus a ‘52’ graphic on the side inspired by the racing number from that rally-winning model. 

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The three powertrain options are taken from the top of their respective ranges, and comprise the 200bhp Cooper S, 228bhp John Cooper Works petrol and 254bhp John Cooper Works Electric. There are no technical changes compared with the standard versions.

Petrol models feature a set of 18-inch JCW Lap Spoke wheels in a diamond-cut finish, with the electric model swapping these out for its own Mastery Spoke wheels in a full-black finish. 

All models feature a traditional JCW interior colour palette, with a combination of anthracite and red. New for this is white ‘1965’ writing on the door sills, plus more signatures on the six o’clock strap on the steering wheel, storage box and key. 

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Senior staff writer

Senior staff writer at Auto Express, Jordan joined the team after six years at evo magazine where he specialised in news and reviews of cars at the high performance end of the car market. 

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