Here's a couple autoslalom runs in my clubman estate at MME2012. i added a rear sway bar because in long sweeping corners the front end would lean on the outside wheel and the inside wheel would spin without traction.

* videos are with swaybar installed

FFWD to 1:00 the first clip
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7WnqNuhrwQ

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcN9_38INV4

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4JoiIal1lc

lost exhaust tip on first run, steering column is quite loose by the end of the day and that particular shorts fabric & seat combination = me sliding all over the place. still awesome fun.

I used to autoX my van (when my ars was small enough to fit in the seat)  It did it's job and did it well.  I on the other hand the driver had allot to be desired.  I think you need to look at the weights again, when I did mine back in 1988 the van body bare was lighter than a sedan body bare.

I remember the passport van at Summit Point ( back when the fence was chicken wire) and he drove it hard and ran respectable times.  

If you think this is your step to F1 then maybe a vintage mini is not the right car.  If your intention is to build a car, drive a car, drive it harder, fix it and drive it again then do the van and you have more real estate to sell to sponsors.

post pictures, everyone loves a fastvan ( my license plate of course)

Not to mention getting caught-out on a double yellow line by the local gendarmes on your wedding day!

I can't vouch for their respective on-track behaviour, but I have driven both LWB (my traveller) and short wheelbase (83 Mini 1000) inappropriately fast on regular roads.  I would prefer the LWB in most "flinging-it-about" situations, since it allows for a bit more predictable post-breakaway habits.  The regular sedan is just gone spinning out, where the wagon is a bit more recoverable. 

Once a cage is factored in, torsional rigidity of the basic bodyshell should no longer be a factor.  The van/traveller is no taller than a standard saloon once the suspension is adjusted to the same ride height, and the length added to the floor is comparable to the length added to the roof, so it should be no more top-heavy than a standard Mini.

Which is better would depend on the specific track and your driving style.  Weight is the only substantial detractor of using a LWB platform for a race vehicle, and if you're really pessimistic, it offers a lot more crush area when a faster car wallops you from behind...

Yes, the green one is Vanna owned back in the day by Robert Pass and driven by his daughter Robin when I was an active vintage racer. It was a small bore powered mini at that time. Steve (CTR)

a van should be fine depending upon: how good a driver/preparer you are,  how competitive you want to be and what future competition plans you may have for the car.  Track day and race day performance depends a great deal on driver ability and less so on car preparation(unless it is screwed up or woefully inadequate).

The late John Ferguson, formerly of Arizona, drove a Mini van(or at least a non-saloon) way back in 2001 at the Mini Challenge race at Laguna Seca.  Even though I attended the race as a spectator, I did not get a good look at Ferguson's car and cannot assess just how well-prepared it was.  Perhaps someone else with a better knowledge of the car may wish to comment on its state of preparation and on Ferguson's driving ability.  All I know is that John was not a young man in 2001.  Regardless, he finished a creditable 31st out of 45 cars in the race.  If you can drive at all and can prepare the car intelligently, you should expect a performance at least that good and, perhaps much better.  Track day cars are not usually as well-prepared as race cars, but many of the cars at Laguna in 2001 were better described as hot street or trackday cars, anyway.

I would not be dissuaded from running a Mini van at track days at all, assuming a van is eligible.  A track day is probably an ideal way to decide if you may want to dabble in vintage racing in your future.  The speeds are similar enough that you should soon decide if you like that type of motorsport.

THIS SHOULD NOW BE THE OFFICIAL PACE CAR OF  P A C E !!!!!

BIG AL

That would be "P-e-t-e-r-s-o-n" as in Doug Peterson of Fortech fame.

Here is a race estate from the 1970s:

Ginger Marshall's Clubman Estate AKA "That Bloddy Van" by competitors who tried to catch it. 

That van was built and driven many years by Bob Pass of Passport Transport.

He sold it a number of years ago to Ken Suhre and he occassionally brings it out to play.

Here's the hapless 77 being 'smoked' by first Huffaker then Pederson at Brainerd. It was probably the best day of the owner's life. BTW Pederson eventually won. To be fair everybody got smoked.

Now here is an auto-x-er, 1380cc SPI , prepared by Se7en Enterprises-5 speed tranny,lots of over-torque, ready to sell for the 2013 track season-

WWW.BIG-AL-minimover.com

BIG AL

The FP Green Van....

There was a two-tone Green Van at Brainerd for the CanAm Mini Challenge in 2009.  Classed FP as I recall.  Had a one piece fiberglass rear door too, I'm thinking.  Will look for a photo.

Crazy Mike was throwing his Clubman around at MMW again last year in Prescott Valley.  Loaned it to Diddy Dave for the Autpcross too after finding Diddy looking at his maps in the dark a few miles short of the hotel.

As far as the extra 9 inches or foot, this 1380cc auto-x-er built up by Tim Bosse in Ohio was always TFTD (Fastest Time Of The Day)- A consistent winner on 10 inch wheels and disc brakes with a professionally installed low centre of gravity fuel cell-A clubman flip front in f/glass is in tribute to P A C E-

The first day l drove it, the LSD pin snapped off- just wear & tear over the years of racing/Aoto-x-ing-It blew the diff apart and was rebuilt with a 3.5 rear end, still amazing torque and not too bad for highway travel-

It will never be a "soccer mom/Grocery Getter" but sadly it went to a new home to-day where it will still install fear into Honda types-

It even doubled as a camper at the races-

BIG AL-

BIG AL_

There is a very fast mini that runs the Nurburgring,sp?, that is a van. But it is AWD Honda powered.

Build the van. Dare to different..........

I found the thread but it can't be retrieved. I'd sent the link to someone back in 2009. Maybe you can email Dennis/webmaster and ask him to make the thread live again.

//www.minimania.com/web/threadid/99607/msgthread.cfm

I'll let you know. I'm LeMons-ing one this year.

But we're changing it from a van to a "woody" because we want the extra visibility.

I've seen pics of a real vintage race van in the US. Not sure if it was through this forum or the vintage mini racing site some time ago. Btt there's on out there.