2000 Mini Cooper Sport

Highlights

• Desirable late-model classic Mini
• Original Cooper Sport
• 1,275 cc A-series engine
• Extensive service history
• High-spec interior

Overview

All good things have to come to an end. And the Mini was a particularly good thing: having started as an answer to a fuel crisis, it became a style icon which transcended the very British boundaries of class and taste. Anybody could drive a Mini, and almost everyone did at some point, which made it such a phenomenal sales success, and allowed it to outlast even its proposed replacement, the Metro.

The example we see here is a Cooper Sport, from near the end of production. The Cooper Sport was the top-of-the-range model, making it all the more desirable today, with luxuries like alloy wheels, wider wheel arches, leather trim, and four spot lamps at the front. There’s plenty of chrome trim, and it looks just like a classic Mini should do.

A sizeable stack of paperwork accompanies the car, with various mechanical works having been completed in recent years, as well as some bodywork and paint repairs. It is shown on the V5 as a Mini Cooper Sport, registered in September 2000 — so this is a very late example, a feat made all the more impressive when you remember that the first Minis were built way back in the late 50s.

This now presents itself as a chance to own a real piece of motoring history, with close links to a defining moment in British manufacturing. And it comes with plenty of performance, too. So you can enjoy the final evolution of this indisputable automotive icon, whether you’re just sitting and enjoying its timelessly charming looks, or exploring its phenomenal capabilities wrapped up in a small package.

History and documentation

• Registered 25 Sep 2000
• Serviced in Jun 2024
• Extensive collection of invoices for servicing carried out by Mini Motorsports Centre
• Original owner’s manual
• Collection of invoices for work carried out
• Printed copies of MOTs
• One key
• Alarm and immobiliser
• Current MOT expires 14 Jun 2025
• V5 present in owner’s name
• Current owner since May 2018
• Four former keepers
• HPI clear

Interior

• Anthracite and silver leather upholstery
• The seat covers remain in good condition, with some light creasing but no significant wear that we could see
• Black carpets with fitted footwell mats, embroidered with the car’s registration mark
• Door cards in good condition, with large storage bins and drilled aluminium handles
• Leather-trimmed steering wheel
• Aluminium dashboard panel
• Auxiliary gauges with magnolia faces: voltmeter, clock and oil pressure gauge
• Adjustable headlight trim switch
• Kenwood stereo/CD player
• Speakers mounted in the rear parcel shelf
• Aluminium gear knob
• The rocker switches and heater control slider have a decidedly retro feel to them
• Three-point, inertia-reel seatbelts for all four passengers
• Rear seating for two passengers
• Aside from the four-gang 12V socket unit, which is untested, the seller tells us that all the interior features function as they should do, with no damage
• To the rear, the boot is fully carpeted
• Full-size spare wheel stored under boot floor

Exterior

• Finished in Silver over Anthracite
• The paint is in good condition for its age
• Silver bonnet stripes
• Plenty of chrome trim
• There is a little bubbling to the paint on the nearside front wheel arch
• Small area of bubbling to the paint below the boot lock
• No significant dents or damage that we could see
• Some welding repairs were carried out in Jun 2023
• The underside has been undersealed for protection from the elements
• There are some MOT advisories for corrosion on the underside of the car
• Minilite-style alloy wheels
• Two Yokohama tyres were fitted to the rear wheels in Apr 2024
• The spotlights all have branded covers
• Wind-down front windows, and hinged rear windows
• Heated rear windscreen
• New front windscreen fitted in Jul 2019
• Chrome bumpers, front grille, headlight bezels and windscreen trim

Mechanical

• 1,275 cc A-series engine
• Four-speed manual gearbox
• Front-wheel drive
• Engine bay clean
• The heater matrix, expansion tank, and coolant were replaced in January 2025
• Clutch slave cylinder replaced in Jul 2024
• The rear brake wheel cylinders and shoes were changed in Jun 2022
• Battery replaced in Nov 2021
• Track rod ends replaced in Aug 2020
• Crankshaft oil seal and camshaft oil seal replaced in January 2019
• Underneath, there is some corrosion to the suspension and exhaust components
• The seller tells us that the car starts first time every time, and the engine has been turned over when not in use
• It is said to drive very well and stop as it should do
• No mechanical issues reported

Summary

Everyone has to drive a ‘proper’ Mini at some point, so you might as well let it be a Cooper Sport. With its advanced version of the A-series engine featuring futuristic technology like fuel injection, this Mini represents the symbiotic relationship between old and new. The best of both worlds.

To arrange a viewing, click the 'Book Viewing' button located under the 'Place Bid' button. Viewings can be booked up until the day before the auction ends, after which the option will change to 'Contact Seller' for further enquiries. This seller is located in Worthing.