Missing a whole year on the account of you know who might have proved providential for some of the most exotic attendees of the 2021 Goodwood Festival of Speed (July 8-11). Case in point, “Vini' the Powerflex V8 MINI,” a crazy build project that involved four years of hard work to achieve... something looking quite subtle for a British Racing Green on Gold wheels RWD monster.
Unless you live in the United Kingdom and you’re interested in finding a professional solution for your car suspension troubles, chances are Powerflex won’t ring too many bells. Still, the company entitles itself as the number one make in Europe as far as suspension bushes are concerned. But we’re not here to discuss their products. Instead, we’re here to meet Vini, their V8-powered MINI Cooper S project that’s been in the making since way back in 2017.
Some four years later, the crazy swap project has met a self-imposed deadline and got ready just in time for a roaring V8-powered public debut at the 2021 Goodwood Festival of Speed. The not-so-secretive “skunkworks” build project has been described in detail for the good folks over at Drivetribe and also has its own “personal” page on social media that delivered updates on the build progress. Interestingly, the outside has been kept as stock as possible, so this not so contemporary second-generation R56 MINI Cooper S could easily serve as a sleeper as well.
Chances are it won’t be able to pass as one if anyone gets the chance to peek inside the cockpit, where it’s all racing business and (probably) lots of serious fun. Or catch the apparition at the Goodwood FoS (live stream for the event is embedded below) where people will surely notice something is amiss. Such as the fact that we’re dealing with a pocket rocket that burns rubber with the rear wheels.
Or that it wants to outperform all of its peers' thanks to the BMW S65 naturally aspirated V8 engine swap. It’s the same powerplant used by the Bavarian parent for the fourth generation (E9x) M3 effort. Interestingly, this is the only such mill used by the company inside the M3 series, save for the odd E46 BMW M3 GTR, which is a car that’s rarer than hen’s teeth.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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