Flat out in a Mini Cooper…
My first ‘decent’ car, (ie without holes in the wings!) was a 997 cc (long stroke) Mk 1 Mini Cooper which I bought when I was 20 years old from an American who was moving back to the ‘states, so I got it quite cheaply. As was all the rage at the time I sprayed it Porsche Bahama Yellow with a spray-on vinyl roof (which I did for a number of people, it was a fashion!).
My job then was an apprentice mechanic at the Ford Main dealer in Middlesbrough, Neshams of Teeside. I had enrolled in the Ford Technician programme and was sent on a training course at Slough – quite a big thing for an apprentice and the longest journey I had undertaken in the car. I used the ‘Great North Road’ (the A1) and the then fairly new M1 Motorway. The car was sitting at approximately 80mph (perfectly legally then) running quite well as night fell, then there was suddenly a bright glow of brake lights ahead across all lanes of the motorway – something had clearly happened. I lifted my foot, but to my horror the car just kept going at 80mph – the throttle was stuck wide open!
I grabbed for the ignition switch (in the middle of the dash under the speedo – remember?), turned it off and eased the car towards the hard shoulder, thankfully stopping safely. On lifting the bonnet it was clear what had happened - when the throttle was wide open the throttle return spring of the twin SU carburettors had settled down onto the spindle joining the carbs, and was just locked on there. A simple flick of the spring released it, but it was a very scary moment. I moderated my speed for the rest of the journey, regularly lifting off to ensure it had not happened again and when I got home I fabricated longer levers on the carburettors to lift the spring well clear of the spindle. I often wondered if this had also happened to others, as it seemed to be a design weakness, but I’ll never forget my trip to Slough in my Mini Cooper!
(The course was for Mk1 Transit steering, which some may remember had a solid front axle with semi-eliptic ‘cart’ springs and king pins which seized if they weren’t regularly greased. Not the favourite job in the workshop!)
