David Brown Automotive, a car company based in Silverstone, UK, announced the Mini Remastered Oselli Edition a year and a half ago, but the pandemic forced it to postpone the launch until now. On the upside, the car gained some power underway to the assembly line.
DBA has been offering Mini Remastered cars since 2017, restoring used vehicles based on new components and technologies. The Oselli Edition is a performance batch co-designed with half-a-century-old Mini tuner Oselli Classic & Sports Cars.
The original plans involved boring the naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine from 1.275 to 1.42 liters of displacement, which would result in a power bump from 79 PS (78 hp / 58 kW) to 101 PS (100 hp / 74 kW). However, as the launch date was postponed, the company came up with a way to boost it further thanks to dual SU carburetors, new crankshaft and camshaft, a different cylinder head assembly, and a straight-pipe exhaust system. The net result amounted to 1.45 liters of displacement, 127 PS (125 hp / 93 kW) and 153 Nm (113 lb-ft) of torque.
The original four-speed manual transmission also made room for a five-speed design. The car now needs 7.8 seconds to get 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph).
Exterior novelty spans as far as 13-inch wheels and tires, widened wheel arches, extra lights integrated in the radiator grille, and a custom livery. As for the LED lighting, the original Mini had it all along. Inside, bucket seats come standard for this spec, and a roll cage comes optional.
A total of 60 units will be produced. Prices are pending.