David Brown Automotive is seeking to appease fast road and track drivers alike with its most powerful Mini Remastered yet, the twin SU carburettor Oselli Edition. Using a tuned 1,450cc four-cylinder motor outputting 125hp at 6,200rpm and 113lb ft of torque 1,700 revs earlier, the new model can crack 62mph in 7.8 seconds, and adds trick extras like a limited-slip diff and Bilstein suspension for the bends. It’s available in both four-seat and two-seat guises, with the latter gaining a leather-wrapped half cage and harnesses for maximum circuit readiness. Both versions look brilliant.
If the Mini wasn’t such a proven base on which to build a tiny performance car, we might consider the Oselli tuning effort - which includes a hand-ported and polished cylinder head, strengthened crankshaft and higher-torque camshaft - overkill. Same goes for the AP Racing brakes actually. But you only have to have watched 10 seconds of Goodwood Revival to know that fast Minis are decidedly brilliant track cars (although admittedly, this DBA creation is far more leather clad and polished and expensive than those battle-scarred racers).
The car's upmarket character is prominent enough in the restyling, with those 13-inch wheels – considered to be pretty large for an original Mini – wrapped in sticky tyres, the interior bearing sports seats and, of course, the bodywork wearing stripes. As standard, the car gets a manual gearbox, but buyers can option in an automatic if they prefer. No matter the spec, there’s clearly plenty of potential here; anyone who’s driven a plus-100hp Mini with a limited-slip diff and grippy tyres will know just how brilliantly playful they can be.
Elsewhere, buyers can choose from an interior finished in Carbon Grey or Old English White, with accents in Competition Red, Royal Blue or Heritage Green. All of the details are hand-made; the exterior paint, enamled badging and black chrome brightwork has all been created manually, while the number 60 in the front grille is sprayed on as a nod to the 60 years that have passed in the original Mini’s life.
The number also represents the run total for the Oselli Edition car, with pricing not announced. At any rate, DBA says it will be hand-built to order at its factory in Silverstone, before moving to the workshop of Buckinghamshire-based Oselli for engine tuning and performance enhancement. Expect the specialist treatment to put the cost well above the £80k asked for the 'base' DBA model; something just over £100k seems likely.
Doubtless that'll stick in some people's craw, but the car is obviously intended to be thought of as a tiny alternative to the likes of Singer’s 911s, not a spruced up Mayfair. Indeed, DBA buyers are obviously the sort with a selection of cars on hand, although the fitment of infotainment system and the promise of turn-key functionality ought to mean that there's little stopping any of them from bombing about in an Oselli all week. Which seems like a nice idea.
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