Innocenti Mini Sofa

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This is a project that started a long time ago. I bought for cheap money an Innocenti Mini Mk3 that was destined to end it's life in a scrapyard. The condition wasn't excellent but repairable, bottom panels needed replacement and rust was slowly reaching every single inch of the car. Although the car was not registered anymore, the initial idea was to put it back on the road somehow....but after some thoughts it appeared not to be a good idea. Too much work and too much money which could have been spent to buy a better condition road going innocenti straight away of greater historical value like a Mk1. So I was left with a car I didn't really know what to do with, except occasionally walk around it scratching thoughts off the back of my head.

For long it remained in the garden waiting for a decision. I loved the idea of a Mini trailer with the back side (see http://www.mini.org/nmd/namd/projects/trailer/trailer.html) but then here in Italy it would be hard getting it road legal if not impossible. I decided it could no longer stay in the garden rusting.....so I stripped it down completely and started cutting....yes cutting, which was heartbreaking, but had to be done......

The roof came off ......


Had to be cut in half. There was no going back.....


More cutting continued and I started dismantling all the mechanics:


At this point i decided that the rear of the Mini was going to become a sofa! I cleaned the underside and painted it with a mat black rust protective paint. I then mounted the wheels onto an arm i made, using the original hub. Added two trolley wheels at the front end, turned it round and voilą, the first impression of the Mini Sofa. A friend of mine trying it for the first time:

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