Nostalgic cool “Mini Van” found at a camping event

“Let’s Chill Out! (Let’s Chill Out),” held June 1-2, 2024 at the National Musashi Hills Park in Saitama Prefecture, is a new style of car show and auto camping event centered on outdoor and custom cars. The event is a new style of car show and auto-camping event centered on outdoor and custom cars. There we found a fully aero-customized 1965 Austin “minivan”, a classic “working car”. Moreover, when we talked to the owner, we found that an unexpected part of the car had been digitized.

The owner loves unpopular and rare old “working cars”

In any country, old or new, the more comfortable a working car is, the better. And, when you use a car for daily work, it is human nature to always want to replace it with the latest one. In a sense, such working cars are “disposable,” but if they were manufactured about half a century ago, they would be different from sports cars and luxury cars, which have been cherished from the beginning, and would become valuable. The reality is that, as mentioned above, it is difficult to preserve them for posterity because they are “disposable.

There was a kind owner who loved commercial-type vans that had probably been heavily used.

“I like working vehicles. I feel that I want to spend the rest of my life playing with the van that has worked so hard for me.”

Masato Minagawa is the owner of an old Austin “Mini” van, a popular British car that is now called a “classic Mini” not to be confused with the current model. He has been looking forward to this “Let’s Chill Out!” event with his classic Mini friends since the event’s inception.

The van is finished with a full aero kit, which is rare for a van

Minagawa-san first learned that Minis also had vans 20 years ago, and it has been 10 years since he made a Mini van his beloved car.

By the way, the classic Mini, which debuted in 1959, was produced under two brands, Austin and Morris, using the badge engineering method, with an estate model based on a saloon with an extended overall length and a pickup model as well as a van for commercial vehicles. It is an extremely long-selling model that shines in the history of automobiles.

Minagawa’s van, which can be identified as a 1965 model from its VIN, is painted in Yukon Gray, a simple and timeless color, with an eye-catching full aero kit, which is rare for a van. The van was finished in a classical style with the concept of cute and cool.

“The aero kit is for a saloon, so we extended the side steps and installed them.”

The health of your car is also checked carefully using the programming techniques that you are good at

A peek into the interior reveals what appears to be an orthodox center meter, but surprisingly, it is partially a digital display.

“I always want to know the health condition of my car, but I don’t want to ruin the classical atmosphere of the interior, so I made it partially digital display.”

The fuel gauge, originally an analog needle pointing to the lower part of the Smith’s speedometer located in the center of the instrument panel, has been converted to a digital gauge. The two-patterned analog needle and bar, as well as the voltmeter, are displayed digitally.

Also on the right side is a Smith water temperature gauge, which not only displays the same pointer as the normal gauge, but also has water temperature, air intake temperature, voltage, and an air-fuel consumption gauge. The multi-meter display, which can be switched with a single touch, was completed as a DIY project, as he is a programmer by trade. The quality of the finished product is such that anyone who sees it is sure to want to have it.

“I think I’ve been able to bring out my colors quite well. I met some great mini camping buddies because of the van, and it’s a van that has brought me the greatest happiness.”

Minagawa-san cares for his van, which has worked for him for more than half a century, and will continue to enjoy an enjoyable outdoor life with him.

translated by DeepL