Meet The Honda-Powered Mid-Engine Mini Restomod With 230 HP

Monterey Car Week is all anyone in the industry can talk about this week, and why not? Car shows - particularly those on this sort of scale - have been amiss from our calendars for a long time now, and the big names are all looking to welcome themselves back to the spotlight with stunning displays and new creations. Bentley hasa huge spreadpromised, Audi has shown us ashapeshifting roadster concept, and Pagani will be showing off itslatest limited-edition Huayra. Smaller outfits of high quality will also be at the event, and one such company is showcasing a specialMini Cooperrestomod.

The company in question is Spectre Vehicle Design and the creation is a mid-engine, Honda-powered classic Mini called the Spectre Type 10. The Honda engine is the famous K20, which in this application produces 230 horsepower at the wheels. With a Haltech ECU controlling the system, we suspect that this car is quite spritely, although no performance claims have been mentioned. What makes the mid-engine Mini so cool is that it's now rear-wheel-driven, and the Canadian company has put lots of thought into the finer details of every last item. From the seats to the wheels and suspension, every last piece is agonized over. This is almost like a scaled-down version of whatSinger Vehicle Design does with Porsches.

Those wheels are inspired by the 10-inch Minilite wheel but reengineered for better functionality, particularly in terms of heat management. Something similar was seen on the E34 BMW M5 with its Turbofan wheel covers. The seats are also cool details, supposedly mimicking "a picture of Monica Bellucci in a one-piece bathing suit with a cutout for her belly button." The cabin has strange inspiration too, supposedly being designed to replicate a Japanese mudroom. Despite all our preconceptions of pretentiousness, this car should be a hoot. It'll have a six-speed gearbox with a limited-slip diff, four-piston brakes, and a total weight of around 1,700 pounds. No pricing has been mentioned, but the entire package looks worthy of considering over a stock classic.