Bill Minor, of Columbia, Tennessee, was an artist, gifted fabricator, and automotive enthusiast. With his great fabrication abilities, he was able to make or repair almost anything.
This amphibious car was designed by Hans Trippel. It has a unibody steel two-door cabriolet body with electrically-welded joints and is powered by an 1147cc triumph herald engine mounted at the rear and driving the rear wheels. Two propellers are activated for propulsion when the car is in the water.
The Astra was originally developed in 1955 as the “Little Horse” utility vehicle by JARC Motors Ltd. Of Middlesex. The single-seat, 13HP commercial vehicle was simple but capable.
The Audi Coupe GT was produced as an executive compact car; a tamer, front-wheel drive version of the famed Audi Quattro. Sold in the US market from 1980-1987, it was updated to the Audi 90.
The Austin-Healey Sprite was the entry level British sports car in the 1960s. The Austin-Healey Sprite Mark IV represents the final development of the Sprite line.
This is a custom-designed Mini built on a stock Mini drivetrain. As you can see, the car has been significantly shortened. The back seat was removed, and approximately 2 feet has been cut out of the wheelbase. Cars such as this are referred to as “Mini Minis” or “Shorty Minis”.
This 1969 Austin Mini has been updated to mid-1980 specification. Although Austin never produced an in-house cabriolet, several independent companies in England performed the conversions.
The Austin Mini Moke (British slang for “donkey”) began production in 1964. It was designed as a four-wheel-drive jeep-like utility vehicle for the British army. Although it was rejected by the military because of its low ground clearance, a two-wheel drive version became popular around the world as an inexpensive “fun” vehicle ideal for hot climates.
In the mid 1960s, Austin decided to produce the Mini in South America. Knowing the production volumes would not be large, they could not afford to make another set of stamping dies for another factory.
The Twini Mini was an idea that was never fully developed. In 1962, British Motor Corporation built a Mini Moke with 2 engines to help its off-road capabilities.
In 1916, the A.O. Smith Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, introduced an inexpensive buckboard-style cycle car called the Flyer. The Guinness Book of World Records lists the Flyer/ Auto Red Bug as the least expensive production car of all time, citing a 1922 ad that listed them for $125.
The name DKW comes from “Dampf-Kraft-Wagen” which translates to “steam-powered vehicle.” It carries this name because the first vehicle its Danish designer, J.S. Rasmussen, built, was a light steam car.
Autobianchi was founded in January 1955 with the signing of an agreement between Fiat, Pirelli and Bianchi to produce a small, Fiat 500-based car. The result was the Bianchina, first shown in 1957.
The Biscuter, or ‘Zapatilla’ (little shoe) as it was known in Spain, was actually built to the design of the French engineer Gabriel Voisin. ‘Biscooter’, the French name, was in itself a playful name for a car the size of two scooters.
