WTB #4

Curves! And how! The Morris Minor has been described as the British VW bug: small, economical, mass-produced and beloved. This is a 1964 Morris Minor 1000, with the larger 1098cc engine that can get 40+mpg and still cruise at over 70mph. All the benefits of '60s technology, but with '40s style!

The Minor was designed by the same guy who created the well-known Mini Cooper (aka the Morris Mini Minor! really!). Legend has it that the designer thought that the Minor was too small, so he had the prototype cut in half, down the length, and then he widened it by 4 inches. That's why there's a 4-inch flat line down the middle of the hood--it was too late to re-shape the curve of the hood. The result is that even guys like me can fit in this compact car!

Early models of the Minor were under-powered (i.e., can't keep up with modern US traffic) and the earliest models were just plain ugly, but the post-1962 models embody everything I want in a car. Good looks, easy to work on, and popular enough to make spare parts cheap and easily-accessible. I like to picture myself wearing a tweed jacket (leather patches on the elbows, 'natch) stepping out of this car with my briefcase and rushing off to teach a class.

Decent examples can be found for $4,000. I'd want to re-build the engine, which I'm sure I could do in my living room. This is the car I've been lusting after this summer. Again: if you can help me find any one of these cars for <$2,000, please let me know! Rust-free and straight is all I ask. I can work on the rest, but I can't afford body work.