For so many of us, our love of cars is so deeply rooted into our earliest memories that it's hard to imagine what we'd be interested in if we hadn't experienced four-wheeled fantasies. Sure, we may dabble in the odd football match, try our hand at skateboarding, or briefly pick up a guitar, but nothing ignites our passion quite like that first roar of an engine and the smell of petrol. For Adrien Harang, his childhood was spent surrounded by engines, not from his father or older siblings like so many of us, but his grandmother, who owned a small garage in a rural area to the west of Paris.
At the age of 17, Adrien embarked on a solo restoration of a 1988 Mini that needed more than just some TLC, something he took his time in learning and perfecting while spending every other spare moment racing ATVs. It was this restoration process that led Adrien to dedicate his entire life to the egalitarian hatchback, and one that has led him to restore, race and sell some of the marque's very best models in the world. It’s always cliché to ask what makes a Mini so special, but Adrien’s answer is exactly what every enthusiast wants to hear: “The Mini is truly the only car that is completely classless. Everyone says that about it, but it is so true, and having worked on hundreds over the years, it’s easy to see why so many loved the car. They are so easy to work on, so lovable to drive, and very practical for everyday use. The first experience of driving a Mini is unlike anything else – its go-kart handling is completely unique. It’s so basic, but so enjoyable. It is a machine that encourages you to understand a car’s dynamics. It is impossible to add anything to the exterior of the Mini, it is perfect just as it is.”
Perfect they may be, and it was quickly clear that Adrien wasn’t the only one who felt this way. Setting up My Mini Revolution in 2010, using the garage space his grandmother had worked in for decades, he initially worked with just one employee, a bodywork specialist to help restore and revitalise classics in need of a comeback. Starting from the humblest of beginnings, the Minis began to trickle into the business, some of which were in need of complete restorations, others itching for a little more power to the front wheels, while others were simply looking for a new home. Adrien’s team quickly grew, and he now employs 18 staff members who work tirelessly to make their client’s dreams a reality.
Within the grounds of My Mini Revolution, Adrien admits he has what he believes is over 100 examples of Minis, of all varying ages and condition, patiently waiting for their time to be restored. Along with a bustling workshop, the plush two-storey showroom is home to over 30 Minis for sale. Curious to find out exactly where Adrien and his team find such special cars in an ever-competitive market, Adrien wasn’t going to give away all of his secrets, but admits My Mini Revolution’s reputation has led him to acquire some special examples. “Finding classic Minis now is getting really difficult. We’re lucky enough to be in a position where clients are reaching out to us to restore or purchase their cars, rather than us constantly searching the many sites for a suitable classic. This has led us to be presented with very special examples from Radford, Wood & Pickett and many others, which we’ve lovingly restored or sold on. The Mini has a way of eating into your heart, and once you own one, you’ve been bitten by the bug and many of our clients will return to buy another, where we often take their old examples back into the market.”
With a pristine workshop and staff bursting with positivity and a deep understanding of quality and refinement, My Mini Revolution truly put their heart and soul into every example they work on. While many are carefully restored to look like they rolled off the assembly line, the market for customisation and modernisation has allowed Adrien and his team to bring true innovation and usability to the classic Mini. “The process really does depend on how far the client wants to take their Mini, where we can modernise the key components of the car or restore it back to how Alec Issigonis first dreamt it. Some people want crazy paintwork, others prefer the original pastel shades. Sometimes, they want completely original engines, and other times they want it remapped and enhanced to push over 150 horsepower. The interiors can be customised however they want it, Apple CarPlay, upgraded stereos, leather seats, whatever you want, we can do it. We love the crazy ideas that some clients bring to us, as it constantly pushes us to learn and develop new skills.”
Intrigued to find out just how usable a classic Mini is in today’s SUV-loving world, we asked Adrien what he believes to be ideal Mini. “We’ve worked on many back-dated cars over the years. Due to laws in Europe, we have to be very careful about switching engines out for higher displacement engines, and so we often restore the engines to their best, making the later Minis with the MPI engines ideal for the everyday driver. While some clients enjoy the typical wider arches and multiple foglights of the later models, we can also back-date these cars to look just like an example from the 1960s, complete with chunky tyres, narrow arches and a far more basic interior. The combination of this old-style look with the more reliable MPI engined cars brings every bit of charm of the original car, but has the durability of a modern example. 10-inch wheels are king!”
Adrien doesn’t just drive, live and breathe Minis, he races them too. After developing an outrageous Honda K20-Turbo'd Mini, complete with over 600 horsepower to the wheels, he and his team know just how capable these plucky racers really are. When he’s not working on client cars, or cheering on his son as he races go-karts around Europe, Adrien races FIA-specified Minis built almost entirely within My Mini Revolution. “For me, I built these cars to enjoy racing myself, spending a lot of time working out the perfect setup for the FIA classic racers, from engine tweaking, dyno testing, roll-cage fabrication, chassis enhancements and even the paintwork. We’re so proud to be able to take someone’s dream, right through to lining up on the start line in their own race-ready Mini.”
As the decades roll by, it’s hard to fathom that the original BMW Mini, or R53 as many call it, is now 25 years old, and is on course to become a bonafide modern classic. Despite Adrien and his team spending so many hours working on the originals, could there really be a place for these bulkier Minis in a museum? “I firmly believe these cars are classics of the future. The engines are sweet, the go-kart handling is still very much present, and in my opinion, the styling is very cool. They have their own characteristics compared to the original classic Mini, and their appeal is certainly growing.”
As our time with Adrien and his team came to its conclusion, we were well and truly bitten by the Mini’s lovebug we were warned about. Having dealt with so many oddities and rarities over the years, we had one final question for Adrien, and we thought it might have been a difficult one to answer. To our surprise, his response was almost immediate, “My dream Mini is the ’33 EJB’ Paddy Hopkirk Mini. I have an identical replica of the Monte Carlo winning car, which is, for me, the most special Mini of them all. I do still own the very first Mini I worked on, from the year 1988, and it's currently disassembled, but perhaps I will keep it for my son to work on when he is old enough! The car holds so many precious memories, and I simply have too many projects on the go, but one day I will bring it back to life!”
To find out more about My Mini Revolution, click here.
