A special Mini

Gianni Agnelli, the then big boss of the Fiat group gave the go-ahead for the production of the Jolly de Plage in the late 1950s and early 1960s, a beach version of the Fiat 500 and 600, among others. More models followed, all without B-post. In no time such a car became the 'toy' for the richest people on earth, but were also purchased by luxurious hotels and golf courses.

Naturally, such trolleys enjoyed great popularity in countries where 'rain' is just as rare as 'sun' in our country. The open sides provided a cool breeze, the roof protected the crew against the burning sun. People like Grace Kelly, John Wayne, Henry Ford, they all had such a thing in the stables. Seized by this success it built  Experimental Department  from BMC, the parent company of Austin and Morris, among others, between December 1961 and March 1962 also fifteen 'beach carts' based on the Mini. The designer Dick Burzi - with Italian family ties - was called in to transform the standard Mini as such with a limited budget.

A brilliant and inexpensive solution

The result was a brilliant and inexpensive solution. The Mini, for example, because the roof with standard windscreen and rear window was maintained, retained its stiffness, supplemented with adapted side panels. These carts were only available with left-hand drive and all but one were exported. The British queen received one on (long) loan. She rode it in her garden around Windsor Castle. The car left the island a few years ago ... To get this Mini in the spotlight, the BMC representative in San Francisco organized a one-off race with these cars. Drivers such as Juan Manuel Fangio, Pedro Rodriguez, Stirling Moss were invited as drivers… It was to be expected, it turned out to be crazy, several carts rolled over the asphalt and were thus written off.