Register of Estate, Traveller and Countryman (ETC) Minis in Australia

Production of these variants of the Mini began in March 1960 at Longbridge in the UK. The release date was 16 September 1960 and were the first Minis variants to be identified as more “up-market’ and stylish versions of the base Mini sedan. They were produced until April 1982 in the UK. Early versions generally had external decorative wood trim and are often referred to as a “woody”. ECT Minis were also produced in the Netherlands, Italy, Portugal and South Africa. An estimated world-wide production total of ETC Minis is 423,100.

Some distinguishing features to identify the year model of MKI cars are as follows:

Very early cars have an internal fuel tank (5 3/4 gallon, 26L) with the filler cap on the LHS under the rear window. In October 1961 the fuel tank was enlarged (6 gallon, 27 L) and was moved under the floor at the rear of the car.

A drip rail on the roof gutter was not fitted until late September 1960.

All steel cars (i.e. without external wood trim) were made for the export market from April 1961 and were released to the UK home market in October 1962.

The ribbed roof was introduced in late 1965 or very early 1966 to stop drumming noise in the cabin space from reverberation.

Only 2 Traveller estates were made by Leyland Australia in mid 1978 near the end on Mini production. They were made from modified Clubman Mini vans as prototypes for a possible future model with a 1275 cc engine. One of these cars still exists and is presently in NSW. In 1962 it was decided by BMC Australia not to produce Traveller Mini models because it was reasoned that it would be bought by the same people who would otherwise buy a Mini sedan. It was believed it would compete with sales for the Mini sedan but not the Mini Van which was considered to be a totally different market segment. Consequently ETC Minis are rare in Australia because they had to be purchased by personal export delivery with associated added costs.

Much of the information provided here is sourced from The Mini Experience magazine Issue 24, October – December 2010 from the article “Family Affair, 50 years of Mini Estates” by Craig Watson. It is recommended reading for additional information about ETC Minis.

A register of ETC cars in Australia was started in the year 2000 by Grant Freeman. General details of the vehicles presently on this register are tabled here. If you own an ETC Mini and would like to have your car included on the register, write to The Secretary, PMEA PO Box 499, Newport beach NSW 2106 or email admin@pittwatermotorclub.org.au. No personal details or registration numbers will be entered into the register on this website. There are presently 10 cars on the register that are MkI (i.e. pre October 1967) versions. It would be nice to be able to include some MkII and Clubman Estate cars that are seen from time to time on Australian roads.