It’s hard to be an enthusiast and see the ridiculous prices that have consumed the classic car market and not feel a little sad. But sometimes there’s a reminder that not everything is about money.
With a little money (okay, more like a potentially achievable amount of money) and a considerable amount of elbow grease you, too, could take on a highly expensive restomod in your very own retro rocket.
That affirmation comes from Top Gear’s latest video, which sees the David Brown Automotive Mini Remastered Oselli Edition take on the Caterham 170R and the Tipo 184. Although none is what you might call cheap, the two latter cars are priced very reasonably compared to the Mini.
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The Caterham Seven 170R is the lightest one ever, weighing in at a frankly stunning 970 lbs (440 kg). With such a small curb weight, it only needs a 660 cc turbocharged, three-cylinder Suzuki engine that churns out just 83 hp (84 PS/62 kW) and 86 lb-ft (117 Nm) of torque to get moving.
The Tipo 184, meanwhile, is spiritually similar to the Caterham in that it is intended to replicate a classic race car (an Alfa Romeo Tipo 158, in this case). Sold as a kit car, it’s based on a 1998-2001 1.8-liter NB Mazda Miata, so power will depend on the quality of your donor car, but the engine was capable of 140 hp (141 PS/104 kW) when new.
Finally, the DBA Mini Oselli is more of a restomod than a kit car, and it’s powered by a 1,420 cc engine with twin carbs that churns out 125 hp (126 PS/93 kW) and 113 lb-ft (153 Nm) of torque. The real kicker, though, is that it costs as much as £108,000 ($145,757 USD), considerably more than the other cars cost together. A turnkey Caterham 170 costs upwards of £25,000 ($33,740) while the Tipo 184 costs £17,700 ($23,885) plus the donor car.
Although the out-and-out pace isn’t really the point of any of these cars, it still feels good to know that spending cash isn’t the only way to win a race.