Help us identify this mystery race car

The Hagerty Community never fails to impress, as our fans have a diverse and passionate appeal for all things automotive. (And motorcycles too, ’natch.) While we can often find an answer amongst ourselves, this mysterious race car was posted today on the Hagerty Community, and its current owner is seeking help to determine its provenance.

“So I have apparently sort of inherited this former race car. The former owner found that my 997-cc Mini Cooper engine-trans assembly slipped right in. He was planning to do the metal-work and any welding needed and I was going to do the mechanicals, we were then going to vintage race it. BUT he died (throat cancer) and now I have this car that people are trying to buy from me for a song so they can cut it up and make a dune buggy with a motorcycle engine. I fear that the car has some historical importance and hate to let it go and get butchered. I suspect it might be a Centaur (built in the Detroit area in the early ’60s) but I can find no proof that they ever build a chassis for a Mini Drivetrain. Anyone recognize this?”

After some rudimentary checking of Centaur’s offerings, I suspect this is neither the Piranha nor the CRV race car kits Centaur offered. The Mini 997-cc powertrain suggests this is an English patient; perhaps this is a poor man’s version of a Lola race car? I mean, its bodywork looks like something a professional engineering firm would make back then!

No matter, if you have any input or advice you’d like to share with our community on this mystery car, please click here to add your comment. Haven’t signed up for the Hagerty Community yet?  No problem, just click here.