Christian Chapalain of Switzerland contacted me about a car that he saw for sale in his home country. He wrote: "Hi Jeroen, I came across an unusual Mini Variant. It seems like a Beach Car with chopped off roof. The front part also has been changed… Please find some pics attached. Would you have any more infos on this one? It's currently for sale in Switzerland" (ad here).
Well-well, that looks like a Riviera Buggy on steroids. And it's not just the front that's different. How about the rear fins? The dash? The interior? The grab handles? The wheel arches? I'm pretty much convinced it's not a real Beach Car, but a private effort in building something… different! The ad states that the car is located close to Geneva, is an Austin and dates back to 1968, which also rules out a Longbridge original, but then you never know… So: who can tell us more?
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
Well-well, that looks like a Riviera Buggy on steroids. And it's not just the front that's different. How about the rear fins? The dash? The interior? The grab handles? The wheel arches? I'm pretty much convinced it's not a real Beach Car, but a private effort in building something… different! The ad states that the car is located close to Geneva, is an Austin and dates back to 1968, which also rules out a Longbridge original, but then you never know… So: who can tell us more?
Strange snout has been elongated while headlights remained at their original place
Picture courtesy ricardo.ch
From this view its more clear how much the front was altered. Side indicator shows Inno base?
Picture courtesy ricardo.ch
Pity we can't see the rear as that certainly appears to be unusually modified, too…
Picture courtesy ricardo.ch
…Like the interior. Does it have digital gauges? Unfortunately the ad is rather poor in information
Picture courtesy ricardo.ch