>Phil, Mini's predated sprites,
Actually, the Sprite came first, introduced in May 1958.
(For extra credit, name the city and event at which the
Sprite was introduced to the motoring press.) The Mini
was introduced in 1959 (can't recall the month). Both
were derived from the Austin A35 to some degree or another.
There was a lot of parallel engineering going on for
Minis and Sprites, especially since the A Series engine
(in use for a decade, since its introduction at 803cc)
was a popular powerplant for a class called Formula Junior.
This was a sub-1000cc class of open-wheeled race cars
intended to be a stepping stone on the way to F1, but
based on production engines in specially built chassis.
John Cooper had been very successful at modifying the
A Series engine for FJ, as had been a number of firms
such as Speedwell. Tuning firms sprang up for both the
Sprite and the Mini within months of the cars' respective
introductions, and Cooper of course went on to work with
BMC to make the Mini Cooper.
Some of the Cooper parts were adapted for the Sprite,
but not many because the transverse installation made
a number of things unworkable. For example, the motor
mounts and crankshaft of identical-displacement A Series
engines -- one in a Spridget, the other in a Mini -- are
not interchangeable. This means don't buy a Sprite
parts car for your Mini, for one thing! Some parts do
fit, like the carbs, and some need modification, like
the starter, and some are not interchangeable, like the
Cooper 1275 S head and the 12G940 casting for inline
1275s.
>and a bunch of sprite parts (starting with
>the engine) are mini-derived. The transmission parts are essentially identical
>to Mini gearbox parts,
Are you confusing Mini with Minor, perhaps? The Minor
*does* use the same gearbox as the Sprite, and *did*
come out first (late 1940s, I think -- I'm not a Minor
expert.) The Minis are quite different, with the
transverse engine, transaxle and gearbox all up over the
front wheels. The Minors, on the other hand, are
pretty conventional and in fact did provide many of
the parts that went into the Sprites (and, to a lesser
extent, into the Mini).
(Of course, nowadays "conventional" means having the
transverse engine, transaxle and gearbox all up over
the front wheels...)
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