A 1969 Austin Maxi rally car built to compete in the London to Mexico City Rally has been estimated to make £19-24,000 when it crosses the block at Historics’ 9 March sale.
The British Leyland-built machine was featured in the May 2012 issue of C&SC, and is one of four Maxis that entered the competition – officially known as the 'Daily Mirror World Cup Rally'. It would take competitors through Munich, Budapest, Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago La Paz and Panama.
The plan was that competitors would complete the journey in time for the start of the 1970 World Cup.
In anticipation of the tough 16,000-mile trip, the Maxi was prepared by Peter Baldwin and fitted with a glassfibre bonnet and doors, Plexiglas rear and side windows, a bull bar and spotlamps.
The Hydrolastic suspension gained a pump so that the ride height could be adjusted, and it was supplemented with telescopic dampers at the rear.
