In mid-September 2025, Gary Surman, Director of Ascaso Engineering is part of a 68 strong engineering team heading to the salt flats in Bolivia to attempt a Mini Land Speed Record.
After a few days acclimatisation to the altitude, in La Paz, the team will travel to the Bolivian salt flats to support New Zealander, Reg Cook of Cook Motor Racing team.
Reg will attempt to set a new speed record for the World's fastest Mini, driving a 1959 Mini equipped with the Ascaso A+5 1071cc block, capable of producing over 450 BHP and targeting a speed up to 185mph. The test will take place at Salar de Uyuni, in Bolivia's vast salt flats, with up to 15 miles track length.
The Ascaso A series engine complete short block assembly including gaskets and the fire rings has all been manufactured in-house at A&M, using 3, 4, and 5-axis Hurco machining centres.
Gary Surman and A&M’s owner, Mark Wingfield (pictured above with an A+5 engine) set up Ascaso to develop and manufacture the first-ever 5 Main Bearing A Series Aluminium short block assembly, designed specifically for the Classic Mini and precision machined by A&M EDM.
Gary had the idea many years ago and used additional time in the Covid pandemic to work with A&M to develop a lighter, more powerful A+5 engine for Mini enthusiasts, with different capacity versions.
This allows enthusiasts to replace the engine block in a 1960s or later Mini with a modern, high-performance aluminium block delivering a significant increase in the potential power output and reliability.
Gary said, “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, thanks to engineering skills of A&M, we’ve designed and manufactured an A+5 engine which is great improvement and this record attempt can give it a global profile.”
Trivia fact – at 3,650 m (11,975 ft) above sea level, La Paz is the highest capital city in the world.
More information https://cmrchallenges.co.nz/