Two things come to mind when first viewing this custom-built Mini Clubman turned into a pickup. First, Mini used to make a pickup back in the day. And two, should Mini produce these seeing as how the Hyundai Santa Cruz is such a hot vehicle right now? Sometimes these converted pickups look awkward, but this actually looks like a clean production Mini pickup.

The “ElCamini” is a Clubman pickup done entirely by its owner

This is the “ElCamini,” and it is the creative result of Timothy (imperf3kt) building it all himself. The Clubman only comes as a four-door, so part of this conversion was to make it into a two-door. Yeah, he could have started with a Mini, which is a two-door. But the Clubman is longer and larger, with more interior volume. So starting with it was a better choice. 

Timothy started creating the ElCamini by hacking off the roof. Then he set about adding gussets and bracing to add back some of the rigidity gone with the roof. He also needed that bracing because he wanted a functional bed. That, too he made. In fact, he says he learned how to weld by first experimenting and then building the pickup bed floor. 

After the Clubman’s top was hacked a pickup box and welding up panels and holes were performed

Next, he had to weld up the rear door shut lines, door handle holes, and finally create the rear of the cab where the window would go. And that window and surround are from a Volkswagen of some sort. That’s a lot cheaper than having one made. 

Wanting something with a bit more visual impact, he also lifted the suspension and added those knobby off-road tires, roof rack, snorkel, and grille guard. But it is first a work truck. To prove the point Timothy has posted images of it with gravel and tree cuttings. After all, what good is a truck if you can’t haul with it? 

There are other Mini pickups out there

In his travels, Timothy encountered a Mini with the same type of conversion. So there must be other converted Minis out there as well. If this is a more common modification than we realized, maybe Mini really should consider a limited production run. It is getting ready to make some major changes to the Mini, so now would be a perfect time to give it a go. 

Mini was selling a combined 65,000-plus for a couple of years but by 2014 sales have slowly tailed off. Last year it saw sales of only 28,000 cars. So Mini is due for some changes to help kick the numbers back up to close to where they were in 2012. Maybe a cool little pickup in the shadow of the Santa Cruz would help?