STAFF at a Rednal car company will say a sad goodbye in the New Year to the last ever MG Rover Mini of its kind to be produced, after they found a buyer for it before it was due to be crushed.

The last Classic Mini Cooper Sport in the country was saved from a breaker's yard by staff at Clark's MG Rover, in Lickey Road.

BMW allowed MG Rover to continue using the Mini name for the remainder on its production line, on the condition all of them were registered to an owner by December 31, 2001 at the latest, or they would be crushed.

The lucky car, sent to the garage earlier this month, is registered to a man in Bristol following a number of calls from enthusiasts all over the country.

He is set to pick it up in the New Year.