A 2005 Mini with a bad motor was the inspiration for one Utah man to create the racing console of his dreams.
Brent Cheney is a visual artist and an automotive customizer. He doesn’t believe in dreaming too small. When he began to build a virtual gaming rig for iRacing he saw beyond a racing seat or steering wheel. He thought that a real-life, full-size car would be the perfect solution, given his basement.
Cheney spoke to Motor Authority and stated that he was looking for a particular aesthetic. Cheney stated that he wanted his rig to look like a classic gearhead. Cheney came up with the idea of a Mini Hatchback. The blackout plastic roof pillars, and the black rocker panel trim would conceal the rivets and cuts. The basement racer was born after Craigslist found a 2005 Cooper S with suspicious engine tick.
Cheney bought the Coop, which was in poor condition, for $1,000. He then sold the driveline and suspension parts for the same amount. After removing the roof, Cheney began to draw and quarter the car and cut it into small pieces that could be transported to the basement. The Mini was then assembled on top of a wooden frame that he had built. We assume there were hundreds of rivets and brackets. The original interior was reassembled, including the passenger and rear seats. We wonder why he didn’t take them out to reduce weight.
The car was wired with a high-end home theater surround sound system before it was reinstalled. Fanatec Podium DD1 steering wheel and column, Fanatec V3 pedals and ButtKicker Mini transducer are some other gaming hardware. The entire system is powered by an Intel Core i9-9900K 3.6 GHz eight core desktop processor, SanDisk Ultra 3D 1 Terabyte hard drive and NVIDIA GeForce RTX2080 8-gigabyte Founders Edition card. It’s also displayed on a Samsung CHG90 screen. The SimHub app runs on the iPad at the center, and a keyboard is mounted under the car. LED accent lights controlled by iPhones underneath the car give it a futuristic, floating look.
Motor Authority said that the entire process took eight weeks and cost $6,500. There are more expensive hobbies than sim racing, but not many produce a product that is as beautiful, attractive, and enjoyable as this one. Brent Cheney’s BasementGP YouTube channel includes the entire build process as well as a long list of racing videos. The name is cleverly a tribute to Mini’s hottest hatch.