Barn finds usually occur in remote places but sometimes classic vehicles can be abandoned in city centers. This is what happened in Athens, Greece with a classic Mini Cooper and a Yamaha motorcycle being recovered from a hotel parking lot more than three decades after the owner left them there.
All those years of exposure to dust and humidity had their toll on the Mini which is in pretty bad shape. Minor fender benders supposedly with other users of the multi-story parking space, plus vandalism with missing parts including the headlights, transformed the Mini into junkyard material. Also, the driver’s window is rolled-down and the rear side window is missing, causing damage to the interior.
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The bodywork is so dirty that you can hardly see the paint – it was likely repainted in dark blue over the original red. We can see clear signs of rust around the exterior and on the chrome bumpers, the tires are cracked, the remaining windows are foggy, and the fabric roof doesn’t look like it is able to fold anymore. We don’t have more photos of the car but we are confident that the engine bay and the underpinnings will look just as bad.
The Yamaha motorcycle is in better shape, making us believe that it could be saved, although such a project would require lots of restoration work after so many years at a standstill. And now that we’ve examined the vehicles, let’s talk about how and why they were left to rot.
Abandoned In An Underground Parking Of A Hotel
First of all, the photos accompanying this article were shot by Ektor Zenetos Rokkos, who happened to pass outside the Titania hotel in Athens and came across this unusual sight. The Mini and the Yamaha were dragged out of the underground parking, sitting under the sun for the first time in decades. The vehicles were temporarily parked on the sidewalk, waiting to be towed away.
According to our sources, the owner parked the Mini and the Yamaha in the late ’80s or early ’90s, making a deal with the hotel that is located in the heart of Athens. The vehicles were stored in the fifth underground floor of the building. Note that this multi-story underground parking is not only reserved for customers and visitors of the premises, but also available to rent at a certain fee.
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Many years later, the owner passed away, and no one from his family or friends came to rescue the car or the motorcycle. Thus, the vehicles remained in the dark, forgotten by the world. Frequent bypassers knew their existence, but since the hotel decided against getting rid of them, they just sat there gathering dust. We don’t know why the hotel’s management didn’t do something with the vehicles during all this time, and unfortunately, the people we talked with from the call center couldn’t help us find out more about the backstory.
As you might have guessed, this barn find doesn’t have a happy ending, as both vehicles are likely headed to the crusher. After so many years of neglect, saving the Mini would make no sense, since you can find a pristine example for much less than the cost of repairs. The motorcycle will likely meet a similar fate, as no one seems to be interested in buying it from the hotel.
Photo Credit: Ektor Zenetos Rokkos