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1961 Austin Mini: Take Two


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#106 buddylove

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Posted 19 October 2015 - 08:29 PM

Thanks! I got lucky with this one, most are pretty rusty if they look like this over here.



#107 jpw1275

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Posted 19 October 2015 - 09:43 PM

What an awesome looking mini you have there..... I've got the same mirrors and brackets for mine but I'm not sure if they will be road legal over here in the uk

Cheers james

#108 slidehammer

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Posted 19 October 2015 - 10:51 PM

Great looking car you have there I love the paint work, so retro.

#109 buddylove

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Posted 20 October 2015 - 03:22 AM

What an awesome looking mini you have there..... I've got the same mirrors and brackets for mine but I'm not sure if they will be road legal over here in the uk

Cheers james


Thanks! Fortunately we don't have the MOT here, and our mirror law isn't too strict.

Great looking car you have there I love the paint work, so retro.


Thank you! Looking forward to completing it and getting it out on the road.

#110 timmy850

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Posted 20 October 2015 - 05:24 AM

 

Picked up a 1275 A+ MPI short block and gearbox case from Kelley over the weekend (doesn't have a hole for a distributor, forcing me to go fuel injection :) ) This will cause a large cost increase in the project, but we will see how long it takes to buy the additional items.  

You should be able to keep the carbs and just do a programmable ignition system, like a megajolt if you wanted to keep the cost down. 



#111 buddylove

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Posted 20 October 2015 - 02:44 PM

Thanks for the idea, I always forget about megajolt.



#112 timmy850

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Posted 20 October 2015 - 08:33 PM

There are other systems, like nodiz, omex, and microtech so you do have some choices of "igniton only ecu" models. I'm not familiar with how any of them are tuned and the differences between them though.

#113 buddylove

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Posted 21 October 2015 - 04:54 AM

Thanks again. I still have time till I get to that point. Next step is to buy the internals and then I can start sharing my engine spec.

#114 buddylove

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Posted 24 January 2016 - 03:48 AM

Pic of the A+ Block and Gearbox that I spoke about earlier.
 
DSC_0003.jpg
 
More parts arrived the other day. I had a front windscreen shipped over from the UK as well (box on the right). I was pretty sure that it was going to arrive damaged in some way, but the box looked completely intact and the packaging was well done.
 
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Tires for the SSR Formula Mesh Wheels, with my son being impressed by them.
 
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Complete headliner kit, Battery Box and tie down, door straps, visors, wheel nuts, and dash backing for a single binnacle setup.
 
DSC_0007.jpg


#115 buddylove

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Posted 02 February 2016 - 04:51 AM

More forward progress.
 
Picked the car up from Gunnar last Sunday. He did a great job installing / fixing the following:
 
New Front Windscreen
Front and Rear Windscreen Seals
Both Quarter Window Seals
Door Seals
Boot Lid Seal
Adjusted both doors
Replaced Driver Side Door Latch
Welded and bent front license plate bracket back into shape
Extracted driver side radius arm cover screws
Installed Interior C pillar trim and the trim that goes between the rear windscreen and parcel shelf, as both pieces needed to fit under the seals.
 
The car made it up to Gunnars and then back again without missing a beat. It is about 20 miles one way and mostly freeway, there was decent traffic on the way back home and there was no overheating or running issues.
 
The car is idling high, which was an issue before, but it keeps occurring, need to figure out why. The more I drive it the more oil it leaks. I am guessing it sat a good amount before I got it and it has been sitting a lot while I get things sorted out slowly. Getting the oil leaks to a minimum is the next priority. Also, I need to order a full wiring harness and take advantage of the limited interior that it has in it.
 
It will then go back to Gunnar's for the mirrors to be mounted, after the interior is in and the rear seat belts will be getting installed. Before anyone shows any concern over that, I am having Gunnar do it so that he can add strengthening plates. I want to be able to install my son's car seat in the back. From previous experience, if I have a car that can't fit the whole family it doesn't get driven.
 
Sometime in between all that work, I need to fit the lower engine steadies, and figure out if I want to just run with the gauges I have now or install the ones that I have waiting to go into it.


#116 buddylove

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Posted 02 January 2018 - 03:13 AM

It looks like I am almost at two years without an update. 
 
I still need to get photos of all of the work that Gunnar has completed on it. I'll make sure to take a bunch of photos the next time I am over there.
 
It went back to him around January of 2017 and he has been making a lot of progress on it lately.
 
Front Seat Belts Installed
Rear Seat Belts Installed
Side Mirrors Mounted
Door Drains replaced
Door Window Guides / Felt Replaced on both doors
Boot Floor Assessed and Repaired
Rear Primer Spot Painted
Body colored plugs for Boot Lid
Brackets installed and hole cut for Right Hand Fuel Tank
Driver and Passenger seats lowered
Front Carpet modified to work with floor starter switch
Rest of carpet to be made to fit
Headliner Redone
MK1 Steering Wheel Refurbed
 
 
Still to do:
 
Pull front and rear subframes
Assess underside and rustproof
Rust treat and pain wheel wells
 
Some recent purchases:
 
An actual car cover that fits the Mini, instead of the one that I have been using for years that was for a standard sized car.
 
miniseven-2.jpg
 
Right Hand Tank
 
miniseven-3.jpg
 
Center Binnacle Reproduction by Rhino
 
miniseven.jpg
 
Abarth Cromodora 5"x10" (Need some refurbishment, and center caps. Bought them because I have always wanted a set of magnesium wheels.)
 
miniseven-5.jpg
 
MiniSpares Rose Petal 4.75"x10" Wheels (these will be going on the MK1)
 
miniseven-4.jpg
 
 
I'll be picking up the engine that I'll be building for it this weekend. I decided to go with something a bit more sedate instead of the high horsepower options I have been thinking about. Ultimately I want to be able to hop in the car and just enjoy it for what it is, not decide if I want to deal with it that day.
 
More updates to come.


#117 mattmiglia

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Posted 03 January 2018 - 02:47 PM

Great car! Post some new pics up, assume its been satin cleared now?

#118 buddylove

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Posted 03 January 2018 - 04:23 PM

I'll be getting pics of it in the next couple of weeks. It is still at the body shop. I decided to not clear it, as if it didn't adhere properly, it would end up ruining the patina and force me to get it painted. In researching how other people are preserving cars with patina, it looks like it is popular to use a yellow wax or linseed oil. I just don't want to harm the patina. It has been dry stored for 90% of it's life with me, so maybe just continuing to do that is enough. 



#119 buddylove

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Posted 06 January 2018 - 10:42 PM

Today, for my birthday, I picked up a Downton 998 short block. The engine was purchased new from Downton back in 1971, and has all of the documentation to prove it. The block was completely new when he purchased it, and not a rebuild. I really couldn't pass up the opportunity.

 

I purchased the engine from another club member, but I will be rebuilding the engine with the original purchaser as he is my mentor for all things Mini. :) Looking forward to this unique experience and for having a bit of Mini history. I have many other documents that came with the engine, but I taken a few photos of some of them.

 

The short block:

 

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Downton announcing that they will be closing:

 

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998 quotation:

 

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998 invoicing:

 

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I wonder if it would be taboo to put a Downton badge on my car... I am thinking it might not be once the engine is in the car...



#120 buddylove

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Posted 14 January 2018 - 02:42 AM

Started taking the Downton 998 apart to get it ready for the machine shop. We were able to get everything disassembled, except for the crank, as we ran out of time. We'll get it apart next weekend.

 

miniseven.jpg

 

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miniseven-2.jpg

 

 

Hoping to get some photos of the current state of the Mini tomorrow. I was also able to source some other fun bits that I hope arrive soon.






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