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#16 MiniMike72

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Posted 13 May 2018 - 09:05 PM

How do you go about that Miniireland? Ebay?



#17 CityEPete

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Posted 13 May 2018 - 09:06 PM

Exactly what I'm after City E Pete! I just love the colour schemes that were common place when I was a kid.
 
Yes I have a few projects under my belt ukcooper, and I know they always cost far more than you plan them to. That is why I'm very pleased to hear folks recommend me buying a complete car. I don't have money galore - far from it - so one of the things I'll be doing is buying one that is completely sound and solid. Looks like I won't get much change out of 8k for a nice 70s one. I can live with that, though for the next year or so I won't have a garage for it. I'll just have to be assiduous when it comes to keeping it clean up top and underside.
 
Cheers!

There was a lovely blue one with lime flower vinyl seats forsale on this site not long ago, I was very tempted!

#18 SolarB

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 07:17 AM

There's still a few of us who run Minis as they were intended, every day and all weathers. True, the wipers are poor, the thing steams up and on days when the temperature is below freezing I have to make sure the fuel filler cap lock is defrosted if I need petrol, but it's fun. We have a couple of modern cars as well, but the Mini is the first choice 90% of the time.

I gave it a full restoration 6 years ago and it lives out side all year round. It's been no more unreliable than any of the modern cars I've owned. True, servicing is more frequent but that amounts to greasing 8 joints and more frequent oil changes, hardly onerous. Rust is obviously the biggest problem, but if your expectations are smart rather than concourse then even this doesn't take too much time and money.One thing I'd 100% recommend is electronic ignition. I fitted a Megajolt setup and with no distributor damp mornings, heavy rain and huge puddles have no affect.

Buy a Mini and tell us how you get on.



#19 MiniMike72

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 09:29 AM

Fantastic stuff SolarB, and exactly my approach. If I am to be perfectly honest the concourse cars leave me cold. It will be loved, but not a museum exhibit. Great advice re ignition, that's the stuff I need to know. Another thought I had was security. That will need addressing too.



#20 CityEPete

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 10:26 AM

Get a Stoplock Pro, the proper one that is Thatcham approved not the budget version, better than any immobiliser, a secret key switch wired into the ignition feed and an alarm should do the job.

#21 MiniMike72

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 10:42 AM

Yes I saw somewhere people were fitting hidden fuel cut off switches and isolator switches. Brilliant idea!



#22 old original

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 07:48 PM

My best advice if you want to use it to commute to work, make sure there's a bus service just in case.

#23 robminibcy

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 08:15 PM

i used my 79 mini to do over 20k a year when i first had it and it certainly wasn't unreliable, it had its niggles yes but really not too bad. Personally unless you go for an mpi i wouldn't say there much to choose in terms of reliability or comfort from the 60s to the 90s. Certainly a friend of mine with a late spi has had more reliability issues than my 79 1000 ever has.



#24 MiniMike72

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 08:34 PM

Yes I've owned 4 Mini's in my time so I recall them well robminibcy. I found the Moggies much higher maintenance. 

I don't intend to rely on it for work old original. I have my trusty Skoda if I need to drive and work should soon just be a bike ride away.



#25 Wiggy

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Posted 14 May 2018 - 11:38 PM

Older cars aren't unreliable per se, but tend to require more regular maintenance to keep them reliable.

This is alien to most people these days. I remember when I was a kid, loads of people used to have the bonnet up on a weekend. These days I'm the only one on my street. Probably due to younger cars being more accessible. PCP, lease hire, etc. Therefore less maintenance required. Or dealer maintenance for warranty purposes.

My 'modern' car is older than my Mini though. :P

#26 old original

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Posted 21 May 2018 - 03:54 PM

I was about to sing the praises of running a daily.... until I got in this morning and it decided to have a hissy fit... late for work... :-(

It is the first time in about 4 or 5 years it's let me down tho' so not too bad




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