42 replies to this topic

[phillrulz]

Right. Was in the bath this morning, thinking about minis ( as we all do ). I have a 1986 HS4 carbed mini and a 1996 SPI, and i thought. Who in their right mind would buy a injection mini. When every single job i think about doing is just a ball ache. 

 

The engine bays on injection minis are so damn cluttered compared to carb minis. 

 

Whats the pros of injection minis , currently the only pro i can think of is no choke..... 

 

 

[ukcooper]

me and a mate had this discussion once and the  answer was they start every bloody morning come rain shine , sitting there for months on end mine started after 8 months of sitting there thru winter 

[Fast Ivan]

Near perfect timing and fueling
Adapts to mods such as a nice worked cylinder head all on its own
The MPI has, I think, the most power and torque out of any mini that left the factory other than the Cooper S

[phillrulz]

me and a mate had this discussion once and the  answer was they start every bloody morning come rain shine , sitting there for months on end mine started after 8 months of sitting there thru winter 

Except for the dead battery they cause 

 

Near perfect timing and fueling
Adapts to mods such as a nice worked cylinder head all on its own
The MPI has, I think, the most power and torque out of any mini that left the factory other than the Cooper S

 

Ah, thats true how much can they self adjust to accommodate mod like cylinders or cams 

[Steve220]

Utter control over fuelling and ignition, On board diagnostics and better fuel economy. I love having fuel injection on my car ?

And I've never had a flat battery from mine ?

Edited by Steve220, 25 May 2019 - 04:54 PM.

[cookie4343]

Must admit my spi mini is perfect starts every time without fail. I can more or less get in and drive. I do let it tick over for a few minutes to let the oil circulate. Its been better on fuel than my previous 1275 mini with a hiff 38.

[RooBoonix]

Mine has been great. Few issues as expected with a 20+ year old car but it's never let me down (well no fault of the injection system) but when I bought it I didn't know what it was, as far as I knew I was just buying a Mini Cooper ?

[Fast Ivan]

me and a mate had this discussion once and the  answer was they start every bloody morning come rain shine , sitting there for months on end mine started after 8 months of sitting there thru winter

Except for the dead battery they cause 
 

Near perfect timing and fueling
Adapts to mods such as a nice worked cylinder head all on its own
The MPI has, I think, the most power and torque out of any mini that left the factory other than the Cooper S

 
Ah, thats true how much can they self adjust to accommodate mod like cylinders or cams

Once you start getting towards the 90 BHP the ECU starts to become the limiting factor. But if you get something like the specialist components throttle body kit then you can go beyond that limit.
Emissions are also a bit of a problem

[unburntfuelinthemorning]

me and a mate had this discussion once and the  answer was they start every bloody morning come rain shine

So have all the cars I've owned which had carburettors and contact breaker ignition.

[unburntfuelinthemorning]

A '93 spi Cooper is what put me off of Minis for twenty years.  Horrible to work on compared to pre injection models and in my opinion not as much character.  Good for passing 1990s emission regulations though and kept the A series going for quite a few years longer.

[phillrulz]

A '93 spi Cooper is what put me off of Minis for twenty years.  Horrible to work on compared to pre injection models and in my opinion not as much character.  Good for passing 1990s emission regulations though and kept the A series going for quite a few years longer.

Agree about the non existent character, whenever people ask me which is more fun to drive 96 cooper spi 1275. Or 86 998 hs4. I always say 998 is more fun. Yes the cooper is more pokey and starts first time without moving the throttle and choke around. But it just feels like a small car. Not a mini 

[cal844]

My 93 carb car has just had a rebuild... it's been started twice the 2 years previous to the rebuild. I'd finally finished it today, some fuel, a charged battery and it started first turn of the key.

Even my 1980 Estate starts first turn in the cold winter months.

Pre injection is the way to go, so much simpler and more spacious under the bonnet and I can do most repairs and diagnosis with only basic tools

Edited by cal844, 25 May 2019 - 10:19 PM.

[phillrulz]

My 93 carb car has just had a rebuild... it's been started twice the 2 years previous to the rebuild. I'd finally finished it today, some fuel, a charged battery and it started first turn of the key.

Even my 1980 Estate starts first turn in the cold winter months.

Pre injection is the way to go, so much simpler and more spacious under the bonnet and I can do most repairs and diagnosis with only basic tools

 

 

Exactlly, just had the clutch out of my carbed mini, engine stayed in imagine the hastle of doing that on a injection, ECU , brake servo 

[Fast Ivan]

Yeah the engine space in the Mpi is crazy, it’s packed

As far as diagnosing and fixing injection minis go, you realistically only need access to a code reader, not a huge expense when it comes to the mini, everything else you should already have as a mini owner.

After that you’re just learning and there’s no harm in learning new things.
And these new things are directly transferable to the modern cars that most drive on the daily

Edited by Fast Ivan, 26 May 2019 - 06:39 AM.

[Twincam]

My 93 carb car has just had a rebuild... it's been started twice the 2 years previous to the rebuild. I'd finally finished it today, some fuel, a charged battery and it started first turn of the key.

Even my 1980 Estate starts first turn in the cold winter months.

Pre injection is the way to go, so much simpler and more spacious under the bonnet and I can do most repairs and diagnosis with only basic tools

 
 
Exactlly, just had the clutch out of my carbed mini, engine stayed in imagine the hastle of doing that on a injection, ECU , brake servo

One of my fleet is a 89, that's running a servo and a hs4...

Having worked on my MPI, my SPI and my carb mini... The ones with no servo and a carb are a piece of poop to work on, agreed, the ones with less in the engine bay are easier to work on - my clubman is even easier! However after a while and with the correct tools you soon get used to each one.

As above, higher the power the ecu would be the limiting factor however on an spi engine you can throw a carb at it and run it.