17 replies to this topic

[sledgehammer]

Hi
I have owned approx 5 Mini's ...
2 custom de-seamed ones , a 1275 gt , a pick up , a 1000cc
The custom ones were a 1380 de-seamed club-man with Renault 5 bumpers and allegro grill
and a city 850 de-seamed full convertible
I loved both of these cars they were fun to make , but had to sell them due to house purchase
I am now yearning for a pick up again - but they are v £xpensive
I am also yearning for a convertible
how mad would it be to have both in one car ???
for the last few years , I've been thinking of making a mini pickup convertible
pickup's are too rare and £xpensive to cut up , so I'm thinking of finding a normal solid mini , and boxing the back end
I've been welding for 15 years for a job - so confident in that department
just wondered if anyone has seen a convertible mini pickup ???
the convertible part will be easy as I have done it before , and the hood will be small
the hard bit will be squaring the rear end to accept a tail gate and make it look right
any Ideas / pic's ???
sorry about the poor quality photos - years before digital ...

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•  miniconvert.JPG   16.26K   17 downloads
•  cars_006.jpg   197.03K   76 downloads
•  cars_002.jpg   202.47K   57 downloads
•  cars_001.jpg   184.58K   130 downloads
•  cars_008.jpg   166.44K   48 downloads
•  cars_004.jpg   175.97K   68 downloads

Edited by sledgehammer, 06 July 2011 - 09:03 PM.

[Blondiemini]

lovely cars, love the pick ups...
look forward to seeing the pick up convertible!

know who ill be asking for technical advice...

Annie
x

[conrod]

An old friend made a pickup from a station wagon (Estate). He welded the rear curved section of the roof to the front so it didn't have the flat vertical face at the back. That car is affectionately known as Seamus in the Mini Friends Club (Surrey). He did the boxing out of the rear with quality steel. How about a Targa top (for strength) with gull wing doors for the little cab section? Maybe scissors doors? I like the idea......go for it.

[sledgehammer]

Thanks for the encouragement
I'm hoping it will be a winter project
just starting to clear the garage of 'stuff' ...
... you know the sort of 'stuff' you need after you throw it away
hopefully will get a mini in the next couple of months
has anyone got any pics of the rear of a pickup (rear post area , underside , and floor) ???
thanks in advance
Sledge

[conrod]

Great stuff.....I love the approx....5 mini's

[sledgehammer]

Great stuff.....I love the approx....5 mini's

I've bought several others with 'spongey' bodies - for parts - they were too far gone to be safe for the road
but a cheap way to get parts - so they don't really count - a sort of 5-ish
just been to see a original pickup with a 'spongey' floor pan / door slam panel / bulkhead / inner a post area / battery area -
to be fair I couldn't push my thumb thru - but next year I would - the metal was very thin
owner wanted £5000 for it I would have give £500 for it -
it was waay beyond my budget for what it was
its ok putting outer/inner sills on , and floor repair panels in , but when there is nothing to weld them to it's a downward slope
wouldn't have been suitable for what I wanted anyway - I need a good floor frame area , to weld the bracing to
I am thinking of having the roll bar , as a back of hood/roof fixing - but no matter how well I plan it in my head , it wont work till I get a shell
will have a look at some crashed saloons (if I see any)
at the moment , it looks like I'm fantasizing about my convertible pick up at the moment - so ignore my ramblings until I actually buy something
also from what I read , it looks like VOSA would rip me a new a$$ on this project
although I can guarantee the pick up will be much stronger than the original car
I don't mind spending money , time and energy on something that will be almost unique
Mini's are the next must have thing - and that is good - It's just a pity they stopped making them >

Edited by sledgehammer, 08 July 2011 - 12:10 PM.

[sledgehammer]

Ive done it
got a rough one for £450
A Mayfair 1000cc with Icb exhaust & cooled manifold
engine sounded dry , but couldn't get it to knock - needs oil change - & bypass hose
got minilite replicas on it - in red with a wing missing
rear floor seems good , front floor a bit scabby - but not too bad -
nothing a patch wont fix
just got to get it home
Happy - ish
wonder what I will find later

Now I'm a confirmed MINIACK

[conrod]

Just out of interest what is a Minilite replica?

[mk1leg]

Hi..and welcome to TMF and thats a nice range of minis you've oned............whats in the pipe line now...........

[minisilverbullet]

If you do the pick up, why not keep the curved mini tailgate? a bit different maybe?

[sledgehammer]

If you do the pick up, why not keep the curved mini tailgate? a bit different maybe?

I was wondering the same thing - It would be easier , but I think it will be a bit small in the back ?
I will wait till I've put in the box section in and trimmed the roof off
once the bulkhead is in I will see how much room I have
I want the back big enough to be useful - but small enough to park next to my garage next to my main car
I will be getting it back to my place on Tuesday , see what happens
Also I'm thinking of a quick release bonnet hinging at the front with a pull in the dash
I've changed my mind about a flip front - I will just deseam it
This is going to be my mid life crisis project
Its rough but I like them that way

[sledgehammer]

Just out of interest what is a Minilite replica?

It's a copy of a very light alloy wheel

[mk1leg]

Many years ago over here in Jersey someone made a mini-mini pickup made from an old rust bucket of a proper puckup it had a 1293 cooper S engine it went well................

[conrod]

Just out of interest what is a Minilite replica?

It's a copy of a very light alloy wheel

Thanks, who makes it? I have Minilites on my van bought new in 1999. No one could afford the original extremely light minilites made for racing, I think they were about a thousand quid each back in the days....might be wrong. Cheers Kev.

[sledgehammer]

Just out of interest what is a Minilite replica?

It's a copy of a very light alloy wheel

Thanks, who makes it? I have Minilites on my van bought new in 1999. No one could afford the original extremely light minilites made for racing, I think they were about a thousand quid each back in the days....might be wrong. Cheers Kev.

no Idea who makes them - they are met black / grey at the moment - will be silver when I finish - maybe ???

Ironically the idea of Mag alloys was to keep the un-sprung weight down
I bought some cheap chin alloys for my other car a while ago and they are slightly heavier than the steel ones
but they look good
Nearly cleared the garage