37 replies to this topic

[rover]

Hi

With regard to the classic mini's i was wondering what various mini owners have done to update the following problems i have found effect the mini. Pictures and comments welcome!

1. windscreen wipers cant cope with extreme weather conditions making visibility poor.

2. No rear wiper

3. Lack of internal lighting. Especially the dash lights which arent the best.

4. Headlights arent very bright.

5. Heater doesnt give of much heat.

6. Demister isnt very good and windows steam up.

[project mini chris]

dont think (in my oppinion) minis look good with a rear wiper, saloon cars like the mini are bettersuited without 1 but there are kits avalible on ebay etcetc

[bmcecosse]

If you want a 'modern' car - buy one! You have a Mini - enjoy. Headlights - fit halogen conversion units, heater - fit an 88 degree thermostat! And open the windows slightly to let the 'steam' (which is likely coming from wet carpets!) out!

Edited by bmcecosse, 10 October 2009 - 10:59 AM.

[rover]

Dont get me wrong i love mini's but isn't it a good idea to update certain cons especially if the car is your daily drive.

[redhotmini]

Hi

With regard to the classic mini's i was wondering what various mini owners have done to update the following problems i have found effect the mini. Pictures and comments welcome!

1. windscreen wipers cant cope with extreme weather conditions making visibility poor.

2. No rear wiper

3. Lack of internal lighting. Especially the dash lights which arent the best.

4. Headlights arent very bright.

5. Heater doesnt give of much heat.

6. Demister isnt very good and windows steam up.

thats why i bought a later mini - two speed wipers with intermittent setting and single flick for one wipe. dash lights seem to be better but that may be down to the cream dial faces. Headlights are halogen as standard so much brighter, and most later minis have spotlamps which come on with full beam. decent 2 speed heater, once the engine is reasonably warm and you got the heater on full speed its roasting!, the demister works which is a bonus, though use some anti fog treatment on the windows.

[Pooky]

Keep buying new wiper blades that till you find some that work. We've just fitted new ones to my ladies Mini and they're great, no smears or anything!

If your Mini is misting up then there's excess moisture in the car. There's various methods of drying it out, such as dessicant type de-humidifiers. A re-usable bag is availiable from Frosts that you just pop in the car and it'll draw in all the moisture, then after a couple of months you take it out and dry it out on the radiator ready to use again! Other methods include leaving a tray/bag of cat litter in the car as it's very absorbant.

If your heater isn't working very well it needs some maintenance. Make sure there's no air locked in that part of the system by draining and re-filling the coolant. There are some mods you can do to the heater and I think there's a topic about it somewhere. Involves removing it from the car, clearing out all the crud and leaves, then sealing up the screwed down edges etc...

Headlights is easy, upgrade to Halogen or add some spots.

Dash lights can be swapped for brighter bulbs or LED's in a matter of minutes, as can the interior light.

Theres loads of topics about all these things, a quick search will give you loads of info

[Ethel]

With regard to the classic mini's i was wondering what various mini owners have done to update the following problems i have found effect the mini. Pictures and comments welcome!

1. windscreen wipers cant cope with extreme weather conditions making visibility poor.

There's nothing particularly different about the Mini's wipers, new blades and arms may help.

2. No rear wiper

You can add one but many modern saloons cope as well without one.

3. Lack of internal lighting. Especially the dash lights which arent the best.

Various options available. Minispares do a switch illumination kit, there are several suppliers of instrument dials & led's, electro luminescent film etc.

4. Headlights arent very bright.

Swap to halogens,

5. Heater doesnt give of much heat.

It can, flush the matrix. The forward facing air scoop can overwhelm the heater with fresh air at speed, restricting it might help,

6. Demister isnt very good and windows steam up.

The later heater has slightly better screen vents. The ducts can be sealed better with duct tape or silicone. You can easily reach all the windows with a chammy

[james962]

I've fitted a two speed heater from the later mini's to mine, it is significantly better than the single speed. When it's on the highest speed, it sounds like i'm in the middle of a vortex

[GottaDesigner]

I actually can't put Monty's heater on full blast...it's the standard type If I do, I'd be cooked to a crisp in about 15 minutes!

As for misty windows, check all your seals and the carpets for water ingress and grab yourself a nice, large moisture trap of your preferred fragrance that can live in a rear pocket and whop the interior glass over with anti-fog stuff.

[jaydee]

1. windscreen wipers cant cope with extreme weather conditions making visibility poor.

2. No rear wiper

3. Lack of internal lighting. Especially the dash lights which arent the best.

4. Headlights arent very bright.

5. Heater doesnt give of much heat.

6. Demister isnt very good and windows steam up.

All of these points are common problems you can find among the modern city cars.

[Wil_h]

I have a daily driver mini 1989, and none of the problems you list afflict my car. I did fit Halogens as soon as I bought it though.

as above, there is no need for a rear wiper. Very few cars actually need them, and even then only for reversing.

[minidaves]

wipers fit proper black blades and arms from late 80's on (clip on wiper blades) and make sure wiper mech is working properly, never have a problem with proper wipers and its as good as any car.

rear wiper why, behind you is history, but you can get a crappy kit if you must

interior lighting, yup its crud, but you can undash foot well lighting etc

headlamps halogens and make sure all the connections are good giving atleast 13v at the headlamps else they will be cack

heater, flush the coolant and back flush the heater, and make sure heater tap works, else you will need the windows open because it will be hot in your little car

front screen misting, get a heated screen

[TimmyG]

Just to add that you should check the voltage when the headlights are on as this is when you will get a volt drop, this is something that happens on modern cars aswel. If it does drop when you switch them on, check, clean all connections and fuses and also check the wiring especially where it passes behind the grille/ front panel for chaffs and shorting to earth, this was happening on mine! also there is a bullet connector here which will undoubtedly benefit from a clean up due to it's dodgy location. The difference is amazing! If you still get a volt drop after doin this, and you know someone who can do it, or you can do it yourself, make a new loom with bigger wires and relays that are switched by the old system but fed directly from the battery connection at the solenoid. After this fit uprated bulbs (Phillips Xtreme get excellent reviews and are cheaper than many others @20 quid for 2!)

I have the minispares stainless heavy duty wiper arms and 11" blades and they are brilliant, basically the same as the later spec standard ones but in stainless. Not affected by speed or weather.

As everyone says really, mini's don't suffer from any of these symptoms when new, (apart from the lighting) so it's only a matter of maintenance and possibly renewing a couple of bits n bobs.

[mdickson]

My thoughts on your questions.

1. windscreen wipers cant cope with extreme weather conditions making visibility poor.
I treat my mini with Rain X after every wash and find that I hardly ever use my wipers.


2. No rear wiper

See above

3. Lack of internal lighting. Especially the dash lights which arent the best.
Still trying to sort this out thinking of adding some LED's similar to those in my VW Passat.

4. Headlights arent very bright.
Fitting some upgraded Xenon type bulbs similar as to those I fitted to the Passat.

5. Heater doesnt give of much heat.
Don't have that problem, my problem is that I have to drive with the window open I may fit some wind deflectors.

6. Demister isnt very good and windows steam up.

[color="#2E8B57"]Try Anti Fog by RainX.


Good luck and I hope you enjoy it half as much as I enjoy mine.

Martin.

Edited by mdickson, 11 October 2009 - 11:08 AM.

[MiniMonty]

I just love the fact you've only got six things on your list