83 replies to this topic

[v21ash]

I’ve been meaning to post my project since i started it around 3 years ago, yes 3 years! To be fair though i’ve only spent about 6 months of week nights on her in total due to working away alot and family commitments, but anyway better late than never.

This is Verity my 99 (V) Cooper S Sport 5 with S Works Pack, i bought her new from John Cooper Garages for my 21st birthday and she cost me a small fortune, she has only done about 9k miles and has never had an MOT in her life! She was in daily use for the first couple of years until kids came along and the pushchair wouldn’t fit in the boot so i had to buy a more practical car, i also had another Mpi Sportspack Cooper at the time so Verity only got really got used at weekends until the tax run out.
With a baby and buying houses etc time & money was tight so i decided to park her up for a few months, the months turned into years and about 5 years later i thought i’d get her back on the road but when i had a good look at her i had a bit of a suprise! The sills, doors, wings, A panels, scuttle, dash rail and front panel were well rotten, she started and run ok but smoked a bit as the stem seals had gone hard, it was soul destroying to see her in such a state.
I put her in the garage and planned to get her back in shape straight away but she ended up sitting there for a few more years until i finally made a start. The plan is to get her looking in better condition than she was the day i bought her, and she will never be spending another night outside again.

I’ve done a fair bit of welding on mini’s before as i’ve never been without one since i got my first at the age of 13, but i’ve never taken on a project quite big as this before, this is the first and will probably be the last.

Over the next day or so i’ll post my progress so far until i’m up to date, as it stands at the minute i’ve got to fit the boot floor and new rear valance then i’ll be ready to start prepping for paint.

Here she is in her former glory at around 6 months old.





And this is how she looked after a few years sat doing nothing. I have got pictures of the state of the doors and scuttle but can’t find them at the minute.









This is what i found when the windscreen came out.





The top of the bulkhead had to be replaced, and even the corners of the windscreen.





I repaired the bulkhead and started fitting the new dash rail.





And then fitted the new scuttle.









I’m stripping all the panels back to bare metal as the paint is so thin there is surface rust all over the place.



I then got the new panels on and checked the alignment before welding.



I have only used heritage panels as i refuse to use pattern panels, granted even some genuine panels still need some fettling to get them to fit but the final result is so much better.

[v21ash]

Got the inner wing prep'd ready to fit the wings.





Got the A Panels fitted.





It took me ages to get the wings to fit snug around the scuttle panel so i found a way to pull the wings in nice and tight, i marked and drilled the wing where i wanted it to sit, then clamped it to the A panel and used a metal dowel to lever them into position before welding.



And got the wings now nice and snug around the scuttle panel.





And got the wings welded on.

[Shifty]

Haven't you finished this yet??

[myredmini]

Looks like a brilliant project, are you using heritage wings there ?

Dan..

[v21ash]

Haven't you finished this yet??

Not yet She's getting close now though, maybe another year or two lol.

Looks like a brilliant project, are you using heritage wings there ?

Dan..

Yep all the panels are heritage, i won't use anything else



Here's a bit more........


Stripped the front subframe down and got the bits ready for powder coating.



Every (useable) nut bolt and bracket will be re-zinc plated, here some bits that needed doing.





Here the Zinc plater in action.



And here’s the end result, the pictures show up some of the rust pit marks but to look at in the flesh they are not noticeable.





Got the engine out and ready to be stripped down





When i removed the head it looks like the head gasket had gone slightly between 2 & 3 but it didn’t seem to have any symptoms of it.

[v21ash]

Here’s a few bits i reconditioned.

Reconditioned the cylinder head. After finding out the head gasket was blowing slightly between 2 & 3 i checked the head and block deck and both are spot on, must of been the crap copper gasket? Lapped the valves in and give it a coat of paint.







New clutch slave cylinder and bracket reconditioned



New brake master cylinder and servo reconditioned



I stripped down and glass bead blasted the alternator casing and zinc plated the pulley etc.

[v21ash]

Continued stripping the engine and the belt drive has lasted really well, no wear what so ever.



Block stripped ready for a bath.



Block bathed in ammonium chloride electrolyte and ready for new cam bearings.



Removed the old cam bearings.





And fitted the new cam bearings.





New core plug were fitted





And the block all painted ready to be rebuilt



The engine was now all built up and ready to fit to the gearbox but i had a couple of thing to sort on the box first.
First off is the thrust washers have been spinning in the X pin diff so i stripped it and fitted new washers, the diff was in perfect condition apart from the washers.



Second was the gasket on the speedo drive housing needed changing, this is a five minute job on a 4 speed, unfortunately not on a 5 speed, i took the bolts out and started to pull it off the box and after about 1/2" it came to a stop, that's when i realised it carries the bearings for the 5th gear, i spoke to Jack Knight about it and all the information they could give me was a schematic diagram of the box and that's it, so i ended up cutting the gasket at the top and fitting it without removing the housing.



I started bead blasting all the alli castings and they are come up like new, also did all the clutch housing etc.




That's it for tonight i think, i'll put some more of the progress so far up tomorrow.

[chrisholland1983]

Get a blooming move on lol

[Bungle]

i knew late minis rusted fast but wow thats some rusty mini

[grahama]

Hi,

loving your work, exceptionally neat. Take it you have a spot welder there?? Also have you got a workshop to clean your engine block in and how do you do the zinc plating, those bits come out great, and protected !!

Graham

[Juju]

Poor old Verity.

I'd love a Sport 5. But not with that much rust!

Keep up the good work, Man. She'll be a smasher.

[v21ash]

Get a blooming move on lol

I am trying lol

i knew late minis rusted fast but wow thats some rusty mini

Sitting on a driveway for 4+ years speeds up the process i think I knew it was getting bad but wasn't expecting it to be that bad.

Hi,

loving your work, exceptionally neat. Take it you have a spot welder there?? Also have you got a workshop to clean your engine block in and how do you do the zinc plating, those bits come out great, and protected !!

Graham

Thanks, yours is one of the projects i've been keeping an eye on, watching other peoples progress gives me motivation to get on with mines Yes i was going to hire a spot welder but ended up buying one, it's probably one of the best tools i've bought for this project.
I did the block in my garage, i nicked a big plastic barrel from work, put an ammonium chloride solution in it with a couple of anodes on a car battery and waited, same as what you have done with some of your bits but a different solution.
A friend of mine restores classic motorbikes and he put me on to someone who sells the zinc plating kits, it's a similar process to the cleaning but with zinc anodes and a few other chemicals, it can be a bit temperamental but when you get it right the results are good.

[v21ash]

Here's another instalment

I reconditioned the starter motor but zinc plating the solenoid didn’t go too well so i painted it silver instead.







Got the block back on the gearbox.





Made a start on the near side floor/sill, it didn't look too bad until i started stripping it back, and it slowly got worse

Edited by v21ash, 01 June 2011 - 02:57 PM.

[v21ash]

After cleaning up and cutting the rot out of the near side sill/floor i set about patching it it and fit the new sill.

[v21ash]

Rather than pay £52 for two strips of metal from BMH for the Sportspack arches, I decided to make my own, and I’m glad I did as they fit better than the genuine one’s



























And did the drivers side aswell











Once the wings are in primer they will be seam sealed.