198 replies to this topic

[Nathan94]

Hi guys, I'm new to minis and after hours of searching I seem to have stumbled across what I believe to be a bargain.

It's a 20 year old Mini Thirty which has been off road for the last 8 years I believe and kept garaged. On the pictures the boot and the wings/a panels don't seem rusty and apparently it starts and drives and was fully working whenh put away. My question is, if I went to look at it, what am I looking for? And also what problems could there be with a Mini that has been stood for 8 years? Will parts of the engine need lubricating and oiling and would it need new tyres?

Oh and I could afford maybe £300-£400 to get it running and I'd like to have a shot at fixing it myself (never been near an engine before!)

Thanks for your help in advance! :)

[1994alex]

When i have been looking at cars lately i have ripped the carpets up to see if there is any rust in the floor pans, ran my hands firmly under the arches to see if it is rusty also along the underneath of the car. Also around the seams of the car, mainly around the roof section. Check if the engine has seized, and if the handbrakes and brakes have too as it will be a pain in the bum to move.

Im sure others have ways to check

Alex

[Nathan94]

When i have been looking at cars lately i have ripped the carpets up to see if there is any rust in the floor pans, ran my hands firmly under the arches to see if it is rusty also along the underneath of the car. Also around the seams of the car, mainly around the roof section. Check if the engine has seized, and if the handbrakes and brakes have too as it will be a pain in the bum to move.

Im sure others have ways to check

Alex

Cheers, he said it runs so I assume the engine hasn't or won't seize? Does £700 seem a good price for a Mini Thirty that may need some work?

[miniman24]

Go have a look at it, get some pictures and post them up here, then we'll be able to tell for sure what its worth. But, if its not too rotten and it runs, that seems a fair price :)

Edit: Just dont do what I did 2 1/2 years ago; paid a large sum of money for a rotten car because I fell in love with it when I first saw it I was a complete novice to everything Mini then though.

Edited by miniman24, 27 December 2011 - 01:38 PM.

[Barman]

When i have been looking at cars lately i have ripped the carpets up to see if there is any rust in the floor pans, ran my hands firmly under the arches to see if it is rusty also along the underneath of the car. Also around the seams of the car, mainly around the roof section. Check if the engine has seized, and if the handbrakes and brakes have too as it will be a pain in the bum to move.

Im sure others have ways to check

Alex

Cheers, he said it runs so I assume the engine hasn't or won't seize? Does £700 seem a good price for a Mini Thirty that may need some work?

Depends on how much 'some work' is...

I spent €700 on my 1275 GT - it has turned into a black hole into which I pour all my money...

As Alex says, check the floors - mine had 'a bit of rust on the drivers side floor'... I ended up replacing the entire floor and toe board...

[Nathan94]

When i have been looking at cars lately i have ripped the carpets up to see if there is any rust in the floor pans, ran my hands firmly under the arches to see if it is rusty also along the underneath of the car. Also around the seams of the car, mainly around the roof section. Check if the engine has seized, and if the handbrakes and brakes have too as it will be a pain in the bum to move.

Im sure others have ways to check

Alex

Cheers, he said it runs so I assume the engine hasn't or won't seize? Does £700 seem a good price for a Mini Thirty that may need some work?

Depends on how much 'some work' is...

I spent €700 on my 1275 GT - it has turned into a black hole into which I pour all my money...

As Alex says, check the floors - mine had 'a bit of rust on the drivers side floor'... I ended up replacing the entire floor and toe board...

Is that an expensive job as I know these are very common places for rust....

If I could knock him down a bit to say £600, which is worth ago, it'd give me £300-500 to get it road worthy, or would that not be enough?

[Chance]

I paid 600 for mine..few rust patches but nothing serious and it didnt run, had been in a garage for 7years...its a standard '85 ritz just for a comparison..

[Nathan94]

I paid 600 for mine..few rust patches but nothing serious and it didnt run, had been in a garage for 7years...its a standard '85 ritz just for a comparison..

How much work/money/time have you put into it? :)

[ANON]

it could be a bargain, it could be a waste of money. be wary of thirtys, i've scrapped six over the last few years, don't know why but for some reason they seem to pretty much fall apart!!

can you take someone with you to look at it for you?

where are you in the north west?

Edited by ANON, 27 December 2011 - 02:35 PM.

[Nathan94]

it could be a bargain, it could be a waste of money. be wary of thirtys, i've scrapped six over the last few years, don't know why but for some reason they seem to pretty much fall apart!!

can you take someone with you to look at it for you?

where are you in the north west?

Near Manchester, could take my Dad but I probably know more about Minis than him, and that's not much!

I've been looking at the Cliff the Mini thirty thread, the car is coming along great but the rust in them pics scares me.

[Barman]

When i have been looking at cars lately i have ripped the carpets up to see if there is any rust in the floor pans, ran my hands firmly under the arches to see if it is rusty also along the underneath of the car. Also around the seams of the car, mainly around the roof section. Check if the engine has seized, and if the handbrakes and brakes have too as it will be a pain in the bum to move.

Im sure others have ways to check

Alex

Cheers, he said it runs so I assume the engine hasn't or won't seize? Does £700 seem a good price for a Mini Thirty that may need some work?

Depends on how much 'some work' is...

I spent €700 on my 1275 GT - it has turned into a black hole into which I pour all my money...

As Alex says, check the floors - mine had 'a bit of rust on the drivers side floor'... I ended up replacing the entire floor and toe board...

Is that an expensive job as I know these are very common places for rust....

If I could knock him down a bit to say £600, which is worth ago, it'd give me £300-500 to get it road worthy, or would that not be enough?

We need to see pictures of the car!

In the end I replaced the floor, cross member, toe board, heel board, A-panels, front valence, rear valence, battery box, boot floor... Then a respray - cost me €4,000

Some of that was the 'slippery slope' effect it has to be said....

[Nathan94]

Wow. I definitely can't afford that :'(

Guess I'll have to go and see how rusty it is, the floor panels and so on don't seem expensive and I may well learn to weld, if not, I know people who can :)

And I'm guessing I wouldn't need to spray the floor panels...

[Chance]

I paid 600 for mine..few rust patches but nothing serious and it didnt run, had been in a garage for 7years...its a standard '85 ritz just for a comparison..

How much work/money/time have you put into it? :)

Ive put about the same amount of money into to it..well maybe like 700 quid but thats mainly because i had to buy a load of engine parts as they were missing and that includes a new set of wheels and tyres :)...im new to minis and dont know a lot but it really depends on how much the rust has set in on the one your looking at...as said pictures will help the more experienced on the forum give you assitance :)

[OllieTheWelder]

That seems like quite a lot to me, check if it has things that you could easily sell on like alloy wheels etc, I paid £650 for mine last year with a MOT and tax and there is no rust at all. Try start at £500 and see where it goes from there.

[Nathan94]

That seems like quite a lot to me, check if it has things that you could easily sell on like alloy wheels etc, I paid £650 for mine last year with a MOT and tax and there is no rust at all. Try start at £500 and see where it goes from there.

Wow! Where from? I'm struggling to find a good condition Mini with MOT for under £1500!

And regarding the £500 offer, suppose it's worth a try! :)