33 replies to this topic

[Twichel04]

Hello all,
My name is Rich, havn't been here long, working on my first Mini over here in the states and I thought I would start an ever so slow build thread.

I first looked at this car a couple weeks ago, after looking at it, I joined here and started learning as much as I possibly could before committing to buy it. It needs some work, but does run (quite well, I might add). Mostly needs cosmetic work. There are a few areas of rust, nothing too major, mostly just A-panels, driver's door and one little corner of the windshield frame. The rear end is a little wrinkled from someone backing it into something, nothing a few hours with a hammer and dolly wont fix.

Stopped by the seller's shop earlier this week to take a second look at the car and leave a deposit on it. Got to hear it run for the first time (tank was out last time) and it sounds fantastic!

Has a little more rust than I noticed before, nothing too bad though. Floors are solid, rear quarters, window frames, and rain gutters are perfect! it will eventually need a new drivers door, but still in good enough shape overall to start driving.

Has 83k on the clock, and even has the factory Rover alarm system AND the remote for it! There are a few things that have been unplugged and it may take a little hunting to find where they all go.

Anyway, here are a few pics from the visit. We rolled it out, had to adjust the rear drum, as it was stuck. We put a little petrol in it (after we put the tank back in) popped a battery in and fired her up.

83k on a very optimistic 110mph speedo


Pretty solid floors with just some surface rust-


Anyone know what this is for-


Random pictures-
















And the wheels I plan on getting for the as of yet un-named Mini. 12x7's!


I have to say, that I enjoy this forum so much more than the US forum. I really do appreciate the enthusiasm and helpfulness that I find here. The US forum is just full of negativity and a whole lot of ''mine is better than yours'' or "I know better than you''

Thank you again for those who have helped me thus far, and thank you in advanced to those who surely will!

Cheers!

[minimk1]

nice car mate should be a good project what are your plans ?

[Twichel04]

Thanks, I was actually just looking through your project thread for some inspiration.

For now I just want to repair the bad areas of rust, make sure it is in good running condition, then drive it as much as I can! I will continue to fix and replace parts here and there. After a while, it will switch to full project mode, where it will be fully disassembled, rust eliminated, painted, and put back together. That will take some time though, as I do all my own work, along with running a repair shop on the weekend and watching my daughter during the week.

Eventually, when it's all repainted, I would like to go for the Sportpack look, Tahiti Blue, white roof/bonnet stripes, with some 13'' wheels. I know that is a bit over done, but I have wanted a Mini in that colour combo since I first saw one 13 years ago.

Edited by Twichel04, 07 January 2013 - 12:45 AM.

[bamby]

the thing with the L on is the alarm module if i remember rightly

looks a good project :)

[minimk1]

sounds nice the good thing about minis is you can have them how you want them weather thats a race car or a comfy car there great where abouts in america are you ?

[Twichel04]

the thing with the L on is the alarm module if i remember rightly

looks a good project :)

Thanks. That's what I was assuming it was, but I just wanted to make sure. The last thing I want to do is mess up the security system and set off the immobilizer.

sounds nice the good thing about minis is you can have them how you want them weather thats a race car or a comfy car there great where abouts in america are you ?

I am in Florida. After I get it all done, it will still be for daily use, but I may do some rally cross on the weekends :)

[minimk1]

sounds sweet

[Twichel04]

Did some more work on the car today.

Last time I went to work on it, we couldn't get the car to run on its own (we had to keep spraying starter fluid into the throttle body). I went and did a bit of work today, got the tank back in the right way, got the fuel pump working, and she starts and runs beautifully!



Idle is a bit high in that video, but it was just caused by a slightly sticking throttle cable.

After I got the fuel system all situated, I had to change the belt, as the old one was trash, and all I can say is that I am glad that I have small hands, haha. Found this connector hanging out down by the pedals, I can't seem to find where it goes, looks like it is possibly for a relay?



I got to drive her for the first time, and it was fantastic! Even with mis-matched tyres, bad shocks, and no interior, the handling and feel was great. I had to resist the urge to go tearing down the dirt road one street over. I need to wait till I have everything situated before I give her too much abuse.

After driving her and getting to know her personality a bit, she now has a name. Meet Flur. I know it's an odd name for a car, but she is an odd sort of car, so it works. :)

Edited by Twichel04, 15 January 2013 - 07:06 PM.

[minimk1]

Nice too see an update are you doing the welding yourself ?

[Twichel04]

I'll be doing some of it my self (the bits that you wont be able to see, haha) All the visible welding will be done by a friend of mine who does paint and bodywork for a living. He will also be painting it, when it comes to that time. Everything else will be done my myself.

[Twichel04]

Went out to work on Flur for a bit today. I was pleased that after a week straight of just sitting there, she started right up without hesitation. Mostly just worked on little things here and there. I straightened out the rear panel a little bit, so that I could get the boot lid to fit (it was previously rear ended and it got pushed in a little). The boot lit fits now, for the most part, but will still need some tweaking, but at least it's on there now! I forgot to take pictures of it though.

I also started working on refitting the interior-




I still need to get a carpet for it, as the one that she came with was basically trash.

Did a few other things... fixed the hood latch, reattached the hood.

Also hid some rust from view. (don't worry, patch panel is already on it's way, I just didn't want to look at the rust hole anymore!) I thought I would have some fun with it-

Before-


After-


Took Flur for another drive today. I put my foot in it a little more this time, now that the seats are actually attached, and I now feel confident in the condition of the drivetrain. I still can't get over how much fun it is to drive her. Spent about a half hour tearing up and down bumpy back roads at 55-60mph was fantastic!

[Jasonc]

Nice project - any big plans for it?

[Twichel04]

No big plans yet. Just fix it up and drive it for now, and try to save some money while I am at it, Speaking of which, since this is a budget build, I thought I would share one of my money saving solutions with you guys.

The replacement boot lid that I have for Flur has no handle/lock. So instead of spending $60 or so dollars on a replacement one from an online vendor, I decided to let ingenuity have a chance.

Took a trip to Lowes and got this-


It's a handle with lock and key for a garage door. Looks very similar to the actual handle, just sticks out a little further (which I kinda like) and even uses the same kind of square peg for the lock, I just have to shorten it a bit.

Here is an actual Mini boot handle for comparison-


Price comparison- Original style $55 + tax + shipping from GBcarparts, Lowes budget version- $9.98 + tax.

[Twichel04]

Just realized that the Lowes budget handle looks like the mk1/2 boot handle... kind of a cross between the two-

[Niko-mini1275]

hehehe smart thinking with the boot handle!

what are those rims?they look sooo cool,never seen one of those..are there 13's?