16 replies to this topic

[Tobyrm1]

Hi,

My mini is rusted extremely badly. I'm wondering whether a new mini shell from heritage is the way to go.

Does anyone have any experience of these shells?

Are they good quality?

How long do you guys reckon one would last if rust proofed correctly and driven most days?

Thanks

[Jase]

Yep, I have one. They only make them at certain times of the year and you would need to go through a heritage supplier such as Mini spares. They use the later presses so some holes maybe in a different place but that's easy to sort out. Highly recommended as they are dipped before you have them and you can really take your time preparing the shell to accept parts e.g painting and rustproofing. Be prepared to spend, you won't want to fit anything old to this shell. Well worth it if you have the time.

Edited by Jase, 25 August 2013 - 09:26 AM.

[mab01uk]

We are lucky to be one of the few classic car with the option of a new bodyshell. Even the production Mini bodyshells were never perfect and had there faults mainly from worn tooling....the BMH shells involve more hand finishing in their construction and are also not always perfect but are much better than a rusty shell if it is a viable option.

You can watch a batch of Mini shells being constructed and see for yourself if you go on a factory tour of BMH.

http://www.bmh-ltd.com/minishell.htm

 

BMH Factory Tours:

Heritage welcomes organised parties of visitors to take a look around our factory at Witney in Oxfordshire. Why not organise a group from your club?

http://www.bmh-ltd.com/index.html

Contact [email protected] for more details.

Edited by mab01uk, 25 August 2013 - 09:27 AM.

[Dan]

  I bought mine in 1999, when they were still being made on the main line and then converted into Mk4s.  Mine was painted and Waxoyled up, but since then has been a daily driver.  Until recently it was in great shape.  It had to spend most of the last 3 years living on grass at the front of my house though because when we moved we had no driveway for a bit.  This has made it suffer as you would expect.  It's got a bit of rot around one A panel and the front and wings, usual sort of early corrosion but nowhere near as bad as the original body (early '80s metallic car - the worst of the bunch whatever anyone says about MPis).  When we threw the original away it was the same age as this one is now more or less and it had already been massively patched by several previous owners and was really rotting away.  It was full of holes and needed load of work.  At the time the shells were newly available (mine is from the second batch, No. 34 or something) and were much cheaper than they are now so it was the right thing to do.  They are rustproofed correctly from new, they get the same sort of E-coat dip that most new cars get.  As long as you get it painted properly and coat it up it will be fine.  Its mostly about the paint, mine is in a lot better shape than a lot of the MPi shells that were made on the same day are and all because it got enough paint on it.  It doesn't get cosseted and wrapped up or garaged, and it's been driven a lot in all weathers.  It will need some minor work soon to stop it going downhill but it's OK.

 

 These shells aren't perfect from new though, and I'd advise getting it without seam sealant and doing all that yourself.  Also get the shock mounts and all the hinges off and get some paint under them, as standard it's bare metal under there.  Check the threads of every screw that you can get to before you take it out of the new body, mine had some weld on the end of a shock mount screw that chewed the nutplate up coming out.  And get all the taps you need for the body, the threads should be chased before assembly.  The bodies are made properly and carefully by hand, the metal is good.  But the finishing detail is a bit lacking, as long as you go over it before painting and get it done properly it will last well.

[Stevie W]

As Dan says above...the shells aren't perfect and quite a lot of work is involved in fettling them, before they're ready to prime/paint.
Minispeed in Surrey did my BMH shell for me and spent a lot of time seam sealing and prepping the shell for paint. Door and boot fit were excellent, but I had to cut, grind and re-weld one bonnet hinge as the bonnet refused to line up with the wings!!
Other than that, take time to thoroughly waxoil/dinitrol the sills, door bottoms, rear valance closing plates and up under the front scuttle and your shell should far and away outlast a production item!
Again, as Dan says, whip off the doors and bootlid and get some paint under the hinge bits as they tend to fit them before priming/painting, otherwise you have bare metal and a good excuse for rust to start.
For what it's worth, I chose full stone chip ptrotection for the front valance, wheel-arches, underfloor and sills before painting just for that extra bit of protection!!

Cheers, Steve.

[Jase]

And don't forget to fit wheel arch covers in the front. I'm going to whip off my shock brackets tomorrow and paint. Forgot about those, done the hinges etc.

[Tobyrm1]

Thanks for all the replies. I feel more reassured that I'm not going to put money in to a shell and it be rotten in 5 years time.

I know a shell is £5750. How much do you think it will cost to get it sprayed and seam sealed correctly? Ie in a state that I could transfer and underseal the subframes etc.

Also how much as a ball park do you think I would need to add on parts wise?

Edited by Tobyrm1, 25 August 2013 - 07:31 PM.

[FAZ]

isnt it around £12k to buy a heritage shell paint and build up, with some work by yourself and parts from old minis / ebay / friends etc

[Jase]

Thanks for all the replies. I feel more reassured that I'm not going to put money in to a shell and it be rotten in 5 years time.

I know a shell is £5750. How much do you think it will cost to get it sprayed and seam sealed correctly? Ie in a state that I could transfer and underseal the subframes etc.

Also how much as a ball park do you think I would need to add on parts wise?

 

 

Can't you do most of this yourself? Buy a spit and seal and paint the underside etc, make sure it is done properly. It's a hell of a lot of work to seal and paint to the standard you need for rust prevention. I've primed three times, stonechipped three times and sprayed about 8 top coats on the underneath. I would think you would not be looking far short of £10k to have the shell in paint ready for assembly.

 

In terms of parts, you need to decide on what is re-useable from your old car. I'd replace the rear subframe regardless of condition anyway and all running gear might as well be replaced as well. So there's probably another £2-2.5K, the rest is up to you in terms of renewing.

 

Good luck.

[Stevie W]

From memory Minispeed charged just short of £2500 to prep, seal, stone chip, prime and paint the shell.
This price included delivery from Minispeed in Surrey down to Southampton.

With the cost of the shell on top of this you're looking at about £8000 for the whole job....mind you the bill from Minispeed for my BMH shell is dated July 2007 when VAT was still 17.5% so I would think around the £9-10k mark maybe nearer now with the cost of materials/labour etc going up all the time!

Cheers, Steve

Edited by Stevie W, 26 August 2013 - 05:40 PM.

[Tobyrm1]

From memory Minispeed charged just short of £2500 to prep, seal, stone chip, prime and paint the shell.
This price included delivery from Minispeed in Surrey down to Southampton.

With the cost of the shell on top of this you're looking at about £8000 for the whole job....mind you the bill from Minispeed for my BMH shell is dated July 2007 when VAT was still 17.5% so I would think around the £9-10k mark maybe nearer now with the cost of materials/labour etc going up all the time!

Cheers, Steve

Thanks for the responses. It makes it all seem more as though I know the sort of costs involved. I would try and do some of the prep myself but I'm not confident with anything bodywork wise. Absolutely fine with all the mechanical and running gear! My mini has just got a new mot on it so I might run it for another year whilst I try and save up more money!

[Stevie W]

Yes that's a good plan if your Mini's just got a new MOT you've then got a while to save hard!

I'm like you, good with mechanicals but hopeless with bodywork!!

Cheers, Steve.

[Jase]

Just to show that even a new bodychell needs close attention:

 

[Stevie W]

Blimey!!!

That certainly would be a good rust trap!!!!

[Jase]

Yep, now zinc primed, top coated and it will have liberal amounts of copper grease between surfaces.

Edited by Jase, 27 August 2013 - 06:00 PM.