70 replies to this topic

[Jordie]

Ive always liked these, i dont think its a bad price you've paid.

 

I bought a mini based kit which doesn't look like a mini and that was £800.

[humph]

Nice. I notice you're localish to me, would be great to have a look at this sometime.

[chadd123]

Nice. I notice you're localish to me, would be great to have a look at this sometime.

no problem,just let me know when you want to come over
sorry for jumping on your post mini mad mark

Edited by chadd123, 16 June 2017 - 02:35 PM.

[tiger99]

I think you guys are very fortunate to have found these cars, at extremely good prices. They ought to fetch far more, being quite rare. Have fun with the work, and enjoy the profit if you ever come to sell.

[keithrose]

Project looking good.

I now have the blue one, BOC, here in Somerset.

It's driveable so may get it MOT'd and work from there. It does need quite a bit of work though.

Currently driving my Gtm Rossa, just returned from Holland car meet with it.

 

Keith 

[mini-mad-mark]

So its taken forever to get on to this - due to my wife's recurring health issue (now in abatement if not remission thanks to a trial drug)

 

I'm not good at remembering to take pictures and the pics aren't that good so apologies

 

The recent nice weather and the first week of furlough giving me the incentive to crack on although I have been collecting stuff for a while and also cleaning/refurbing stuff on and off for a few months now. 

 

I now have (nearly) all the glass back in:

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except this one:

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- damn lockdown means I cant  get another one cut so that'll have to wait - also found the rear subframe had been "cleverly"? bodged with mastic and underseal so a new subframe on order. Also sheared radius arm fixings and a metric screw in one. No pics but you get the drift

 

Plenty of stuff ready to screw on:

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But I am still fixing some of the original bodges so filling holes, changing brackets for brake and fuel lines removing excessive amounts of contact adhesive off the dash rail to glue on a proper one) Also had a go at "panel beating" to save a hub cover:

Before:  DSCF1911.JPG   327.26K   1 downloads

After:  DSCF1913.JPG   354.99K   1 downloads

 

Biggest challenge will be the interior, as a kit car it is different to a mini estate and there aren't any fixing holes/brackets so not sure how I will go on there

 

That's about it for now but I'll post a few more pics when I do something worthwhile

 

Regards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[johnR]

Nice project and good colour choice.

[mini-mad-mark]

Got a bit more done today - was hoping to reuse the rear subframe as a judiciously used screwdriver didn't find any issues in the usual places - along the side webs and on the bottom face -  but after finding a "repair" (mastic and underseal) decided that a new one was the best course of action and once I got it out it was justified!

 

Thought it was just this:

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But then removing he radius arms found this (both sides):

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So have gone from this:

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To this

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Was a long day especially as I found some "extra" mounting holes drilled in the heel-board by an over exuberant builder after removing the subframe -  just left to allow water into the car so I had to fill them and then touch up the under side paint (only added an hour but still meant a good six hours of hard work as also reusing the old trunnions so had to get them off the old subframe, clean up and paint)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mini-mad-mark]

Found this picture dated 2010 of a previous incarnation of the old girl (looking tired) and I assume not much done other than the goofy paint job until I got it,  although I see the mirrors were more conventional at this time and no roof lights (which I am keeping as going for a sort of 4x4 look) also some gutters over the door which are probably a good idea but I they weren't there when I got the car and I havent added anything (yet?)

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[mini-mad-mark]

Well whaddya know - found another incarnation from 2015 I think (not that long before I bought it) but seems to be in reverse - now has the mirrors and roof lights as I got it but was white not black but with the tyre treads - my guess is that they were stickers and then it was panted black and the stickers removed to give the white tyre treads

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[mini-mad-mark]

Side by side for comparison

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[mini-mad-mark]

Ah well it didn't come out side by side sorry 

[Ethel]

Always thought there was something of the Matra Rancho about them back in the day.

 

Looks much better with the black lower detail.

[mini-mad-mark]

So a bit more progress - swapped out the front subframe - was really for expediency as I built up a spare so I could just take the old one out and bung the new one in but probably just as well after finding this "modification" - guess the person wanted to use a spanner instead of a socket (also explains why there is a big chunk of inner wing missing in that area) 

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Also never seen ball joint covers used on suspension knuckles!

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It did have a lot of "interesting modifications" when I got the car which I am removing/replaceing/improving (hopefully)

I have to suppose the builder or subsequent owners didn't really know minis or what should be there.

So the new subframe fitted

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And all brake lines now connected.

 

The new subframe has the stabiliser bracket at the front  - I am a bit worried about the bulkhead but it was solid when I got the car so its been OK up to now but I guess an extra stabiliser or three wont hurt (also going to add a top one at the water pump end and a rear facing one at that end also.

 

Was playing around with the dash rails and after fitting the top rail and test fitting the bottom (held in place by the switch panel temporarily) I find that the distance between the two is about 3/4 to an inch shorter than a standard mini (guess it went wrong during fabrication of the shell but who knows)

 

So the nice-ish dash I got for a very reasonable price at Stanford Hall last year (2+3 walnut but was going to be painted black - a second as no gauge rings which I now have) is now useless and I will have to cut my own dash and work out how to mount the main dials (the rest is straightforward)

 

So watch out for the dash for sale when I have used it as a template to cut the top profile of the custom one I need. 

 

As the lock-down is relaxed my local glass place re-opened and I managed to get a new window cut so that is in now; yes I know about E marking and that 6mm laminate uses a twice as thick poly centre in automotive compared to domestic but hey but this is from the 80s !!! - and its one of the rear side windows and I won't ever be sitting in the back...

They have marked it "laminated" and the "domestic"  BS12345 (whatever it is) number which the other two flat windows don't have so its an improvement? They also cut the corner radii a lot nicer than the originals which were a series of short jagged straight cuts (sorry no pics) so that is a slight improvement as it may have removed some possible stress raisers.

 

And just because I was fed up with not really seeing any progress I fitted the headlights grille and number plate just so I could have something to show for the last couple of weeks

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This was taken from inside the garage and the sun outside was blinding so it came out a bit weird - I'm no David Bailey and its a thirty quid camera - as you have probably already seen from the other pics 

 

Seems that the fantastic weather we have had for the last several weeks is going to break so time to work on the engine in the garage (seals all round, lap valves, splash of paint etc etc) so hopefully that will be ready to plop in when the weather comes back (about a week to 10 days away) and I know everyone likes a (good!) picture of a painted engine - I'll post the best one I can...

 

Keep calm and keep project-ing

 

[mini-mad-mark]

Always thought there was something of the Matra Rancho about them back in the day.

 

Looks much better with the black lower detail.

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