25 replies to this topic

[BudgieCake]

Everyday spent with pals is a holiday B) Germany awaits !

[Will16]

Bit more done on this, I really wanted to get the engine in. so that meant doing all the awkward jobs that need to be done first like the fuel lines. Made a feed and return out of 8mm kunifer, left some space to fit the 044 fuel pump and then I will also modify the tank for a return and larger feed. I also fiddled around with the gearbox as I found out there was a different ratio 5th gear which should drop the revs at 70mph to about 3200 rpm, from 3500 rpm, but isnt too much of a drop from 4th. And I very happily repainted the engine and associated bracketry, I dont know what my 19 year old self was thinking with it multicoloured  This time is was MOWOG green and black, cant go wrong.

 

Putting the engine in wasnt straight forward and a few bits needed shaving but it is in and secure. With this subframe the engine sits over towards the passenger side a bit more than when it was in the orange mini, meaning my driveshafts are just slightly the wrong size so I will remake those for peace of mind. Also made a good start on the loom, I was kind of dreading it as I wanted to tidy it and re-wrap it, turned out it wasnt bad at all. I stripped all the horrible rover conduit and BL grey wrapping and various types of electrical tape and used some cotton tape to tape it back up. I took the opportunity to clean all the zeibart off it as it was the loom from my mk3. I've put the ecu inside the car this time to protect it and there are a few bits of loom I need to extend and repair.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Will16]

Getting things ticked off! All the rear brakes are back together, new cylinders, shoes, springs, etc with some original non spacer minifins, mounted the proportioning valve too. I'm staying with a single line circuit so is all relatively simple. The handbrake cables are all in too. The front brakes are another matter, I went to fit the calipers and found that where I have mounted the bits the front hoses attach to seem to be too low and I think the hoses will interfere with the driveshafts, so I will make some new brackets out of ally and mount them in a better spot! Als o got the rear loom section in for the pickup, need to have a look as there are less wires that go to the back than I have on my front loom which was from a saloon. Also managed to get the fuel pump bolted in and secure, will make some sort of guard for it though. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Will16]

Been working on this well to be honest, the brakes are all sorted now with new hose mounting tabs, so its just the driveshafts left for the running gear. I have put some sound deadening to help stop the panels drumming, there will also be proper sound deadening under the carpet. The interior is going back together nicely, I made some gauge panels from ally to mount the auxiliary gauges and rev counter in and painted them in wrinkle black to match the speedo surround. The speedo is in and all wired up now too. I also have mounted the centre switch panel, I got sent the wrong one so just opened up the switch holes for my earlier switches and welded up the centre hole for the key, as well as smoothing out the choke/heater cable holes. The heater has also been fitted, just need to plumb it in.

 

The engine is almost ready for its first start up, needed to get a few things ally welded like a fan switch and have the coolant tank outlet moved but thats the cooling system finished. I have finally sorted the rear engine steady and bolted that on, and this weekend I have been working on an exhaust manifold. I used the rover one in the mk3 but the grille rested on it and burnt the paint and with a pup grille, it sits back into the front panel more so I have even less room    This one I've made gives me a good 40mm clearance so I think it should be ok!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[alex-95]

Top work man! looking forward to seeing this finished!

[Will16]

Top work man! looking forward to seeing this finished!

 

Thank you mate! It will definitely be getting some use this year 

 

Been trying to get this thing ready to run, I did want it to be this weekend but a few things held me off but that's alright. The heater was the last part of the cooling system that needed finishing, the matric inlet/outlet in the standard position exit the drivers side but I though this was a bit close to the pedals so I copied my mate Max as drilled the other side of the heater so that they exit to the passenger footwell. Bought some silicone bends, was going to go straight out the hole but bent up some stainless tube to make it a bit neater. Need to order some more tube to finish the other side now.

 

The main thing I needed to sort was the fuel tank. Pickups/vans have no easy way of running fuel injection, for mine I welded up the original fuel outlet, welded a 15mm outlet on the bottom to feed my 044 fuel pump and bent up a 8mm return line to feed back into the tank neck. With that done it had a coat of chassis black and was fitted.

 

The next thing was the battery and cabling. I wanted to go for a lightweight race type battery, found a good recommended alternative to an odyssey type so ordered one for a fraction of the price and will see how it goes. I didnt want to drill my floor so welded a battery try onto the back of my seat mount and then ran the cables. The earth to a kill switch and the positive through a stuffing gland and onto the starter. I did power everything up and apart from me wiring my horn back to front so it blew a fuse, the car turns over and the fuel pump fires 

 

Then started on finishing the exhaust. I've made the bulk of the system up, just got to finish the hangers and take it off again to weld the lambda bung and wire brush and paint it. Think I'm gonna be a bit asbo and have a 3" rolled tip, but gonna make it changeable when I get bored. Also got the inlet manifold bolted down fully and replaced a couple coolant hoses for black to make it less lairy! The other two will be covered so not going to worry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Will16]

Some more done to this! Firstly after thinking I had everything to do with the engine/box being sorted I realised I couldnt get it into 5th gear  this meant the engine had to come out and the box split for the 586th time, once it was stripped I couldnt find anything wrong with it, I took the synchro apart tried without the spring clip and it worked, then put it back together with it and it worked, with that sorted it could all get put back together and put back in the car, should be the last time it comes out! I made the last heater hose too so that is the cooling system all done.

 

I also finished off the fuel system by putting on the last bits of hose, I also had to drop the tank slightly to get the filler recess into the rear quarter and a nice stainless cap finished it off. I made the driveshafts up too, mini outers and rover inners which meant that was all the suspension and brakes finished and could be bolted up.

 

I also put in the wiper linkage, firstly to get the wiper motor mounted and secondly to be able to tuck the wiring up under the scuttle neatly and for good. My wheel boxes the thread had started to wear off so I thought they were scrap, but a great guy in my village turned me some stainless nuts where the threads were not cut as deep so they could still get purchase, they were spot on! Then I put the rear wheels on and some spares for the front as I need to buy some more silly expensive Dunlop's..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Will16]

I have since got this running and driving, only on and off my drive but it still counts! I cavity waxed all the underneath and everywhere where I could get the dinitrol in and with that done I could put it on the ground for good. This meant I could finally put some fuel in it and see if it started, well it didn't due to the immobiliser going faulty.. I sent the ecu away to be deimmobilised and once it came back thankfully ran, it is a bit loud but will do for now 

 

With the can now running, no leaks I turned my attention to the rest of the bodywork. Back in November we just painted the shell and tailgate so I still had the front end stuff and doors. I was feeling brave so thought I'd tackle the front end bits myself and leave the doors for Tom to resin properly. I had cooling issues with my orange mini and it liked to run hot so I took some inspo from an project Binky and welded in some pressed vents front a metro bonnet to try to let some of the hot air out, still not 100% on them but I don't think they are awful. I also ruptured the back of the tailgate and front end and valance to give it some protection then it was all high builded, flatted and top coated. The finish isn't the best and the bonnet needs to be redone but all in all I don't think it came out too bad!

 

So yesterday I thought I could bolt some more bits on such as the front (grille and bonnet only on temporarily), but not before I cut a big chunk out of the slam panel as I never tried the rad's pipework with it in place  The front end fits well though, still a bit annoyed with the grille's bulge to clear the alternator, might try to cover it with an AA badge or something, but very happy with the clearance for everything else. I also bolted up the tailgate which led me to another issue, I found my tailgate was 10mm too far over to the left and there was nowhere near the amount of adjustment I'd need... Bit of thinking and I have cut my hinges about to give the necessary clearance, redrilled the tailgate mounting holes 10mm over and tapped to m6 to get a few extra mm and cut the side of the hinges to allow them to move over. Also having a look at cutting down an Caddy Ifor Williams canopy to make fit mine as I've always loved them haha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Grant 111]

Amazing build. Was great to see this at beaulieu it looked fantastic.

[Will16]

Alot has happened since the last update, its on the road and has done about 500 miles! The doors were reskinned with Heritage parts, did want ally skins but they were not very good quality so went to steel instead and then them and the hinges and the bonnet and grille were painted, I did it this time so the finish isnt as good as the body but its blue and shiny   I could then get the doors build and the glass in. For the back and side windows I went for poly to save some weight. I then bled all the brakes, fitted all the lights and bits I had to get it MOT worthy, which it went for an passed, but not without an issue...

 

It would got above 2k rpm and kept bogging and cutting out. I think the 044 fuel pump was too big and cavitating. I took the tank out and modified it to take a injection mini intank pump, including a swirl pot, which is a) much quieter, and b) actually works! I also fitted some sound deadening and the carpets and well as a bulkhead blanking plate to reduce engine noise/smells. Also got my canopy finished and mounted too.

 

Since then I have just driven and enjoyed it, its fast, not too uncomfortable, it is a bit noisy from mainly the exhaust but also road noise so will try to address that, I will spam with pics now

 

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[IronmanG]

Good stuff. Interesting to see the petrol tank solution. I went seperate swirl pot. Hopefully bump into you at a show

Edited by IronmanG, 23 June 2022 - 09:09 PM.