4 replies to this topic

[finch661]

Morning all, long time since i have been on this, or the mini scene. i still have my first ever car (1985 mayfair), and have been using her as a daily, until the breakdowns started happening, and i took her off the road last year.  few rust holes have appeared, and few things i have been painting/covering up for the last few years. so rather than bodge, i want to properly fix. about 10 years ago, i started from one wing and worked round the whole car replacing panels and patching, so not scared to crank on. the main things is figuring out where to start

 

so roughly needing work

scuttle

inner wings (grill one mainly)

a-panels

part of the bulkhead (been questionable since i bought it)

inner flitchs

sills could do with a refresh

rear valance

possible boot floor

doors are rotten

door steps are rotten

 

 

its more where to start, what needs braced and so on. never done a full front end before

 

cheers 

 

Rich 

Edited by finch661, 16 December 2025 - 09:46 AM.

[shera12]

Welcome back! Sounds like a solid project and fair play for wanting to do it properly. Most people start at the front with bracing in place (door apertures especially), then work from the structural stuff outward, inner wings, bulkhead, A-panels, then skins. Take plenty of measurements and do one side at a time. Plenty of Mini rebuild threads out there, too, if you need reference. Good luck with it

[evansisgreat]

I found this video really helpful when bracing up the car initially. I also bought a rollover jig which makes getting to awkward areas much easier and I found to be well worth the money. Mine is also my first car!

 

[stuart bowes]

+1 on the rollover jig, mine would have been so much easier if I had one.  would definitely get one if I did another car

[coopertaz]

did complete floor and many more panels in small garage without rollover jig, as had no room. supported car on stands at front subframe mounting on bulkhead and rear damper points in rear wheelarch. would start at the front and do full m.machine or heritage front inner wings. found these panels a good fit. the only time i fitted bracing was when doing full inner sills or floor panels.

remove and replace one panel at a time so you can use remaing ones as fitiing guide, this is when you realise its worth paying the extra for good panels, you may still need to do some slight adjustments though not many minis are truly straight after so many years of use. little tip that plug welding sills on is easier if rear companion bins are removed then you can do it from above when you have no jig. this does require cross bracing