114 replies to this topic

[Down&Out]

i must say, without being rude, this isnt very stealth anymore..

[guywithvan]

i must say, without being rude, this isnt very stealth anymore..

i was thinking the same to be honest with the big wheels arches and f/g front but once it all comes together and i get the "secret" engine installed in the future with the paint job i've decided on im sure it'll look very stealthy

here's my engine bay now tis all naked except wiring loom



should get the inner wings cut back tomorrow and start prepping ready for paint

[guywithvan]

well how much of a pita is a f/g front to fit? a very BIG pita ,decided about 1pm i'd go outside and have a play with FRK and get a little more done

started by removing passenger side shock mount to see what rust lurk's behind



think i got there just in time ,a blast with wire brush it'll be sweet

next i got the grinder out and cut back the inner wings





it was then i decided to have a trial fit of the front from abs,i thought you had to pull steel panels alot to get a good fit *melon* me how i was suprised how much pulling twisting and sanding is needed for a f/g front let alone the swearing involved

i've got a dremel which i used to lightly trim the edges which have pleanty to play with from the mould,test fit then mark where to cut/sand remove panel swear at it again,bit more sanding swear a little more

go for cuppa come back little more cutting and sanding,test fit again and swear even more ,by this time local lad come's for a look "putting a flip front on?" erm yeah a removable front i guess considering i keep taking it off ,end up chatting mini's for a hour or so and tell him to sign up on tmf "you'll be addicted" i say just dont get a f/g front for ya mini.

give up for the afternoon as light went during the chat hopefully make some progress tomorrow with some more pic's

Edited by guywithvan, 01 March 2009 - 10:06 PM.

[Saxo-Fiesta-Mini]

lookin good u not got more pics ???

[analogue_radio]

Pictures are waaaaay too small mate, can't see what's going on! & it looks as if I'm missing out on the good stuff!

[guywithvan]

lookin good u not got more pics ???

got a little distracted with the front,and a friendly chat about mini's with a young lad from up the road,i'll get some more tomorrow

[guywithvan]

Pictures are waaaaay too small mate, can't see what's going on! & it looks as if I'm missing out on the good stuff!

small pic's due to *melon* camera phone and lack of money to afford shiny new digi camera dont worry you'll get the BIGGER picture over time

[guywithvan]

well it's been a while since i've added to this!,progress has been slow due to moving house and renovating the place whilst im living in it but im glad as it has pleanty of parking and a garage for my neglected mini van!.

so a few weeks back i borrowed a trailer off my uncle and got my mini's over to new place pretty shocked at the state of my van as it's been out of sight and outside for too long,oh i love creating more work for myself .

anyway FRK is first on the list and i started on monday by jacking him up and removing the rear subby,suprisingly it came off very easy with no snapped bolts or serious corrosion underneath,i do love low milage autos





so the subby mounting panel looks good

i also decided to remove the rear valence to make it easier repairing a dent in the rear and possibly use a f/g or c/f one in the future





it's a bit rusty there but at the worst a very small patch

rest of the boot floor looks pretty good including the valence closing panels which considering are original have do really well



worst bit of rust is here,it's solid so i might get away with treating it or a small patch which would be a shame as the closing panel is in great condition

once the subby was off i've stripped it down and all parts will eventually get re furbished and used on my van,i have new parts for FRK and consist of the following

new rear subby
re-con radius arms
new back plate assembly's /mini fins
braided hoses
new cones / hi-lo's maybe change to min-tastic spring's later

so to keep me busy till i can paint the underside i started cleaning a few bits up



i stripped down some spare hubs and removed the bearings/wheel studs and gave them a good clean with wire brush then a lick of blue as it will be part of the colour coding on FRK.

i also removed my calipers a while back ready for rebuilding so i stripped them down getting the pistons out was easy using a technique mentioned on here,it's suprising what a grease gun can do



all cleaned up and couple coats of caliper paint i think they look pretty good,just a shame i cannot afford a decent camera to show you guy's better!!

next plans are to build the rear hubs up with new bearings/stud's i have stocked,then once i've flushed out the calipers they'll get some new seal's and maybe one piston needs changing.

other than the poor pic's im quite happy so far,got another few bit's to get painted up so im off for now

[guywithvan]

well todays progress has had it's up's and downs

started putting my radius arms together and new bearings in the hubs,realised i had'nt painted the bracket's for handbrake cable so had to do them before i could finish fitting the back plates.

so whilst paint was drying i gave the underside of the boot floor and wheel arches a good wire brushing











im more than likely going to roll FRK on his side and completly strip the floor and repaint/stonechip so i though i might aswell start getting ready for it
by dropping the front subby



to make things a bit lighter i removed hub's tie bar's and lower arms whilst still on FRK



that made it easier dropping the subby out



and i got the steering rack out whilst i was there




by then paint was dry so thought i'd carry on with the radius arms,backplates went on easy,then the hubs thing is im a lil stuck now as when going to tighten the castle nut up to 81nm it goes past the holes for the split pin,not being dumb here but i know how to set a tourque wrench and i checked in the haynes for the right tourque,when i re-assembled the hub's bearing's went in right,and made sure they were properly packed with grease and everything seems sweet just when tightened up(not even to 81nm) the hub wont turn and the castle nut gone past the hole for split pin?!??!? HELP lol





i've just left it for now and will prob search on here for a solution,then give it another try tomorrow with a fresh head

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Ohhh cool mate, looks good progress!

[deemo]

I hate you. How can you possibly have a mini with so little rust
Seriously though, that car must have been looked after. Or painted properly at the factory.

Looking good so far, great taste in the parts department
Not relishing the prospect of fitting my f/g front end now.

I'm looking forward to finding out what sort of lump is going in up front.
Keep us posted.

[1293sleeper]

i know its not a competition but i think i win on the stealth fron check out my thread
http://www.theminifo...x...23327&st=30

[guywithvan]

I hate you. How can you possibly have a mini with so little rust
Seriously though, that car must have been looked after. Or painted properly at the factory.

Looking good so far, great taste in the parts department
Not relishing the prospect of fitting my f/g front end now.

I'm looking forward to finding out what sort of lump is going in up front.
Keep us posted.

i was just about to reply on your thread but now in two minds , i bought FRK last year in april he was a 998 auto and had approximatly 34,000 genuine miles and 10mnths mot and 6mnth tax ,mate told me about it and said it looks really good ,on inspection it had had a blow over but solid maybe had a a-panel changed but all other panels original and not a patch in sight.on the bodywork alone the car sold itself to me and i collected the following day for £500 without even test driving before hand

on the way home i did contemplate calling the police,to report the previous owner had just been robbed! i only knocked him down £100 from his asking price so did'nt feel too bad

im unfortuantly self-employed and now unemployed so progress may be slower than anticipated now having to go on the "rock and roll" so im glad there's not a big panel list ahead

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Co-op down the village are searching for emplyees mate!

[1275 SPRITE]

Looks good so far!

With the castle nut, you have to tighten it to the torque, then tighten it further untill the holes line up!

James