Hi fellow mini lovers! I recently just found your site/forum and found it to be the best source of information for Australian Mini enthusiasts and a great source of all knowledge relating to the classic Mini's. I've been reading the forum for a while, but only just signed up tonight.

To some it up, I'm a real newbie when it comes to cars and mini's in general ( only learnt what I could from the net ) but I hope one day I can buy one I will love and go for cruises with any other mini owners in Melbourne. ( or NSW + Tassie because my gf likes to go for holidays there ).

I need a little help tho if its possible, because I've never bought a car before, let alone a Mini, but somehow still find myself utterly obsessed over the small form factor car

After looking at pictures and reading, I found the type of car I want is:

Mini BRG colour with round nose and auto transmission. I intend to use it as a daily driver to work, ( avg. 1.5 hours driving a day ) and only have about $3000 to $5000 to spend. ( Just applied for a loan today from the bank, should all be ok but I'm still trying to keep costs down ).

I have some real newbie questions tho, like, should I try and find an older car with good Mechanicals and respray it BRG and add chrome fittings, or try and buy the one I want outright ? ( might be expensive ) I'm not after a Cooper S or anything, just a smooth ride that won't feel like its gonna fall apart if I need to go on the freeway at 100km/h.

Also, if you drive a Mini, and its an older classic ( not Fuel Injected 90's model ) do they make clanking noises, or do they run quietly ? Also, if the car is so low to the ground, does it bump around alot, make you carsick? or it just requires good suspension?

Currently I'm driving my gf's Honda Civic ( the older model one ) which is quite small itself, so might not be a big change to a Mini.

I'm 21 years old ( just got my P's ) and my stepdad and my gf's dad both drove Morris Minor's, and we're really enthusiastic to hear I wanted a Mini. ( unfortunately they couldnt tell me much about Mini's tho ).

Either way, I hope I am making the right choice, but all of your posts sound really passionate and I am sure the Mini will be great !

If I could, I would really squeeze to afford a $10,000 Fuel Injected 1995 Rover Mini, but I don't want to sell my Kidney ( although its worth it ). This is my first time getting a loan from a bank, so I don't think I can get such a large one.

Thanks for your help guys, I will try to come to the next Mini cruize ( even if not in a Mini ) and I hope to have my very own Mini by the time Mini Show 2004 comes around.

Nice to meet you all,

Tyson.

I'm sorry to bring you some baddish news, but you're gunna have a hell of a time finding an auto car usable to a daily driver. If you really want an auto, then this is what I would do. Find a Mini that is in good condition and BRG if possable. Get yourself an engine and auto gearbox out of a Morris 1100 (someone correct me if all auto 1100's weren't 1275's?), and get someone to do a transplant for you. Go to a few Mini places and tell them that you want to do this, and they should roughly give you a price (gives you a good idea on how much to budget for a car and engine/box). Some places that spring to mind are Link Automotive and Northern Mini Parts, but there are some more out there. You may want to get quotes for rebuilds of the engine and gearbox, as it's very hard to tell the condition of an engine thats just "sitting on the floor".

Just my 2c.

BTW... Welcome to ausmini.com!

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Thanks very much poee, I saw the Northern Parts website, looks like they got a damn lot of stuff. Perhaps an engine transplant would be the best idea, ( I only have an Auto License and 3 years to go till Full License ). My gf is just going over my finances again to see if it's possible to get a 1.3L Fuel Injected Mini Import... but I doubt its an option at this point.

Still researching as we speak, thanks for the welcome.

the first thing i advise all perspective first time mini buyers is to first befor parting with their money is to find someone with a mini and ask to take it for a drive..a reel drive....you will either love it or hate it...then if it meets your expectations get a mini owner to go over it as if they were buying it themselves, there is a lot to be said about owning a mini. Then if they are happy, take it to a reputable mini mech and get them to go over it and check it out. then and only then you will know if its a worthwhile buy.
As for auto, good luck.....(not really)
colour BRG....(mmmmm..)
and not noisy....hah...not on this planet.
smooth and not bumpy?...are we still talking about a mini?

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go stop...go..stop..go. stop..go...stop...Damn malls are crowded

heh, thanks man, theyre some really good tips!

The first thing I had on my agenda was to actually test drive one myself. I would never consider buying a car without out atleast knowing what Im getting myself in for. Still trying to find a mini to try out tho, I'm not sure if a car Dealer would allow me to test drive ( as I'm on P's ) but I'm still gonna try anyway.

I was seriously considering buying a more expensive Fuel Injected Japanese import, but I'm not so sure I want to spend that much money. I think it would be more fun to recondition one and atleast choose what I'm doing/getting.

Basic question though, roughly how much does it cost to get a car resprayed ? Is it possible to spray the external without having to seperate the car ?
Sorry, but BRG + white strips is very high on the agenda

Also, I think the engine type I want is from a MiniMatic 850 ? I'm not sure if the Manual / Automatic swapping is still a viable option nowadays, driving a manual car on an Auto license isn't so bad, but it seems like police on car checking has almost tripled in recent months. It's not worth the risk.

I must say, it's great fun researching putting a Mini together. It's just like planning an RC car, only more expensive works well for people like me, who don't know much about cars. heh

thanks for the help guys.

All the Morris MiniMatics in Australia were 998s, we never got 850 autos.

It is possible to put a 1275 `Morris 1100S auto' in there, it's a drop in swap after you change the engine mounts. But then you need to add disc brakes (a good idea anyway!)

Auto boxes are not bad if you can get a good one- and then change the oil every 1500 miles to keep it that way. I've had 3 on the road in the past. Manual is more fun, though.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

thanks drmini, thats a great help! I'm gonna get some quotes from Northern Parts to see about using a 1275 1100S auto engine, i'll have to start working out costs for shell etc, but in the meantime I'm gonna keep my eye out just to make sure that someone is selling what I want as a whole too.

It kinda sucks that I have to drive auto, but I taught myself to drive using my dad's automatic car and went straight to do the auto test. Really wish I went for the Manual test, as I can now drive manual ( but have no license for it ). But in a couple of years, when my full license comes, I can drive manual then.

thanks for the great help guys !

autos are rare. not too many were sold. im told they're sitting in Old ladies garages and are in generally good condition coz thats who drives autos. old ladies to the shops and back; they dont trash cars. if you find a matic, youre lucky coz its rare and well-kept. (however not many people would want to buy it)

i drive mine about once a week, its in excellent shape, i take good care of it, and because im intending to keep it, i wouldnt think about driving it everyday for 1.5 hours. id get something easier to fix (manual). if it wont have much sentimental value, you can do that to an auto. when the engines dead, you can convert it to a manual.

when you drive an old car, noise, bumpiness become a necessity. i put a radio in my car, and hate to use it, it competes with the engine noise and i like listening to the engine alot more. it tells me how its running. i raise my voice to about 40% of the maximum to speak to someone. not loud at all

when i speed to >80 km/h (done 5 times ever), there is always that nibbling fright that the engine will lose a part with the whirring of the engine so high. but its thrilling, i love it. i wouldnt want to do it everyday though - alotta worrying there.

so heres the bottom answer:
auto - $5000 will get you a good one, if you find it.
everyday for 1.5 hours, throw in 100km/h: i wouldnt have much faith in that lasting a long time

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Inconspicuously Conspicuous
Appreciation without Depreciation
forever chasing clearer skies...

Yeah, I gotta agree about the daily driver thing. I only drive my clubby 15 minutes each way to work, daily. And I'm cracking up k's faster than the national debt.

Unless you are devoted to constantly maintaining your car, I would NOT suggest a mini as a daily driver

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"He's always been a dickhead, He always is a dickhead, He will always be a dickhead. So stop complaining when he acts like one."

Thanks Matic and Phil, that's probably the best and straight to the point information yet!

Paying that much more money for an auto, and have a much higher risk of it packing up, I'd rather just pay that little bit of money and retake my driving test to get a manual license. Yeah, its a pain in the ass, but definitely worth it in the long run if I want a Mini!

I really appreciate all the information and to the people who responded this thread, and to Ausmini.com!! You guys have saved me a sh*tload of money going down the plughole.

Which means.... I will have more money in the longrun to create a badass Mini !

After I get some more quotes, and if the project goes underway alittle further ( if its a do it yourself job ) I'll document all the things I learn, hopefully it can help other people find out stuff like I didn't know. "A newb's guide to a Mini" or something. heh

sad thing is, i picked one up for $100, the guy that owned it cut the roof off it with plans to making a roadtser. he welded the doors in, chopped the roof and then it sat there for a couple years. he needed a head in a hurry so ripped the matic one off. so the block pretty much has rusted and seized, and the body WAS awesome before it was cut up. the engine had only 60,000 original miles. apparently an old lady owned it before he bought it and it was pristine :/

Worse part was his reason for cutting the roof of "it was a matic, i didnt think anyone would want it". not like it couldnt have had a transplant

w..w..w..what di..di..di..did you s..s..s..say??

I am half deaf from bumping around in my noisy Mini.......

That answer part of your question(s)?

haha, I'm learning, I'm learning. Sitting on a couch cushion can be my expensive suspension =D

Hey, I've found a guy who is helping me out. What's the difference between normal BRG and Metallic BRG? ( is there such a thing or am I nuts )

I was chattin with a guy at a Mini Show recently and he said there are many different shades of BRG...not just one.

Metallic would be the same as the base colour, but with the metallic fleck in it.

Yeah, I only know of BRG 1 2 and 3 myself, they all have slightly different hues. I assume the metallic BRG with the metallic flecks in it would look good, but probably at fair cost. It would look nice and shiny though =)

Any ideas which colour paint makes your car go faster???