Just wondering how hard it is to repair the rust damage in the door hinge area of the sills. Im a noob, but most of you guys being more experienced with minis, I would just like to know.

Are you referring to the A panel , the bit behind the first vertical seam and in front of the door opening where the door hinges bolt onto ? Providing you have some average or better welding skills and access to tools and sheet metal not too hard . How bad is the rust , will it need a new panel or just some sheet metal welded into it to fill smaller holes ? This is a fairly structural part of the mini so needs proper repairs rather than dodgying up with fiberglass etc , some pictures of the damage would help if you have them .

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i dont actually have a mini yet, but that seems to be a reasonably common area for rust and in purchasing I keep running into the problem. The ones im talking of are really rusted and probably need a whole new panel. And yes, you knew where I was talking about.

Ahh , ok , most mini's I've seen have only had minor rust starting under the hinges , but if not fixed early it can eat out the hinge mounting area . This panel incorporates the side of the mini too but there used to be a rust replacement panel of just the front bit available , not sure if it still is or not but it's a fairly flat panel so if you're reasonable with welding (or know someone who is) then it isn't a big drama . Just takes a bit of time to remove the door and clear the paint/rust off to see what you've got underneath it . Mini's often rust at the bottom of the panel because of moisture getting trapped between the two layers of steel but it's have to be bad for it to be a lost cause .

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