$200 has bought me a '63 850 with not much of the 850 stuff left in it.

Before I got it it had last been registered 16 years ago, and probably not touched in that time I reckon.

I managed to get it running on day 1, after lots of messing around, then had various problems up until now, but it is now running quite well:)

I think I've had it about three weeks now, and in that time I've had to do the following:

initially pump the goo through the fuel lines until actual petrol made it through

unseize the carby which was solid in every party that moved, including the piston, needle and seat etc.

replace the main jet which was bent and sticking badly

replace cracked fuel lines

then after it was running:

new oil and filter

replaced snapped alloy trumpet in drivers side front suspension

replaced head due to a burnt inlet valve

replaced crusty thermostat

replaced water pump which was very noisy and rusted so it wasnt actually pumping

replaced generator

cleaned regulator points as it wasnt charging

unseized all four wheel cylinders (850 fronts). got away with it despite being BADLY seized

replaced front solid brake line (cracked and leaking)

replaced solid brake line from T piece to drivers side flexible line (had a flexible line in there for some reason.. it was badly restricted and wouldnt release the brakes)

replaced seized brake master

Removed fuel filter from tank (blocked solid)

rinsed ALOT of dirt out of the fuel tank

blew out fuel lines with compressed air as they were blocked

spaced front brake shoes (plenty of lining but not the correct oversize.. dodgy but it worked)

replaced speedo (getting stuck, cleaning didnt help)

Replaced fuel sender

installed nylon bush on the bottom of the gear stick as it was missing

new spark plugs, points and condenser

replaced distributor, the points were not opening the same for each cylinder

unseized and repaired door and boot locks (full reassembly required, down to the pins in the locks)

swapped interior opener mechanisms between sides, they were wrong and held the door handles in the open position!!

got the windows opening and closing again

started on the bodywork..

sanded back the roof and started pulling out the flaky bog that was in places, the whole front end basically fell out, and theres ALOT of rust in there which will have to be fixed up before I can drive it again:(

I'd been driving it to work, but I cant now for the moment.

You can see photos of it here:
http://s189.photobucket.com/albums/z234 ... en%20mini/

I'll keep updating that album, so keep an eye on it:)

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The fleet:
1949 Fiat Topolino
1965 Morris 1100
1966 Mini Van (project)
19?? Morris 1500 (for sale)
1979 Chrysler Regal
1990 FSM Niki

hmmmmm, if the rest of the car has rust like the front, I'd say it's a throw away job...

souns like it going to keep you busy.

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ANY SEA ANY TIME

$200 for a driveable mini

Mate, that has to be a bargain by any measure...

_________________
Regards,

Mike
"He who dies with the most toys wins."

oo never seen that grille before

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Copper 4 lyfe!

thats cool, good luck with it all

it was supposed to be a throwaway job, It was sold purely for wrecking value, I'm fixing it because I can.

it wasnt bought as drivable, it could have had very serious problems for all I knew, I only knew the engine turned if you rolled the car in fourth, and thats it. just lucky it was kindof alright.

_________________
The fleet:
1949 Fiat Topolino
1965 Morris 1100
1966 Mini Van (project)
19?? Morris 1500 (for sale)
1979 Chrysler Regal
1990 FSM Niki

It looks like an old rally car. Are the flares, like, moulded from the body? You should turn it into a rally car replica with lift kit and spotties ect.

the flares are probably screw on ones but have been moulded to the body with fibreglass so they look like part of the body.
it's deseamed and all the panel joins smoothed with filler and fibreglass. the front end has been extended down, kindof front spoiler-like but has been mostly crashed back off again:P too low for driveways im guessing.

it had holes where spotlight wiring used to be, but they were part of the fibreglass, theyre not very noticable mixed in with the rust holes in the metal.

it has an engine steady bar bolted from the gearbox to the passenger floor subframe bolts, so it's possible someone raced it, dispite only having a 998 motor in it.

first/reverse (non-synchro) gears are very loud due to wear, but they do still work. all the synchros work well, which was unexpected, I figured it'd crunch back to second if it was driven enough to wear first/reverse but it doesnt.

_________________
The fleet:
1949 Fiat Topolino
1965 Morris 1100
1966 Mini Van (project)
19?? Morris 1500 (for sale)
1979 Chrysler Regal
1990 FSM Niki

Flee. Just flee. There may be some parts worth salvaging and so it may be worth $200, but someone else's deseaming is almost certainly dire.

Youve been a busy boy.....Well done, you dont find many complete Minis for $200 these days, all over priced rust buckets

especially given the treatment with the installation of that grille

Like the 1/2" ball valve on the heater hose.

still has the mitre 10 sticker on it too

I dont particularly care what anybody says, I wont be put off at all:P

I'll fix this car no mater what you say:)

I dont want to restore it, I just want to throw it together to be a suitable daily driver which I wont feel bad shoving a stereo and whatever else I want into.

Just a toy that I dont have to feel bad about making mistakes on:)

plus, once it's on the road, I'll have spent a total of about $500 on it, so who cares?

when it comes down to it, I'm a first year apprentice, it's this mini or no mini:P the van will take a long time yet as I'm doing a good resto on that.

_________________
The fleet:
1949 Fiat Topolino
1965 Morris 1100
1966 Mini Van (project)
19?? Morris 1500 (for sale)
1979 Chrysler Regal
1990 FSM Niki

Then do yourself a favour, and pull the interior trim off the C-pillars and inspect the deseam welds from the inside. If it's been done badly (or not at all as it sounds from your description ) then the car is a death trap and will kill you the first chance it gets.

Seriously, spend half an hour and you might save your life.

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges