Cheers Alec - I take back the idea of drilling multiple holes! and I'll be making a note of that when I get to doing my sills later this year

I assume that you'd need to thin down the rust spray solution a bit to be able to spray through the micro watering nozzles?

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-Alan
I blame my dad for my love of minis. I think I was conceived in the back seat of one
I also blame my Dad for me being 6' 1" - not really the optimum height for driving a Mini.

Nope, goes just fine straight out of the tin you might still want to drill holes for easier access.... up to you... for the sills I'd squirt some in the rear passanger pockets/bins cos you can get reason able access to the sill to about mid way to the A pillar...

In any case its not an easy place to get to.

Some of the ideas that others have posted have been pretty clever. I like the 1275LS's idea, I reckon for doing sills thats a bit of a winner

My car was waxoyled in the UK 5 years back now, all good so far around the sills.

I haven't done it on a mini yet but I imagine you can get most places without too much drilling.
Like I said, you may need to enlarge the nozzle slightly but other than that it was fine.

As a rule I wouldn't drill unless you have to. The tube is pretty thin and for pillars and things you can bend it before putting it in to go round corners and stuff.

Generally speaking, the trick is to put it to the end, start the spray and withdraw it slowly so you get a good coating. A witness hole like in galvanising might be a good one here - if it drips it is wet etc.

Holes will reduce the strength of the structure, particularly if there are lots of them. Small and few is the way to go.

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Cheers
Alec
1275LS - July 78 - XNFAD18Y/102918

Em...why?

In the UK it pisses with rain for 364.5 days per year and for a 1/3 of those days the local council is slinging salt on the roads to suppress ice forming. Also, very fews folks in UK have garages like us so their cars stand outside in the damp, cold and salt. All the above equals a very corrosive environment for steel bodies.

We LUCKILY don't have the same problem here [and the reason why some of us moved here]. Your sills will last for 30 years without any covering. Ít's the salt that's the killer - rain water itself is relatively benign.

However, if you want to make your car all sticky and attract dirt then: there is a lanolin product that I use on the boat that's pretty good (lanotech I think). There are also a few products that are waxy in an aerosol (soft seal for example).

I won't bother - save your money, effort and drillbit.

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Regards,

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

You don't think Minis rust bad at all until a sill really breaks out in a rash.
My son's 78 Clubby rusted through the inner sill, come to think of it so did my `76 Clubby. I had to BIG patch it, these were not pinholes.
And once they have gone there, the sills are really ugly inside.
Water alone is not really the problem, it's the dirt and road dust that gets wet and stays wet in there.
It's a pity they stopped the rotodipping, the early >73 Minis seem to fare much better.

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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.

There's no shortage of minis with rusty sills around Oz even at the 20 year mark, and a can of fish oil costs less than 20 dollars after a 6000 dollar panel and paint refurbishment...I'll do the future owners a favour and throw some in...

That Lanotec however is good gear, I spray that on upperdeck communication fittings on warships. They get sprayed with saltwater, bashed and every now and then fully submerged when big greenies come along Every now and then the water pressure will rip the fitting off the bulkhead even ....but after 6 months of non-use the operator will come along and stick his headset plug in(if it's still there, otherwise he will jam it in a crevice and pretend he's listening) and the communications will work immediately, the lanoline lubricates the canon plug fitting...and it keeps your hands all soft and nice

It's a good thought, I reckon it would work just as well in a car as it does at sea....I've no idea how many years it will last however...

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SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.

I did this also befour I had the new sills put on..all my panels were painted in red oxide primer rust coat inside and out...the parts were masked and given coats of fish oil after words over a 4 week period....in witch the stuff set like jelly but harder...then the panels were welded on after words...at tleat this way i know all of the panels are coated well....the only problem is where the welding is done as this is were the rust starts.

My last mini had new outer and inner sills fitted due to rust prblems...and i was shocked to see how much rust had started on both parts in such a short time...liike three months..
as the sill cracked open after i had my accident...and i could see right into the sill part.

Im sure my method will keep the parts safe for many years to come ..if they last 10 years ill be happy.

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started a new project...there goes all my free time....