I have been toying with a few ideas to repower my clubman. One is to buy a 1275 in need of love, give it a birthday and fit it up. To that end I have received some good advice from here as to who to speak to.

I also did a bit of searching in the UK via the web, and found what sounded like a decent runner for decent money. Then I tried to organise shipping!!

I was quoted $2400 and three months at sea to get a 1275 and gearbox here! Not having been down this road before, I don't know whether that is about the right price? Or was I being fed a line?

Regardless of whether that price was fair or not, it makes importing out of the question!

sounds a lot

I shipped my entire car here (albeit in 2005) in a crate for about 900 GBP which would be about $1400 at current exchange rates.

But yes, 3 months at sea was pretty much the same.

More than one bloke on this forum has been burned after importing a shiny red 'reconditioned' 1275 lump from the UK, then finding it's a paint shop rebuild with a new alloy rocker cover and it's blown up before the 1st oil change. Warranty, you must be joking...

Plenty of 1275s for sale here in Oz if you look around, some reconditioned, some needing one. Either way, you can inspect and control what you are getting for your money.
No surprises.

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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.

$2400 is 2 / 3 the cost of a rebuild

Do as Doc says , look closer to home .

Get one out of Japan, much closer so freight is much less and culturally people out to rip you off are in the minority rather than the majority like here and in the UK.

Or get one from one of the import places such as a certain mini import business in Melbourne that way all the leg work is done for you.