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Most are 4sp manuals. I've never driven (or even seen in person, I think) the auto box before. Some people love them, but I've heard they're a bit like towing a boat performance-wise. They're not common, so parts and repairs for the autos can be expensive.
My general advice when looking at a mini would be this:
- Check for rust: Earlier minis are often less rusty than the later Australian ones, as Leyland stopped roto-dipping to cut costs. Common areas for rust are in the boot under the spare wheel, under the battery (also in the boot), the footwells (front and back), the roof sills, the bottom of the doors and the a-panels (just in front of the doors, they often rust down the bottom). You can expect some rust - it's a mini. But if it's just surface rust, or on an easily replaced panel, don't worry too much.
- Check your brakes: Drum brakes work fine so long as they are looked after, but you will need to adjust your front drums at least as often as you change your oil. You can change to discs later if you like, but they're not cheap - about $1000 or so. If you can get a mini with front discs, much better. The 7.5 cooper discs are more than enough for most minis. If there's no brake booster, you will need a fair bit of pedal pressure to get it to stop, but if it does pull up when pressed hard, and it pulls up straight, you're onto a winner.
- Everybody want a 1275 engine - but getting a decent 1275 mini will be more than your budget unless you're very lucky. The 998 and 1098 engines are both good engines, but are not hugely powerful (although with a bit of money, they can be). They both have the same block, the 1098 is just stroked. The850 engines aren't much good for modding, they are slow and steay, but will work just fine, unless you want to do a lot of highway work. Just check for the normal car things here - does it blow smoke,does it overheat etc. If you want to swap in a 1275 later, you will need disc brakes. 1275 engines are getting quite expensive, but they are pretty much a straight swap. Engine conversions (like bike engines, as you mentioned) will cost far more and take a lot more time, but you will have a very fast mini by the end of it. I don't know of any road-legal bike engine conversions. There are several toyota, honda and suzuki conversions, but each one is the result of years and several thousand dollars worth of work.
- The manual gearboxes wear easily if they're not treated right. In particular, check if it grinds when changing from 3rd to 2nd. That is the first wear indicator of the gearbox, and to fix it, it's and engine-out job. The gear lever is pretty sloppy at the best of times, so expect that.
- Almost all minis will leak a bit of oil, so don't pass one off because it leaks a little. Some leaked straight from the factory.
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my advice is to try and get as complete a car as you can...preferably with matching numbers...and don't overlook cheap 850s or Clubmans as a way of getting started.
