lol. Good luck with that.

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Cheap, Fast, Reliable. Choose two.

I got my mini sand blasted by the "best " in Brisbane $1400 not the cheapest, but it was a ning nong of a job, sound deading and lots of Bog removed off mine.

Metal Prep.
Thats who I got recomended by Graham Carr, who is doing the paint work. Not a warp in even the doors! So good!

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Out of curiosity, what's the average asking price on a Rover Mini with factory air-con?

Im thinking a later model would be a better base to start with body-wise with the benefit of internal door hinges.

At present I'm going down the lines of turning a Rover into a classic Cooper-S style look (moustache grill, 10's, classic three dial dash, etc) with a 1275 with either an injected 7 port or supercharged 5 port SPI.

Would it be better to purchase a Rover with a factory 1275, or a 998 and replace with a rebuilt 1275? (given the 1275 rovers seem to cost about the price of an engine rebuild more than a 998 rover)


So right now I'm looking for a Rover!

Thanks for the company references brett

My thoughts:
Step 1: Get a late model SPI with ac
Step 2: 60s Cooper-ise it but keep 12" wheels for the brakes
Step 3: Install bmw twin cam head and efi.

Pros:
AC and efi tank and pipe work is already in there.
Good (better) sound deadening and long ratio diff for low(er) NVH
Decent brakes
They're getting close to 140hp with some of these heads.
Slightly improved safety?
Easier engineering than conversion and the car can stay on the road basically the whole time.

Cons:
Expense, maybe. Not sure how much Step 1 will cost.
ummm.....

IMO This should get you a very nice mini which is daily driveable and much quicker than polo GTI.

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-James.

Toyota 4EFTE Powered Minivan.
102 Kw @ The Front Wheels....Oh What a Feeling!

Man congratulations on marrying a girl who'd entertain the thought of driving a mini let alone spending a heap of cash on one!!

I'd be going the Rover route as well, so much faster to achieve a decent result and end up with a better daily drive than to undo 45 years of sins and then try and put an old one together etc.

I like the concept of the Rover with EFI & A/C with a early car Colour change and period external accessories.

Good luck with the project!

Going against the advice to get a Rover I reckon there are more legal options with a Morris. Ignoring the engine conversion for a minute and just lookign at mods, the car only has to retain the pollution compliance it had when new. So a '65 Morris is free, go for it, turbo, mods, weber, any filter, blower, EFI blah blah...

Get a Rover and change the air filter and a Copper being a bit anal can defect you off the road. No turbos, no re-tune of the ECU, no cross-flow head, no Cobra seats etc. Ok so minis aren't the usual target for the Defect-18-year-olds-off-the-road Coppers but why drive around with the stress of getting done?

Now engine transplant regs are still different state to state but in Qld you have to have the pollution control as the latest of either the car or the engine. So you have a 1993 car and want to put in a 1989 Suzuki G13B, then you'll have to prove the engine now meets 1993 rules. This limits your options and is a PITA for no real gain.

Back on the original topic. Was an option the current model Polo GTi? Id say they'd be pretty quick with the twin-charged donk and light body. With the safety, economy, relaibility, weather proof etc. I reckon that is a much more sensible choice for a wife's car. Sooner or later she'll be knocked-up and you'll want the safety.

M

You bought the Polo, didn't you...

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Cheap, Fast, Reliable. Choose two.

Hahaha, yes, yes I did The missers car bit the dust sooner than expected so had to do something quickly. Love it tho, it goes pretty hard after the chip and exhaust.

Funny enough after helping a mate rebuild his mustang I've remembered how much I like working on classic cars so I'm on the look out for a shell at the moment; even just a 1275 to start and rebuild till I find a suitable donor (I have an 1100S in the shed I can always throw it in)

Thoughts have changed from the original post now as the missers has a reliable car to get her around. I'm keen on building a car on club rego that I can go silly on, 7 porter, webers, huge cam.. a car that's purely about the feel and sound and not practicality

Still in the lurker stage at the moment, just reading around the forums seeing what I've missed and reading up on all the 7 porter posts. Just have to keep my eye out at the moment for a donor or engine.

build a 4 wheel drive turbo injected morris 1100

you already have the car,,, just need to buy a 4x4 honda civic

Oh,,, that`s right,,, i actually have one already for you

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No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.

Test drove a rover with air con recently.....neither wifie nor I liked the dash...felt too closed in. As for the engine bay.....geeeeeeeez......gimme an oldie any day.

A-series 1330 - 8 port injected turbo in a Rover shell (the internal door hinges close SO nicely... I love those internal hinges!

Spend the $ in the body and the re-build of the motor slowly.

If you dont want the turbo route, just the 8 (or 7) port injected. Will go great... just rebuild the body from scratch (ie/ investment of time) - EVERY nut and bolt.

Thats my 2c - no conversions cause you spend HEAPS and chop and end up with a great car but not an A-series.

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Click here for the Turbo Conversion Thread!

If I had $18000 to blow, that is EXACTLY what I would do

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Lillee - 1969 Morris Mini K