I bought a 74 clubman off evil bay last week. I took it straight from the owner to a roadworthy inspector. I've been told today that it sits far too low and needs the "air bag thingys" (his term, not mine) recharged.

I'm in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, I called the place I went to 20 years ago for mini parts, but they've moved from Heidelberg to Croydon. Does anyone know of someone closer to me that could pump her up?

They've also hammered me because someone has hacked at the parcel shelf to fit speakers. I'm hoping I'll be able to just trim the holes and weld in some replacement sections. The man from Northern mini parts told me on the phone that getting a 2nd hand parcel shelf to replace my one is nigh on impossible! Any thoughts?

1974 Clubmans do not have Hydrolastic.

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it could have been converted to a hydro setup (i'm guessing) or the RWC blokes a tit and can't tell the difference between hydro bags and doughnuts
as for the parcel shelf, just put up a wanted ad in the wanted section and ask if someone's parting out a shell.. there maybe someone that's about to scrap a rusty shell that's past it's used by.
Also, i think one of the members on here does a mobile hydro service, but i'm not sure who it is or where they're based.
all the best with it.

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So what's the last thing you remember...

I'm pretty sure you were..

WRONG ANSWER!!!

\

I have a few unmolested parcel shelves that have been cut out of cars, but there in Sydney.

Doogie

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I won Hay once, here's the pic to prove it..


Hay, it's not about the car, it's not about the venue, it's about the people that come here. Peter Dwyer, Mayor of Hay NSW.

Neither do `76 Clubmans, but I built one..
It got boosted 998 Cooper brakes and a Minimatic power unit too.

Anyway I think hydro Mini production finished in `73?, the compliance plate is not the build date so a `74 may be possible.

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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.

Howie , i don't want this to sound like a smartar$e comment ,but is the car hydro?,
or is it the case that the person that inspected the car is not mini savvy, and just seen that the ride height was too low , and knocked it back for it .

Given that it is hydro , i'm sure there would be a few places / people in your area that could pump it up for you .

I have an unmolested Mini K parcel shelf, im in East Gippsland if that helps. Also have a hydro pump might be worth the drive..

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1970 Mk 2 Cooper S

Hi again. I changed the email address on my profile and got my account locked.

Since starting this thread I have had the mini roadworthied and put in my name.

It is dry suspension!!

I still need to fix the parcel shelf though.

Darrell, I'm not up to speed with model designations. Would a mini K's parcel shelf be the same as a clubman's?

Doogie, are any of your shelves from a clubman?

I think it was mid 73 so wouldn't imagine any '74 cars would have had hydro

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1964 998cc Cooper
1971 Mini K x 2
1972 Clubman GT

Was there differences in any of the parcel shelves I would think any differences would have been minor and you could use any, particularly if you weren't looking for 100% originality/correctness. If I read right you are after the strength to be returned.

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1964 998cc Cooper
1971 Mini K x 2
1972 Clubman GT

I think the later clubmans reinforced parcel shelves, due to the seatbelt points (baby seats and such)
could be wrong, but i'm fairly sure they all fit in the same spot, so to speak.

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So what's the last thing you remember...

I'm pretty sure you were..

WRONG ANSWER!!!

There was major changes to the parcel shelf for the rear belt mounts and child restraints.

Major changes? My '78 clubby should have the major changes, as far as I can see the only change would be the small steel plates underneath the mount points.

My parcel shelf has also been butchered and is probably illegal as it is. I was thinking of just reinforcing it with some 1/4" steel bars running underneath or something. I very rarely have passengers in the back. I'm not especially worried about legalities here, I would just like my passengers to be safe.

My parents had 2 AP5 Valiants (we still have 1), and when me and my brothers were born they decided to have seatbelts installed. It cost hundreds, and my dad was pretty pissed off because all they did was drill the hole and put a small plate underneith. He did the 2nd one himself.

The late shelf is double skinned at the front where the mounts are. (and single skinned where the big speaker holes are usually cut) As well as some webbing on the ends to connect the second skin to the structure of the car.

The initial plans for this car are to use it to teach my daughter to drive. Chances are that my sons will be in the back while that is happening, so safety is paramount. If the clubman made improvements to strength around the seat belt mounts, then that is what I need to repair/replace with.