RE: SOTW: Mini 1000
Discussion
I owned a 'T' reg yellow 1275GT and without doubt it was the worst car I ever owned. I had to replace the subframe as it was mainly rust, the gearbox and diff blew up while pulling away from some traffic lights, it stopped everytime it rained, it eat three head gaskets during my ownership and it was uncomfortable and slow.....only good thing about it was the 1275 GT stripes.
vetteheadracer said:
I owned a 'T' reg yellow 1275GT and without doubt it was the worst car I ever owned. I had to replace the subframe as it was mainly rust, the gearbox and diff blew up while pulling away from some traffic lights, it stopped everytime it rained, it eat three head gaskets during my ownership and it was uncomfortable and slow.....only good thing about it was the 1275 GT stripes.
Heretic. Burn him in the face 
I have had one, my mate has had two (and still owns one of 'em) and My Grandad had an original '59 and a '63 back in '59 and '63 
I love the Mini but i'm under no illusion as to its original purpose. A cheap affordable little car that could carry 4 adults. It's a cheap city car that had the amazing fortune of handling like virtually no other car on earth.
My point is that, just because it's become a motoring Icon and an absolute classic doesn't mean that the materials it was made from or the build quality has improved.
It's still a cheap car that had to live through BL, Austin, Austin Rover and later 'Rover on a budget' and it seems to be one of the rare cars that suffers more 'tin worm' the more recent the car!!
I'd love another but you've gotta be a bit handy with bodywork and welding and enjoy doing mechanics on a car that needs hands with the power of Geoff Capes but the size of Mini-Me.
This one seems about right-ish but really at the moment Mini's are £1k cars at £5k money.
I love the Mini but i'm under no illusion as to its original purpose. A cheap affordable little car that could carry 4 adults. It's a cheap city car that had the amazing fortune of handling like virtually no other car on earth.
My point is that, just because it's become a motoring Icon and an absolute classic doesn't mean that the materials it was made from or the build quality has improved.
It's still a cheap car that had to live through BL, Austin, Austin Rover and later 'Rover on a budget' and it seems to be one of the rare cars that suffers more 'tin worm' the more recent the car!!
I'd love another but you've gotta be a bit handy with bodywork and welding and enjoy doing mechanics on a car that needs hands with the power of Geoff Capes but the size of Mini-Me.
This one seems about right-ish but really at the moment Mini's are £1k cars at £5k money.
Edited by Fire99 on Friday 16th October 11:09
My 1275GT (also T reg, DVO211T) was taken out to 1340, had an MG metro inlet manifold, and an exhaust pipe the size of a 4" drainpipe. Had it dyno set up in Kirbymoorside and got a massive 74bhp out of it. My drive home from work involved Garrowby Hill, and I always had to put the heater on Full HOT and wind my window down to get to the top (at speed) to stop the temp gauge hitting red. Happy days !
Beefmeister said:
Oddball RS said:
Its not a ring car, thats a 90's and naughties obsession, try Stelvio.
I think the chap earlier was referring to the numberplate (NUR)...
In any case, if you're going to throw a Mini up and down some mountain passes, the correct one is the Col de Turini.
I can understand why people like them, but for me it is in no way the "best shed of the week"
A couple of months ago I went to view one on behalf of someone
I found it to be the most horribly unrefined car I have ever been in. Horribly noisy, cramped, the car was fitted with lowered suspension which gave an appuling ride
As I said, I can understand the appeal, it was a bit of a go kart. However make sure you have a proper test drive before you buy to see if you could live with it.
A couple of months ago I went to view one on behalf of someone
I found it to be the most horribly unrefined car I have ever been in. Horribly noisy, cramped, the car was fitted with lowered suspension which gave an appuling ride
As I said, I can understand the appeal, it was a bit of a go kart. However make sure you have a proper test drive before you buy to see if you could live with it.
FWDRacer said:
At last - A proper SOTW 
There have been loads of "proper" SOTWs, There are other great cars out there which aren't Minis.And not everyone likes Minis. I certainly couldn't live with one. It is a rare case where I would take the newer model of car instead of the older, classic one.
Edited by Beirut Taxi on Friday 16th October 12:19
FWDRacer said:
mustard tab said:
Pants shed.
Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa. The only good thing about them was if you had one as a first motor to get some insurance under your belt, as soon as you traded up to a real motor there was no going back IMO
Get.Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa. The only good thing about them was if you had one as a first motor to get some insurance under your belt, as soon as you traded up to a real motor there was no going back IMO
Out.
Rather have a Mini than a MINI.
The ad to me translates as, my mechanic has told me to get shut whilst it still has some MOT as will need sills, floor, subframes, A posts, inner wing.
They are great little, fun cars but there does seem to be some rosey tinted spectacles going on, the MGF got slated the other week but it would be a lot better proposition for most, this isnt a pampered, tuned, leather trimmed minter, its someones whiffy old banger with about 40 bhp like Mini's used to be before they became some kind of Holy Grail. Dont get me wrong they are iconic, they were groundbreaking but they were also built to a price, rattly, rusty, bouncy, unreliable and slow.
Buyer beware, as has been mentioned by another poster who said it could cost as much again to put right, I would probably estimate on a ropey one it can be several thousand quid to put a rotten shell straight, nip over to the Retro Rides Forums and see the guy on there that is basically replacing about 50% of the metal, taking months.
You lot do tend to be a bit fickle when it comes to "Icons", we have a Fiat 500 (1967) and the reality of old "Icons" can sometimes be very different to owning one back in the day.
They are great little, fun cars but there does seem to be some rosey tinted spectacles going on, the MGF got slated the other week but it would be a lot better proposition for most, this isnt a pampered, tuned, leather trimmed minter, its someones whiffy old banger with about 40 bhp like Mini's used to be before they became some kind of Holy Grail. Dont get me wrong they are iconic, they were groundbreaking but they were also built to a price, rattly, rusty, bouncy, unreliable and slow.
Buyer beware, as has been mentioned by another poster who said it could cost as much again to put right, I would probably estimate on a ropey one it can be several thousand quid to put a rotten shell straight, nip over to the Retro Rides Forums and see the guy on there that is basically replacing about 50% of the metal, taking months.
You lot do tend to be a bit fickle when it comes to "Icons", we have a Fiat 500 (1967) and the reality of old "Icons" can sometimes be very different to owning one back in the day.
mustard tab said:
Pants shed.
Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa.
+1Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa.
I sometimes wonder if all the people who go misty eyed over old minis, have ever had the misfortune of owning one as their only car for any length of time.
I did, for a year, and there wasn't a single day that it didn't have something wrong with it, as one thing was fixed another would break, the final straw was total brake failure.
My advice would be to spend the £750 on a 7 Series BMW, it'll be cheaper to run.
FWDRacer said:
mustard tab said:
Pants shed.
Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa. The only good thing about them was if you had one as a first motor to get some insurance under your belt, as soon as you traded up to a real motor there was no going back IMO
Get.Cramped, slow, unreliable, rusts as bad as an old Alfa. The only good thing about them was if you had one as a first motor to get some insurance under your belt, as soon as you traded up to a real motor there was no going back IMO
Out.
my post is the voice of experience, as i have had two mini's and two old Alfa's (Sud and Guilietta).
As said above there have been much better sheds, much more durable and fun, and come to think of it as a shed, safe.
make sure you purchase some decent welding kit if you stump up for this one
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