Austin Mini?

[Paul K]

All:

I'm looking for thoughts/advice on an Austin Mini. Not the current BMW one, but the original one. My wife has an '04 Mini Cooper S, which she loves, but the other day she asked me about the original ones, and said she'd like one, due to the facts that 1) it would free up $10k, 2) she only uses her current car to commute to work (3 miles) plus (3) the old ones are really cool. So I did some research, including a search here, and have the following questions;

1. Is there a particular year/model to avoid?

2. Is there a year/model that is particularly desirable?

3. How old do they have to be to register in the US?

4. I have seen several that state 'Cannot be registered in the state of California'. Is that due to emissions, and could the car therefore be registered here in Oregon (we have no emissions regs)?

5. I see a lot of right hand drive cars. My thought is 'LHD only'. Anyone tried to drive a right hooker over here?

6. I have found one locally ( http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/car/764377783.html ) But it sounds overpriced by about $4k to me. Thoughts?

7. Dumb question. Can A/C be retrofitted, and if so how much $$?

8. Can Canadian cars be imported and registered without too much hassle?

-I had hoped she'd go for either a Z3 M Coupe or maybe a Volvo C30, but I think a mini would be cool.

Current:



Proposed:



Any thoughts/advice much appreciated!

Cheers,

Paul.

[Gogar]

I can't answer any of your specifics, Paul, but any lady that would volunteer something like that is definitely a keeper! Congratulations.

[TimT]

There is a company out there that midernizes the old mini, i.e. installing vtec power trains

Superfast Minis

I own to many cars already, though I might think about a mini when I sell my 914/6

[Fritz Peyerl]

have fun reading and making up your mind


http://www.minimania.com/msgthreads.cfm

[mossguy]

Paul - DO IT!

I owned a 73 Mini in Germany in the mid-late seventies and it was one of the most fun cars I've ever owned! In the winter we would park the Porsche and use the Mini as a ski car. This worked really well with the front wheel drive unless the snow was so deep and packed that we could get high-centered. I used it as a commuter as well and 90 degree and hairpin turns were a blast!

4k is a good price IMHO.

Tom

[targa911S]

I own a 1965 morris miniS. They all are really the same car with the exception of grill work. They are a BLAST to drive. No creature comforts at all but a blast to drive. Try and find one with roll up windows. Good luck finding 10" tires!

[Paul K]

All:

Thanks for all the responses. Parts/tires shouldn't be a problem, as both my Dad and Brother are in the motor industry back in the UK. We're probably going to take a look at the Craigslist car in Portland when we head over for the August 17th PCA Arrive & Drive. Will keep you posted. Anyone ever dealt with the Canada thing? Some nice cars here;http://www.vancouverminiclub.ca/forsale/ads1.html

Thanks again,

Paul.

P.S. Wife (as seen in avatar) definitely a keeper!

[targa911S]

Are you getting a left or right hand driver? In Italy minis are Innocenti's. You will love this little car. We used to have to park on the street when we lived in the city. At night people would pick my mini up and move it. Found it many times on the sidewalk or turned sideways in the parking spot. Pretty funny stuff. If your wife is .....ahem ..well endowed, she may want to wear "extra" support when you drive. They ride like trucks with the hydrolastic suspension, very bouncy ride. My wife was actually in pain from bouncing on a long trip once.

[targa911S]

Nice mini lite wheels!

[Paul K]

I would prefer a LHD car. I'm going to call one of the dealers in Canadia next week to see what the deal is with importing one. Funny thing is, when I was a kid growing up in England, poor people drove Minis- now they're a cool car!

Cheers,

Paul.

[jtkkz]

I use to have one, get the newer MPI minis.

The ride is a bit harsh , but in town is great, easy to park, great gas mileage.

http://new.minimania.com/Discussion_Forum.cfm good forum on minis, just what Pelican is to Porsches

[Paul K]

Jtkkz:

Is MPI Multi-Port Injection? What years was it offered?

Thanks,

Paul.

[t6dpilot]

I am not sure whether I can answer all of your questions, but I will tell you a little of what I know. The Mini Mania site is a great place to gain knowledge and locate cars for sale worldwide. There is also a wealth of knowledge on that site as well. Just like the early 911s, the mini cars also suffer from lots of rust. they are really easy to rebody though, so you will want to delve into the car's history to see if that has happened. Also, the cars have to be 25 years old or older to import into the states. To get around that, some importers have been known to switch VIN tags on the newer cars and later Rover Minis to title them as older cars. I think that once they are here and have a good title, then that ceases to be an issue when retitling. I personally would like to have an early 90's mini and that would be the only way.

You have a couple of different body styles too. The Mark I is the early body and has external door hinges, sliding side windows, small tail lights, and a different grill (looks kind of like a mustache) among other small things. The Mark II started somewhere in the mid 60's I think and has internal door hinges, roll up windows, larger rectangular tail lights, and slightly different grill. Depends on what you like.

The Cooper 1275S is kind of the holy grail and worth a whole bunch of money. The base models came with various motors starting at 885cc I think. A common motor is the 1000cc model, but is still pretty under powered. Pretty easy to change motors even to later rover 1300 efi ones. Most cars have been modded in some form or fashion, so you have to decide what you want - originality or someone else's taste. Some are done very nicely though. Wheels are something you should look at also. 10" are standard and have the classic mini look. A lot of guys upgrade to 12" and even 13" which is part of the "hotrod" package on the 90's Mini version. I sort of vasilated between the classic 10" versus the 12" - still not sure which I would go with. Some cars also had the small black flares (for the life of me I can't remember the name - Weldwood or something like that) and those look great IMO. The hotrodded later version with wild flares and 13" wheels are not my cup of tea, but others really like them. Can't remember that package name either, darn it.

There is a lot more to learn and what I listed is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of differences (and I am going from memory here). I was hot on the trail of a Mini some years ago, but decided to go in a different direction. If LHD is your gig, then the Innocenti Mini would be the hot ticket. It even had better gauging and creature comforts that only the Italians could do in a very basic English car. Pretty cool looking IMO.

Good luck and check out Mini Mania for lots of info.

[jtkkz]

Originally Posted by Paul K

Jtkkz:

Is MPI Multi-Port Injection? What years was it offered?

Thanks,

Paul.

Hi Paul
Yes it is the multi-point injection model... I belive they were made between 1998-2000
BMW took over in '01

[Rick Lee]

I have a friend in Germany who's had a few of the late model Rover Minis. I think her last one was a 1998. Is that possible? Wouldn't such a late model be galvanized? It seemed to me to be a great car and wasn't old fashioned at all. I drove it a lot. Sure was easy to park on some of those tiny streets in Muenster.

[jtkkz]

here was mine before I sold it... Rover MPI mini

[tcar]

The Innocenti Mini just doesn't have the appeal... to me... different body

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innocenti_Mini

Saw one in Italy a few years ago, didn't know it at the time that it was a mini. Guy driving it spoke no English, only German.

[Jims5543]

I have a good friend that imported them, restored them and sold them.

He had 2 of his own a pickup and a clubman. I'll send you his e-mail address and you can ask him any questions you want, he knows these cars inside and out.


BTW - Thank you for the bumper cover and I am in the process of dreaming up a repayment to you.

[targa911S]

They have a woody wagon as well. Called a Clubman. Very cool!

[Britwrench]

Quote:
"The Innocenti Mini just doesn't have the appeal... to me... different body"

That's not really an Innocenti Mini, the ones everyone relates to is the same as the British one, just different trim ( I think it's better), door window, grille and wheels.

I started my career at a BMC dealer working on the old Minis and other products, still got the scarred fingers to prove it.