Classic Mini as DD?

So, with a bit of inheritance money and potentially selling off the Miata for car ADD (I have another track car), I've considered what might potentially be a fun replacement DD. Looking for something that can be as fun to DD without being a major pain or expense. List varies with price, but I really like the idea of owning a Classic Mini. That's one of the cars on my automotive "bucket list".

So, what would it be like to live with daily and commute in? Not an only car, but a primary one.

I'm sure it will be small and loud, but BFD. I'm young, spry, and the Miata is both of those things.

My biggest concern is, how much of a maintenance queen would it be (it is British), and how hard is it to get parts for? I imagine tires and glass would be particularly tough.

I know a lot will depend on what year I get. But it seems like a bit of patience could get me a 90's Mini with paperwork saying it's older. Or I could find one that's recently been overhauled.

My dad daily drove a Mini Clubman GT in the '70s and '80s. I can ask him about them.

Describe your commute. The cars are fun to drive as long as you are not on long highway drives.

Brit car reliability is not as bad as some would have you think. As a matter of fact, in the old car sweepstakes, I think the Brits are going to be miles ahead of the Italian or any other Euro choice.

Having a back-up car makes this a no-brainer if the Mini is on your bucket list. PLUS you should be able to sell it on in five years for very close to what you paid if you take care of it.

Not sure how you can go wrong unless you get caught with the modified age thing. I never did understand how that worked.

They are fun cars, but I'm not sure if they are daily driver fun. Depends on the selected powerplant. Some of the small motors aren't really suited to the US commute. As an occasional driver, they are a hoot.

If you could get your hands on Metro turbo motor that would be awesome and I heard it is pretty much a drop in swap (if you can find one).

96DXCivic wrote: If you could get your hands on Metro turbo motor that would be awesome and I heard it is pretty much a drop in swap (if you can find one).

It's not quite - the engine is (if we're talking MG Metro here) as it's the same A-series but IIRC you need to introduce a hammer to the firewall in order to get the turbo plumbing and different carb in. It's still a pretty easy swap though.

That said, you can get the same or more power via several alternative routes like sticking a BMW K100 cylinder head on the A-Series, or buying a bigger hot A-series.

@Salanis, the main problem you will encounter is rust - they never really figured out how to rustproof them properly from the factory so unless you're looking at a very diligent restoration, you have to inspect it very carefully if you don't want to lose a subframe at 70mph. Front fenders etc are pretty much consumables, A-posts rot badly, too, as does the rest of the vehicle. Oh, and while they do seat for adults that aren't too tall or too overweight, the luggage space is a joke, so be prepared for that.

I've had two in the UK, spares are cheap (but you'll need them) and I'd try to get one with the 12" wheels so you can fit bigger brakes. For added coolness factor or practicality, find a van or a pick-up with a hotrodded engine.

I considered my commute, regional weather and general attitude before deciding to buy and use a fiat 850 as my daily. I don't regret the decision at all. Sure it can be a bit of a hassle while waiting for a part to be delivered that cannot be had from a local parts store, but the reward is greater.

Round these parts we might get snow one or two days a year, rain is the bigger issue. I tend to drive it about 120 miles a week.

Remember these were all daily drivers when they were new. Folks have just gotten spoiled by seat heaters and traction control and thus consider classics unsuitable.

If this guy can do this http://www.365daysofa.com/ then a relatively modern car like a mini should be fine.

I have seen a few running around with honda engines swapped into them. That sounds like a pretty sweet combo.

In reply to Capt Slow:

Why yes, that could be a pretty cool combo. I have a starter kit for sale in the classified section.

I have it in my mind that in exchange for a wedding ring, the GF buys me a mini. I plan to drive it every day.

If you do it, let me know.

Parts are pretty easy. Minimania has a good selection and a lot of knowledge. GBcarparts.com has excellent prices if you know what you want.

If your commute is city streets, they're a riot. You'll find you're always going just a little bit faster than traffic, as the little guys work better the more you thrash them.

Mine was a pretty good little car when I got it and had been professionally maintained, but it still took me some time to get all the kinks worked out of it. It's a good way to get introduced to your new charge.

I drove mine to work today. Get one with 10" wheels if it has the 7.5" disks up front - stay away from the front drum brakes. Very fun. Gets a lot of attention. Make sure you know what you are buying before you buy - most Mini's in the states are not what they seem. Parts are easy if you can wait for them to come in the mail. (7 Enterprises is my favorite supplier.) There are others in the US and of course you can order from the UK. I limit myself to 4,500 RPM while cruising on the interstate which keeps up with traffic, but I don't like to cruise above that. My engine is 1330 cc's and my head has had some work done to it. I can easily keep up with traffic, not going to win many drag races, but I don't remember the last time I held anybody up. Very fun. Reliability is not a problem once you get things sorted out - I have pretty much just gotten in and driven mine for the last 3 years or so. There have been little things here and there, but I spend way less time tinkering with the Mini than I do the BMW. The only reason I don't drive it everyday is more because of safety concerns. Can't be any more dangerous than a motorcycle and I drive it like I am on a bike, but the cars are small. The top of my roof is below the base of the windshield of the Dodge Ram I parked nose to nose with today. Lots of room inside for two. I can carry my autocross tires a jack, a cooler and a toolbox in mine, but not much room for anything else.

Vtec Minis are always for sale. There is one in town with a turbocharged K20 engine. Must be a bit scary when you step on it. I'd bet my car is putting out maybe 80 hp and it is a blast. Adding the BMW motorcycle 16v crossflow head would be my mod of choice if I wanted to spent some cash for a project.

In reply to sachilles:

I am glad you are on the other side of the country, I am in enough trouble with the wife for the RX-7, I don't know how I would explain that in the driveway...

A mini with a Honda engine would be pretty much perfect, but those seem to be above the price range I'm looking. I figure a sub $10k car, preferably in the $7-8k range. Seems like there are some reasonable examples at those prices.

My commute currently is about 15min in city/suburb streets and 15minutes on the freeway. Most of my non-commute driving is around a city.

I know they're small. I don't mind the small space. I rarely bring along anyone besides myself and the GF. I like the idea of something big enough to fit another 2 adults in the back, but small enough that people don't really want to ride along with me if they can avoid it.

If I can find a mostly rust-free example, it will do well around here. Not much rust concerns here in the Sacto valley. I'm not ready to jump right away... but this is making me feel a bit more confident. Otherwise I'd been thinking the next likely candidate would be to hunt down a good condition CRX Si, or maybe a BMW 2002.

One of my co-workers has daily-driven a Canadian-market Mini ('73, IIRC) for years; she drives about 15 minutes each way, city streets only. Car is very reliable, but, as noted above, the body is rusting somewhat (doors, mostly) and needs to be taken off the road for rehab. IIRC, the car's got some upgrades that basically make it a Cooper.

As for size: they are remarkably roomy inside, at least up front.

If you have any more specific questions, lemme know and I'll pass them along to her.

I drove an MG Midget as a daily for a loonnng time. If you have a backup, its a fun idea- Keith has it right. If you need some more giddyup, get a supercharger from these guys: http://hi-flow.com/ I think they make the mini-mania supercharger, but charge quite a lot less.

Watch the rust and have fun. It's still on my list.

BoxheadTim wrote:

96DXCivic wrote: If you could get your hands on Metro turbo motor that would be awesome and I heard it is pretty much a drop in swap (if you can find one).

It's not quite - the engine is (if we're talking MG Metro here) as it's the same A-series but IIRC you need to introduce a hammer to the firewall in order to get the turbo plumbing and different carb in. It's still a pretty easy swap though. That said, you can get the same or more power via several alternative routes like sticking a BMW K100 cylinder head on the A-Series, or buying a bigger hot A-series.

I meant MG Metro and I had never heard of the BMW cylinder head swap.

96DXCivic wrote:

BoxheadTim wrote:

96DXCivic wrote: If you could get your hands on Metro turbo motor that would be awesome and I heard it is pretty much a drop in swap (if you can find one).

It's not quite - the engine is (if we're talking MG Metro here) as it's the same A-series but IIRC you need to introduce a hammer to the firewall in order to get the turbo plumbing and different carb in. It's still a pretty easy swap though. That said, you can get the same or more power via several alternative routes like sticking a BMW K100 cylinder head on the A-Series, or buying a bigger hot A-series.

I meant MG Metro and I had never heard of the BMW cylinder head swap.

I assumed you were talking about the MG Metro, but then I remembered that there was also a Geo Metro...

The BMW swap is basically considered a cheap way to get a crossflow head on the engine and does appear to improve engine breathing quite considerably.

Anyone ever told you guys that you're horrible enablers?

There's a lot of silliness suggested here for one to be used as a DD. The more you modify, the more likely it will break. The ones with the most done to them are always the ones poofing head gaskets, overheating and generally being an unreliable menace. Buy a good stock one with the biggest engine you can afford and just enjoy life. You don't need ridiculous amounts of power in these to be happy. They weigh nothing. I drive a 848cc Mini which everyone dismisses as too slow and really haven't felt the need to rebuild the 1098 sitting on my shop floor. Sure, I'd rather buy a 1275 had I been blessed with the money when I shopped, but my 848 is perfectly adequate.

This thread comes up on Mini Mania's message board at least once a year. You may want to do a search over there for more educated opinions.

I would never recommend one unless you live in a place like you do. The rust on these is unstoppable; if you don't live in a dry climate, you'll chase rust the entire time you own it. They make my Fiats look galvanized. Build quality of the body is terrible. I'd go with roll up windows for a daily. Disc brakes, absolutely. I did the 8.4" swap on mine, very easy but requires 12" wheels. Mini Mania carries just about everything you'd want and they are fairly close to you for shipping but they are probably the most expensive vendor. GB Parts is more affordable but they don't carry as much. Be very careful of the year living in CA as they are much more restrictive and reVINs are risky.

The VTEC swap means the nose has to be elongated and I think they look silly. If you want a Honda engine, buy a Civic. That much power simply isn't necessary. Fun, perhaps, but definitely not needed even for daily use.

The vtec swap does not require an elongated nose, unless you go with a K-series motor. D and B series fit in there just fine, as well as a host of other motors that are less common in the US.

Like a Peugeot deisel:

http://www.madhouseminis.com/projects/greasecarmini/index.htm

You need to elongate the nose for a VTEC swap on a RHD model, as best as I can tell. The LHD cars are okay.

By the way, I have a set of the 8.4" brakes and some factory "Minilite" 12" wheels with tires if anyone wants to do that conversion.

On the note of a classic daily drive car...

Any car can be used as a daily driven beast. It's all a matter of what compromises you are willing to live with.

The good thing for you, salinas, is that you are choosing a car that you probably won't loose a lot if you find out that living with a Mini is just not for you.

Outside of the maintenece- ride comfort, heat/cooling, noise, fit, etc all need to be factored into the equation of buying a car for use like this. More than once, I've considered a classic truck to restore as a towing vehicle- but in all honesty- it won't tow any more than our Edge, it won't be as comfortable, and a bunch of other stuff.

And it would be nice if I could drive my Alfa every day, but I've noticed that when I drive that car for an extended time, I'll always get a decent CO headache. There are a number of reasons why I've talked myself out of projects that seem to be cool daily drivers or even rental car replacements. In the end, I honestly answered the questions whether I could live with the compromises, and haven't persued them. (it would be fun for a few days, probably, but after a while, the "character" becomes annoying)

I'm not at all saying don't do it- just be aware that things aren't done the way of classic cars for a reason.

For your personal fun, I do hope this works out.