6 replies to this topic

[rusky]

here is a mpi mini i am reshelling for a custormer at a reasonable price, all our shells are sanded down to bare metal any rust showing s then cut out and replace with genuin, custom made by hand or recycled pannels.
this shell that you will see below was sold as a fully restored shell but as any mini lover will know thats neva the case.


sorry for just jumping into the start but will try find the pictures that were taken before for one reason or another they are no longer on my pc. the shell has been sanded down to bare metal and as there was rust problems on the boot leaaving the metal thin it was all cut out




here is a cupple more photos of the shell down to bare metal.

the custormer specified for the back pillers, front pillers and valance to be deseamed we cracked on with that so the panels needed were orderd or prepared
this will also strengthen the shell while the back is cut out and keep everything in place











the proper way of deseaming
> first of all you will cut the seam of leaving a lip of 3-5mm this will alow the metal to melt down fulsh to the shell giving you a strong weld
> while this is still hot from thee weld it is then tapped with a hammer making it pit in the shell
> this is then sanded flush to the the highest point of the body leaving you a grove to fill over leaving a nice strong weld underneath

the back valance was already deseamed but done wrongly, it was welded and just sanded flush making a very weak joint. i was able just to pull it off with my hands


rust patch cut out with a replacement panel made out of 22 gauge

before any more rust could be cut out of the shell i was going to replace the subframe mount and boot for so the shell would not twist or go out of shape















this boot floor was carefuly removed from a 99 mini cooper shell all spot welds were carefuly drilled out and seperated from the rest of the body not damaging any of the pannels that we intended to reuse
on a mini there is a lip on the back wheel arch that is approx 2 inch this was then cut out and plated allowing the mini to sit much lower than normal. this is normaly done for the race boys as it makes the car handel much beta than normal


template for wheel arch this was cut out of 20 gauge metal rolled to meet the shape of the arch

[rusky]

to make this arch fit nicely to the shell the arch was then recut on the body. to get the arch to fit snug a template was then made

2 cm below the template was then marked this will give a lip that can then be bent up so there is a seem to weld to



this was done to front and back arches allowing the car to sit lower

[rusky]

after the wheel arch was cut, welded and ready to drop in place a back subframe mount had to be positioned correctly. this was then welded in place, this was a genuin rover mini panel ordered off the net


all boot floor & wheel arches were then spot and seam welded in place as they would have done to the original minis

once this was all done the shell had structure the rest of the rust could then be cut out as u can see in the above photo the sill is already cut out, below is what i found under an over sill









this was all cut out ready to make new sill, the panels i needed were very hard to get hold of without buying the whole floor along with it. the other alternative was the aftermarket inner sill as these are made out of thin metal and not a hole sill this was not a option.
so i got on the sheet folder and bent up some of my own out of 21 gauge giving the shell more strength aswell as geting rid of rust problems in the future










this was seemwelded along the grove in the floor this is to hide the weld as it will smooth of flush to the body work after










this was then rust treated and painted in a hamerite to prevent any more rust from happening in the future after the paint was dry it was then ready for the outer sill to be clamped in place and welded

[rusky]

have loads more pictures ready to upload will do some more later anyone feel free to post comment

[mighty mini jack]

Amazing work there guys, well done!

[dfraser]

Not cutting any corners there then - it's amazing just how much of the car was rusted before you started!!

[rusky]

Not cutting any corners there then - it's amazing just how much of the car was rusted before you started!!

alot more to come yet have got photos to show all rusted metal thaat has been cut out ended up changing

>boot floor
>back valance
>subframe mount
>back bins
>inner sills both sides
>outer sill both sides
>drivers wheel arch
>back wheel archs both sides
>driver door hinge panel
>battery box
probably more just cant think off the top of my head there is also a mgtf rear engine project i have just posted up feel free to have a look