1146 replies to this topic

[087dave]

Thanks very much!! good luck

[mini_in_progress]

just read this thread from start to finish and your doing a top job mate, i just bought a mini and it needs many of the same repairs your doing so its great inspiration to see you doing them yourself.

keep up the good work, Dave

[hughJ]

Hello Dave and thank you for your kind words.

Tonight I feel overwhelmed and could not possibly inspire anyone! I have only managed to find an hour and a half to work on the Mini today. So I've been clearing the area for the quarter panel to fit in - removing the roller welds. Also took the wire brush to around the area and its quite depressing. For such cute little cars how can they hide such awful rust?

So finished drilling out the spot welds at the door pillar



Oh horrors - the closing panel at the bottom of the wheel arch is well gone



Bit of rust at the bottom of the companion bin but a screwdriver doesn't go through it



And perforated at the top of the wheel arch



Gulp! I never thought my boot was as bad as this



So to cheer myself up I trial fitted the quarter panel





I'm more than happy with the fit. It's not perfect but nearly there. Its a pattern panel by Magnum from an Ebay seller - MINI-METRO WARRINGTON. I have used them for a few panels. They are very helpful. The quarter panel was just £28.95 which is pretty good.

Sorry if there's too many photos of little progress. Its to fool myself to think that I am doing something.

Depressing on

Hugh

[grahama]

Hugh,

never too many pics, I have learnt something from then today, about the closing panels. I am glad I don't have to take my quarter panel off but you do have so much better access ! Don't know if you have tought about it but I would dothe boot repair first having just made my panel and access was not great so you could do it and trim to the quarter panel, just a thought. by the way, if the petrol tank mount is shot I have a template showing correct position I can send you over, in relation to the sub mounts.

Very disheartening finding lots of rust behind rust, but we do keep plodding on so we must like it !! Don't know how important they are but there are strengthening panels under the subframe mounts, maybe someone can elaborate as your's look shot, and the wheel arch replacements are a git to fit too, are you doing a full arch or patching?

Home from hols now so onward into the brown stuff, rust that is !!

Graham

Edited by grahama, 14 May 2011 - 10:00 PM.

[Carlos W]

Hugh, all the panels you're replacing I need to replace too! I intended to do the boot floor repairs with the 1/4 panel off! Interesting you're opinion on the quality of the 1/4 panels, I was going to splash out on heritage due to the fact they're on view, but I may buy 1 and trial fit it, if it's nowhere near i'll sell it on again!

Keep going with the pics! I keep forgetting to take the camera to the garage!

[minimuk]

Hugh, I would agree with Graham, with the 1/4 panel off much better access to bootpanel. You need to cut out the closing panel anyhow etc. looking good though!!

[hughJ]

Really very little to report

Graham and minimuk I agree - I have to sort out the boot area just now. While working at the front I was happily thinking that the back wasn't too bad!! Oh how deluded! Graham I already overlooked your advice before - to my cost - I won't do that again. Carlos thanks again - the fit isn't millimetre perfect but then the Heritage screen surround I fitted wasn't either - it was worse. Clamps easily pull the panel to fit the space.

I have really been avoiding the Mini - finding jobs like cutting grass, taking down another tree, seeding more grass, etc, etc, in fact any job!!

I went out for a wee while tonight and soaked the subframe bolts with penetrating fluid and then got them all turning. I finally removed the exhaust and the gear lever linkage. I removed the boot hinges from the hinge panel, removed the seal and removed the tail lights. A nice change from body work. Then I gouged around with chisel, screwdriver and wire brush to assess the damage.

So left rear needs some repairs. rich2 in his 1979 Rust Heap Clubman Rebuild has done a fantastic repair here and I think I will try and copy his method. I only need to do this corner



And a wee bit towards the middle



The right rear is not quite so bad



And the horrors inside. Someone has put patches in at one time and covered them with a lick of underseal. I'm not criticising - I would probably do the same if I was just keeping it going as a runabout



A patch in the middle below the hinge panel



And the right side





Some rust has broken through the seam and where the plastic wheel arch was pop riveted in.

So my plan is to get the subframes off and onto its side. Remove the rear valance and closing panels. Cut out all the rot and previous patches to the floor and replace with fresh steel. I have to find out about the subframe strengthening panels - thanks for pointing that out Graham. Patch the wheel arches. Repair the closing panel at the other side of the wheel arch. Then get the quarter panel in. With my enthusiasm at the moment that could be 2020!!

I also lost a friend, John, whose wife found him passed away at three in the morning - an aneurysm. Only 53. A really nice bloke with a lot of mechanical knowledge. He was in the garage with me just a week ago having a look at how I was getting on with the Mini. I will miss you John.

Hugh

[grahama]

Hi,

So sorry to hear of your loss pal, someone going unexpectedly is a shock I have not have to face yet so sympathies are with you all.

As for enthusiasm, waining, mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, that sounds like me at the mo too. The updates show cleaned and painted bits and the last couple of days some welding, but I have done it thinking I could be walking the dogs, or nagging the lad who has quit college and is unmotivated despite being quite bright, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh !!!

Anyway, onwards and upwards for us all, keep plodding on, every little helps as they say. As for the strengtheneing plates, have been thinking. I personally, think if they are not too badly rusted don't unweld them, just treat and add to them with maybe another covering plate, properly protected of course, and see how you go. There are three layers on my mini, each at least 1mm thick so a big job to replace all of them. I think they are there due to the sub mounting point, but maybe a replacement thicker single piece would do if all yours are gone.

Maybe give sonik a PM for more info.

Graham

ps those patches look fine, leave alone and move onto some proper rust !!

Edited by grahama, 19 May 2011 - 08:34 PM.

[benjy_18]

sorry to hear about your friend hugh. friend of mine was killed in a car accident 18 months ago, the only reason for my roll cage to be honest.

i think a few of us on here are in the same boat regarding motivation, im getting to the stage where im trying to buy shiny bits to keep me going!

with those plates over the subby mounts, it might be worth cleaning up the underside of the boot floor to see how badly effected that is then decide wether or not to remove them. mine were rotten away so i had no choice but hopefully yours will be okay

good luck

Ben

[hughJ]

Graham & Ben thank you for your words of sympathy and your words of advice. What a nice group of people are on this forum.

Tonight I removed the rear subframe - a job I had not been looking forward to but a relief to be doing mechanical work instead of body work. The positive battery lead has to be removed the whole way to get the subframe out unless you cut off the battery terminal. Only one brake pipe has to be disconnected. I only broke one of the eight subframe bolts - one of the rear ones - so that's great - just makes it quicker to get off and no real damage. One of the forward ones at the heel-board would be a different matter!









My heel-boards where the subframe mounts are have only a bit of surface rust - the first good news in a while! There are areas of surface rust round the boot area but the main damage is at the rear.

A wee bit further on

Hugh

[sonikk4]

Hi Hugh sorry to hear about your friend, it just goes to show you how fragile we truly are.

With regards to those patches in the boot by the subbie reinforcing mounts i would strip those out to see what's going on. I would hazard a guess that rust has formed in between the valance close out panel and the boot floor. Not the end of the world but if corrosion has taken there then i would look at taking the close out panel off as you would be wasting your time trying to repair it.

[grahama]

Hi Hugh,

A bit of luck with your rust heap, weh hey, had the same with my passenger heelboard mounts, we must be linked somehow !! Gives you a bit of a lift when you find a bonus though. I would agree with Neil and remove the whole back boot section and replace, I made my replacement but think it would have been easier to buy it !!! I cut round the strengthening plates as they were ok but am considering taking one layer off and re doing it as I have trimmed it !

Keep going all be worth it.

Graham

[minimuk]

Hugh, sorry to hear about your friend, but John is watching over your shoulder.

Looking at that old patchwork, it is prone to host a rust virus, golden rule... if in doubt ..cut it out...! Appart from that it will be easyer to replace it and build up with new panel then waisting time and fettle with it. Do one side at the time if you like to keep all aligned.

Michel

Edited by minimuk, 21 May 2011 - 02:53 PM.

[hughJ]

Neil, Graham and Michel thanks for the advice and the expressions of sympathy. Means a lot. Yes I am definitely taking your advice and getting to the root of the problems at the back. I will replace the valance and closing plates. That will give me a chance to look at the reinforcing plates.

It rained most of today so I was forced to work in the garage! I started by giving a scrub and hosing down the rear subframe. It has some rot on the top rails. I think I'll just patch them.

Then I removed the front subframe.





And then attended to some outstanding aggravating little jobs

When I patched the passenger side shock-mount I cut further than I should! So I repaired that







I cleaned up the patches I put of the passenger side inner wing and primed them - I had never done this and a bit of rust was forming on them





And turned my attention to the driver side. I have never been happy with the first patch I put in here. I could see daylight through some of the welds - ground too thin. So I cut it out and put in a new patch.







Then I ground down the welds of some patches I put in a couple of weeks ago. I am not grinding flat as this thins the weld too much. I'd rather use a little filler later on to bring it level. Then primed.

Passenger side shock-mount



Lower front of passenger door step



Drivers middle lower door step



To be continued ....

[hughJ]

... continued

Then I went down the road about 1/4 mile to where some nasty person had fly-tipped some tyres. They were sawn through! Why? But I took them back to roll the Mini over.



And can now get a better view







Then I cleaned up the welds when the floors were patched - I had never been able to get to them

The drivers side had very poor plug welds at the front seam - so I ran in a continuous weld. The butt welds seemed to have penetrated well.





The passenger side was better. I had put a jack under the seam and used a hammer to get the new floor as close as I could before plug welding. I am just going to seam seal.





Not very exciting but a bit more done. At the moment it seems overwhelming all that has to be done. But if I do a bit every so often I should get there.

Hugh