21 replies to this topic

[Chris99]

Sounds like a decision made, excellent. Fingers crossed you enjoy it. Might want to avoid the Hardknott/Wrynose passes in the lakes if you haven't cured the overheating.

[AVV IT]

I have a good mechanic in Harrogate and I suggested the stage one kit to him. He quickly talked me out of it. He said there wasn't much point for a road car.

Erm.....he said what??

He may well be a good mechanic in general, but I would seriously question his knowledge of classic mini's and the A-series, if he seriously thinks that there's little point fitting a stage 1 kit to a road car! A well developed & properly set up stage 1 kit should deliver increases in both performance and efficiency, so I'd be interested to know why he feels that isn't important on a road car. Particularly when all the A-series experts and pretty much the entire mini enthusiast community seem to take the opposing view!

[Cerberus]

17 years of mini ownership as an only car & I've been all over the place in them including long stretches in Germany driving at 90-95. Anything much less than 40mpg from a standard mini indicates a problem, my MPI will hit nearly 50mpg on A roads & I had a 1000 that did nearly 60mpg. It really does sound like it needs a thorough going over, they do need more TLC than a modern car. If you don't fancy doing it yourself then hunt out a local specialist.

As far as safety goes they're not as good as a modern car but that's a risk you've already decided to take by driving a mini at all. On the plus side visibility is better than almost anything which should help you see trouble coming. Good practice to drive defensively and give yourself a bit more space in front than you might in a more modern car.

 

I don't believe claims of 60MPg from a mini, I just can't believe a carb'd car could do that.  I can just about believe an MPI doing 50, but only if it's being driven like a granny.

 

I have trouble driving mine economically, , best MPG I've had so far is 41 on the motorway run to wales by sitting at 55-60mph and sitting behind lorries and buses occasionally (not very closely though so probably didn't do anything). 

 

Most of the time I get 30-35mpg.  1275 with a stage 1 kit, maniflow single box exhaust, k&n filter in box.  The engine may be getting a bit worn, has a little smoke sometimes when blipping the throttle which I think is just the stem seals, but it pulls well and doesn't feel down on power.  Thinking of having it rolling-roaded soon as it's been 4 years since it was last done (and I don't think they did it very well then anyway).

[Tamworthbay]

17 years of mini ownership as an only car & I've been all over the place in them including long stretches in Germany driving at 90-95. Anything much less than 40mpg from a standard mini indicates a problem, my MPI will hit nearly 50mpg on A roads & I had a 1000 that did nearly 60mpg. It really does sound like it needs a thorough going over, they do need more TLC than a modern car. If you don't fancy doing it yourself then hunt out a local specialist.
As far as safety goes they're not as good as a modern car but that's a risk you've already decided to take by driving a mini at all. On the plus side visibility is better than almost anything which should help you see trouble coming. Good practice to drive defensively and give yourself a bit more space in front than you might in a more modern car.

 
I don't believe claims of 60MPg from a mini, I just can't believe a carb'd car could do that.  I can just about believe an MPI doing 50, but only if it's being driven like a granny.
 
I have trouble driving mine economically, , best MPG I've had so far is 41 on the motorway run to wales by sitting at 55-60mph and sitting behind lorries and buses occasionally (not very closely though so probably didn't do anything). 
 
Most of the time I get 30-35mpg.  1275 with a stage 1 kit, maniflow single box exhaust, k&n filter in box.  The engine may be getting a bit worn, has a little smoke sometimes when blipping the throttle which I think is just the stem seals, but it pulls well and doesn't feel down on power.  Thinking of having it rolling-roaded soon as it's been 4 years since it was last done (and I don't think they did it very well then anyway).

I got around 60mpg when I picked up my mini. I drove it from Southampton to Tamworth. It had only done 100 miles in the previous two years. I brimmed the tank in Southampton then stopped on the A34, I thought there was a problem with the pump and ended up spilling petrol down the back because I was convinced it could not be full. That worked out at 58mpg including the petrol that poured down the back. I was being very careful and cruising around 55mph. It was a bog standard 998 city E with only 13000 on the clock and it was a cool day which helps. The worst I have got is around 38mpg and that is thrashing it. I have just fitted a stage one kit so that will drop it a bit.

[Cerberus]

I'm going to start being more careful with how I fill up now then.  Use and app on my phone to keep track of mpg, but I sometimes pull the fuel nozzle out a bit more to get more in, otherwise it's never full.  Think I'll just put the nozzles in all the way all the time now, try and keep it constant.

 

I only ever seem to be able to get £20-£25 (20lites) in though, from the red line on the gauge.

[profmatt]

My problem is that I'm a Mini fan who knows nothing about cars at all and so I have to rely on what people tell me. This is proving difficult as different people tell me different things. I was told the car was rotten by a long-established garage when I first bought it. And I've been told it's really great by many others. My own view is that it seems to work pretty well.

 

The mechanic I found seems to know quite a lot. Certainly the car runs much better after he tinkered with it than it did when I first bought it. I asked him about a stage one kit and he seemed to think that they're really only appropriate for off-roaders. I believed him because he was basically turning down work. But maybe it's work he wouldn't want to do. He seemed to know what a stage one kit is, which is more than I do!

[ToM 2012]

i have just done a round trip from birmingham to the south of france to italy then up the switz alps and back home in a standard 998cc engine with no modifications and only had little folts you will be fine just take some spare tools some water and oil and some spares just incase and go for it. also break down cover would be ideal i paid for mine for the two weks and bever used it but you never no. dont get frapping the engine just let the engine tootle along with just touching the throttle slightly just to plod along i was doing 50 to 60 mph in the slow lane even the lorries was overtaking me lol.