375 replies to this topic

[James182]

i think your bonnet gap needs adjusting

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[Sir Cheat]

Any updates?

[mike.]

Kind of, is the answer.

Theres been no more progress on the car, but there has been progress made in organising getting the car sorted.

Basically its at the stage where its obvious my 'mate' doesn't have the time/motivation to do the job, so i'm having it done elsewhere. Steve at SD minis is taking the job on instead. I'm heading down there tomorrow to get the engine bay cleaned up and painted, and if i've got time, drop the car back onto its wheels. From there on i just need to get all the bits i've got that need fitting/welding, together and inside the car if possible and steve will be coming up on saturday the 20th to pick the car up and take it off to complete the work.

SD minis have gave me decent quotes to finish off the welding, spray the car, install my engine including the new exhaust and fuel system, and set the engine up with the megajolt on a rolling road, and trailer the car back to me when its done to finish the last bits before getting it MOT'd. So really SD minis are doing the full package.

To be honest the engine and things were bits i wanted to do myself, but with my mate being so hard to get hold of and limited time to work on the car due to working at weekends and uni during the week, i'd really need to wait until summer until i could complete the car and i just can't wait any longer. Not to mention the fact that i don't have a garage (well not one i can get a car to)

This is obviously costing me alot more than i originally bargained for (about 4 times more infact ) So i'm really having to scrape the barell to afford it, but at least its getting done properly and by somebody who is familiar with minis.

I'll probably have some pictures to upload of the engine bay tomorrow night, but from there on its all down to steve!

Edited by mike., 12 February 2010 - 02:23 AM.

[mike.]

Well turned out i had 2 assignments for uni to do in the week i was supposed to be getting my car ready for Steve to collect. So that didn't happen and we've rearranged for the car to be collected tomorrow instead.

I've spent hours getting the engine bay ready for the engine over the last couple of days. Using wire brush attachments on a drill to get off the layer of whatever was on there before. I think the whole engine bay had been painted in stone chip judging by the texture of it. So i ended up taking most of it back to bare metal to get a smooth surface to paint on, I did the same with the subframe too as that was just generally looking grotty aswell. The prep took soooo long after the wirebrushing, when i wirebrushed the subframe it flick gritty oiley grime all over the engine bay, then there was so much dust around it was unreal and all just stuck in the oiley mess! It was a nightmare, but luckily being in the bosyshop meant i could hook up and airline and blast all the crud and dust away. I then spent a while with panel wipe and cloths to get rid of all the grease and things before masking everything up for paint. I just left the old clutch slave cylinder dangling about becuase i didn't want to disconnect it and get fluid everywhere, and i've got a whole new setup anyway so didn't matter about covering it in paint.

Anyway heres the pictures:

First coat was etch primer to give a decent base:



Was going to build up a few coats of filler primer but it seemed to take forever to dry so ended up just doing one good coat:



Then on with the gloss black. I just brush painted the subframe with smooth hammerite and it came out really well:





Then picked all the masking tape off and put everthing back in place. Pretty pleased with the results really. Close up the finish isn't amazing because i think just generally theres alot of dust in the air inthe bodyshop and some ended up on the paint and got the odd run too but nothing too bad at all.



Tried to put the engine in too but ran out of time, the bottom of the gearbox fouled the axel stand too so need to move that before the engine will sit right in place. But had to get a picture of the absolute beast engine crane i'm using, a 2 tonne truck engine crane, its pretty much the size of the car and wouldn't fit under the car or between the wheels so you can only use it with the car on stands




So going down there again in the morning to get the engine sat in place, i'll probably strap it down with ratchet straps for now whilst steve transports it. No point attaching all the steadies because they'd have to be taken off again for steve to fit the poly bushes anyway. Once the engines in i'll grab a photo before its taken away to be finished...

[mike.]

Well i've packed up all my bits to take to steve tomorrow for him to finish the job. Didn't realize i had so much stuff! I've got about 4 big boxes of stuff plus a few big carrier bags too, its filling the hallway haha. At least i've got a big pile of stuff to show for the hundreds i've spent on all these bits

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Sounds good mate

[carboy001]

Looking good Mike, progress looks like it will be a hell of alot faster now

Just been down to the place where im having mine done, nothing better than a freshly painted mini

Will will have to meet up when both of ours are done

Chris.

[mike.]

Well once again my mate has proved how unreliable he is. I told him steve would be coming to pick up the car at 12 but said i'd be there at 10 to finish dropping the engine in, get the car on its wheels and get all the bits together. So i get there at 10 and theres no sign of him and the place is all locked up. So i start the usual of texting, ringing and leaving him messages, being ignored as usual. Then get a text about half 10 saying he thought i needed to get in at 12 not 10 and that he'd get the keys and get there as quick as he could. When he said that i imagined hed be there sometime before 11, so sat outside in the car waiting...

Steve turns up at 12 just like he said he would, but said his mate with the trailer wouldn't come until it was certain we could get in the unit to get the car out. So steve went off for lunch to kill some time, and by half 1, it was obvious my mate wasn't turning up. After over 3 hours of waiting me and my dad were well and truly *drunk* off But even angry messages and texts didn't get a reply from him. So we called the whole thing off and we all made our way home. Then my mate rings me at about 3 saying sorry he didn't reply but he'd managed to get a key! This is hours after the trailer and things had all been taken away and everybody had gone home!

Not really sure whats going to happen now but its obvious we'll have to get the car during the week when the place is open, so i'm supposed to be going down there in the morning to get the car ready so then steve can just come whenever it suits him to collect the car...

[GreaseMonkey]

Not nice to be messed around like that, maybe you should leave a nice big oil slick for him as you push the car out of his workshop

[carboy001]

Sorry to hear that Mike, not a nicce thing to be messed around like that especially when other people are waiting on you.

Hope you get out of there smartish.

Chris.

[mike.]

He's done it again this morning! He was suppose to pick me up at 8 so i could get a couple of hours work done before i go to work and hes not shown up again...

[mike.]

Went down there today and got the engine sat in place, looks pretty good!

Also got all my bits together that are down there and piled them all inside the car, so steve can just put the car on a trailer and go, which will be sometime next week i hope...

[prototypet24]

Just read your project thread. Very helpful. You seemed like a seasoned professional when it came to putting the engine back together, hope it runs first time for you! Have you reconstructed/refurbed an engine before? Don't think its fair to call your procrastinating mate a friend, other people don't seem to appreciate what it means to get a Mini perfect.

Best of luck from here on in, looking forward to seeing you refit that Mk1 grill and put those finishing touches on.

[MiniAlex]

Wow! Great project. I noticed that you now have a set of new dials in the car, I have a 95 sprite and just have 2 dials. No rev counter, I bought an old rev counter off someone on here butt I don't know how to install it? What did you do when you added one..?
Thanks
Alex

[Scallywag630]

Looking good and I hope the hassle is over now.