Long story short, the wife and I traded in her '04 Mini Cooper S on a Subaru STI. She likes the STI but misses her Mini. So I have been toying with the idea of a classic mini, for a fun, maybe daily driver for her. Any ideas? Anyone have a driver for sale, we don't want a show queen?
I have a '74 RHD 998 for sale. Picture Italian Job (red, white, 4 lights across the grille). I rebuilt the starter, after I put it in it's for sale. Where are you located?
Jefferson City, MO seems like just about as far away as possible from all the for sale classic mini's I've seen. Shoot me an email about what you have just add @gmail.com to my screen name.
Does she want the classic, or you?
It's a completely different driving experience. No comparison.
Note, "daily driver," "her" and "classic Mini" are rarely used in the same sentence for a long period of time, unless you are very mechanical with a lot of patience and spare parts.
If you need any advise or have any questions feel free to contact me. I run North America's largest (over 700 members) classic Mini club, Classic Minis United, www.classicminis.org, mike@classicminis.org
fastclown wrote: Note, "daily driver," "her" and "classic Mini" are rarely used in the same sentence for a long period of time, unless you are very mechanical with a lot of patience and spare parts. If you need any advise or have any questions feel free to contact me. I run North America's largest (over 700 members) classic Mini club, Classic Minis United, www.classicminis.org, mike@classicminis.org
Fast, I have to say comments like that made me timid about buying a mini. I've had mine for nearly 10 years and I've only had to do tires, wiper blades, headlights and the normal maintenance. The only "issue" I had was that I thought it was overheating. I put an overflow bottle on it, changed the t-stat and put the fan on correctly (previous owner had it on backwards). Then I realized it's the sending unit. DOHH!
chockrl wrote: Jefferson City, MO seems like just about as far away as possible from all the for sale classic mini's I've seen. Shoot me an email about what you have just add @gmail.com to my screen name.
When I got mine I was lucky. There were three cars in the country that fit my criteria, one was in Dallas, the other was in south Florida and the other was about 15 miles from me here in MI. Guess which two I didn't even look at.
I'm going out to the garage in a while. I'll write down the mileage and shoot you an e-mail. Also, look on minimaia.com. That's where I found mind.
Drboost. Where is your mini listed?
She misses the mini for a lot of reasons. Fun to drive, we both autocross, and she loved the handling. The small, fun styling of both the Cooper S and a classic, there was a classic mini in the town we used to live in and she got so happy just seeing it. It may not become her daily driver, but she will probably drive it in all but inclement weather.
Thanks for the links.
"I have to say comments like that made me timid about buying a mini." But it's what needs to be said so people know what they are getting in to. When the BMWMINI came out some owners bought a classic to match their BMW and found out that it needs much more attention than a new car. Just as with your Mini, you had to fiddle with it to figure it out (not many wives can pull that one off). The more you drive them the more you get to work on them, unless you are really lucky and the classic Mini Gods look over you.
As far as I'm concerned, they are the best all around car in the world, and I would never sell them short. But a good education on them is needed before buying one.
It's kind of like buying a cute puppy... minus the rust, but they both will stain the carpet. 
SVreX wrote: Does she want the classic, or you? It's a completely different driving experience. No comparison.
Word. I've owned two square nose Minis (an 1100 and a 1275GT that was famously described by a Mini specialist as "your battery needs a new car"). Compared to a BINI they're (IMHO) more fun to drive, but they're also showing their age a lot. Still, if another one fell into my lap I probably wouldn't say no.
As much as I love classic MINIs - I'd trade my GT6 for one in similar condition in a heartbeat - reading your posts makes me think you would be better off picking up another MINI vs a classic. Especially if one of the uses will be autox.
Mine has been VERY reliable, never let me down and I put thousands of miles on it per year, up to the last few. You can't get three kids in the back seat haha.
Pete, it's not listed yet. As it sits, I need to install the starter, put the grill, bumper, and lights back on (all required to get the starter off).
Mine is RHD, to me that's the only way to go. Shifting with my left hand came to me and my wife very quickly, like 2 miles! And Ian, if you auto-X one, you'll be hooked. What a blast! If you do hit a cone, just reach out the window and right it with your free hand. No penalties!!
DrBoost you have me very interested in your mini, even if some assembly it required.
The mileage is 101,304 or about 63,000 miles. It's a driver, not a show car but has served me well. If you are interested, shoot me a PM.
I will start off by saying that I love my Cooper s more than any other car I have ever owned. That might be due to the amount of time I spent restoring it. First off try to stay as basic as you can when looking for one to daily, try to get a late model car with an hif carb and electronic ignition and you will have a car that starts every time you walk in the garage. Also plan on losing some weight in your hands as the engine compartment is quite cramped, I recently replaced my timing chain cover gasket and after removing the radiator I was still pretty much driving blind. I am partial to the mkI us models a that is what I drive but they are significantly rarer than the late model gray marketish cars. Right hand drive isn't that bad and is a funny gimmick when you are in traffic. As has been said before find the least rusty example you can or definitely invest in a spot welder I can't really comment on mini vs Bini as I have never driven the modern offering, anyway good luck in your search.
Thanks for the advise, now I just need to find one within a weekend trip.
After I bought mine several years ago I wrote this article: uying a Classic Mini in the US It should give you a basic education on them and some things to consider. My Mini is, without a doubt, the most fun car I've owned that is not a race car. However, I'm also spoiled in that mine has under 30k miles, so hasn't given me much grief yet. 
One thing you need to know, they have abysmal build quality. I mean, really 3rd world-like. And they will rust if left outside overnight with a light morning dew.
I've thought about selling mine, because it really will need a repaint soon since there are some spots where the "restoration" done in the UK is starting to delaminate 
but then I drive it again and figure I'll keep it another year. Considering what my meager 850 is worth these days I can't sell it for what I'd like and replace it with anything very interesting. But if someone has 7 large they want to spend...
I'd like another classic Mini but given the different paint systems that are used in Europe vs the US I'm not sure that I can stomach the cost of a repaint...
I'll second the build quality, it got better in the 90's IMHO but you have to remember these things were made to be super cheap transportation. Mine is a mix and match through the generations. The shell is '63 Cooper S the motor is an a+ 1275 from an MG Metro that I spent way to much money building to be as slow in a steraight line as these cares are. Another thing to look at is tire size. Nobody sell a 12 inch tire in the us anymore so you have to buy them from specialty suppliers for a nice markup. 10's are the best looking option IMO but I retro fitted the later model 8.4 in brakes and tandem master cylinder and can no longer fit 10's. 13's are more available but don't have the classic look.
Off topic: I've really been getting the itch to rallycross mine has anyone else?
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