It's gone, let the mourning begin

Huh, lots of Mini's changing hands recently.

Wish mine had gone to a better owner. Judging by the conversation I had with the buyer who couldn't drive a stick shift, I predict the first time it breaks it will be stuffed in the back of his garage alongside the VW Thing restoration he's never finished. Unfortunately, the person with the cash gets the car vs the nice folks with good intentions but no cash.

They are super-fun cars. Always wanted one, and glad I had mine. The impending necessity of a respray just didn't work for me, though.

Can't say I see the appeal of the 944, though the ute version is pretty sweet.

Maroon92 wrote: You found a 944 with Pascha interior? That's a rare bird. What year? 83, 84, 85.1? Power steering or manual?

It's an '84. Tell me more about this interior. I think it's ugly, do you think I could get some coin out of it?
Ddavid, I know the 944 won't be as fun as the mini, but with the LS1 under the hood, it'll be quick as heck.
Evan came to get it on Saturday evening, I made the mistake of sitting in it one last time when he was on his way. If I'd have sat in it before he left home (3+ hours away) I think I'd have told him it's no longer for sale. Just sitting in it again was fun!

so what should one budget for an original mini? I find myself wanting one and could probably swing it now. Probably looking at fall time would be buy time so where is the place to look for one of these. I'm ok with one that needs "work" but more of a rolling/running tuneup/restore project than a full tear it down to nothing and rebuild type project.

Thanks

The prices are all over the place. You can get a nasty driver that's rotted out for $4K or a pristine garage queen for $40K. Check www.minimania.com they have a classifieds section.

In reply to DrBoost:

+1. I'd been casually searching for a year or so. Actually, for about 10 years since the g/f bought her '03 MCS, but more seriously since Sept when I registered for an event w/o actually owning a car. Based on what I've seen figure on about $10K for a decent driver that doesn't need a ton of body work. A bit less for 850 cars. Cheaper ones will show up, from time to time, but they go fast so have the cash ready and don't hesitate. In about a week I'll find out how well I did with my purchase.

Damn you guys... mini mania is not what I need..

If I sold mine, I'd be mourning the brevity of my marriage.

Good on ya for keeping it in the family.

Mine was an 850, 36,000 orig miles but with a cheapo UK respray that was starting to delaminate. Ran superbly, had some nice additions (discs, flares, etc), good interior but needed carpet. I got $6500 for it and struggled to find a buyer. Had a 1098cc engine to go in it that is still here. The paint job would have been at least 3 grand; not sure what a refresh of the MG 1100 engine would have cost, but the car would have struggled to return $10k finished because it's not a "Cooper" (personally--BFD. Let the collectors have those).

You really, really have to do your homework if you're buying one and NEVER buy it sight unseen. You can't buy them from photos; the rust problems are just too serious.

nocones wrote: Damn you guys... mini mania is not what I need..

Hey, you asked for it.