Hey MINIxb,

Granted, I don't even physically own a mini yet, so what do I know? Anyway, if I were you, I would be careful about parking your car in neutral and using just the parking brake to secure it. Its my understanding that minis have pretty weak parking brakes. I'd hate to see your car rolling backwards down a hill.

Hey you mini Vets, jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong.

 

i learned to ALWAYS try parking a car in gear, since just the engine alone can usually stop a car from sliding down a hill.

 

Nice! It's a great looking car the way it is. I also actually really like the color as it stands, interior and exterior. As plkdb stated, some 1st or 2nd gen accents could really set it off! No need to go with another sportspack lookalike.

 

I'm not wanting to change the car to conform to some ideal. I just want a classic Mini that looks the way I want it to look. Heck, I'd paint it chartreuse if I happened to like the color (I don't).

 

but chartreuse is such a beautiful color!! LMAO JK!!!! that is puke green but with a fancy name

 

I haven't parked on any hills yet but I think that would be smart to put it in gear... (BTW, I'm Counterfit_Mini on KC Mini Club)

 

Just out of curiosity, I'm planning to take it easy on the way back home, but what would you all recommend as far as a top speed? I don't think there's any way I'm going to be able to avoid an interstate route without making the 4 hr trip into an 8 hr trip, but I'm not planning to go much above 60. Think that would stress it? This car's engine has supposedly be serviced regularly and has very low miles for its age.

 

Mine is a little different (1275cc / stage 1 kit) but I can easily run it at 70-80mph. I know Moxie (another classic) has hit over 100 on the highway. It all depends on the gearing of your MINI. Mine is geared for highway driving, I suspect that yours is not.

Have you made it back?

 

Not yet. We're going to get it tomorrow morning.

 

Was the Mini automatic a four speed?

 

If you're asking me, I'm not exactly sure how many gears it has. I'm assuming it is a 4 speed.

 

I have my days all mixed-up.

I would bet a dollar that it is a four speed

 

The automatics are 4-speeds. You can run at 60MPH no problem. It's fun. I haven't tried any faster than that. The car really likes to go.

 

i cant wait to see it! good luck with it, and remember- dont expect the breaks to work =D

 

I hope he made it home before the rain....

 

yeahhh... he could always wipe the water off though =P

 

Uhhh....it's not the water it's the amount coming from the sky and the lack of wiping ability of the windshield wipers.

 

Ohhh ok then. good luck!

 

lol i'm sure they made it just in time..... i would hate to be caught in that rain in a Mini. It was bad in my xB and I had my wipers at full.

 

RAINEX!! Being almost vertical the rain blows off the glass very well and compensates for the Minis mini wipers.

 

My goodness, I don't think I could've asked for a wider diversity of luck and situations to deal with! Firstly, let me apologize for not making it to the meeting. As it turned out, that was just impossible, but you'll see why shortly.

We made it to Richmond right on time, around 10 am (left the house at 4 am). That was the only thing done in a timely manner, by the way. The car looked and ran great, so we finalized the transaction. About 10 mi out from Richmond toward KC, I notice a sudden burst of what appeared to be smoke (it wasn't) coming from the bonnet, at which point my partner, who was driving it, immediately pulled over. The temperature had suddenly went up and radiator fluid was leaking out from under the bonnet. We both were thinking GREAT. Neither of us are very mechanically inclined (yet; that'll change), so we had no idea what had just happened. We called the seller and as luck would have it, they were on the same road (210). They showed up within 5 minutes. More luck: it just popped it's [ancient] belt and the overflow hose popped off to keep the engine from burning up - or something like that. The 'smoke' I saw was just fluid hitting the hot engine - steam. So they run off to the next town to get a new belt, easy enough. They get back and he starts trying to put it on, but he doesn't have the right tools. They call AAA and we wait for a tow truck to take it to the service station down the road. The "15 minutes" it was supposed to take turned into nearly 1.5 hrs. Then the quick belt job at the shop turned into an hour or so by itself. So now, instead of leaving at 11 or 12 and being able to make most of the trip in the daylight, it's getting past 5 pm and we know we're about to make a long night drive.

Long isn't even the word for it. Paranoia and its 998 cc engine ensured that we averaged a speed of 50-55 mph all the way to 71 and south on that to Arkansas. To make it even more lovely, the torrential misting/drizzling/raining began shortly after we departed the station. Nothing says wet-your-pants scary than an 18 wheeler blowing by you going 70 and blinding you with its spray. That happened no less than 100 times, by the way

So we enter Arkansas just before midnight, to put it into a time frame. In any normal drive, at that point we'd have been 1.5-2 hrs from home depending on how spiritedly we drove. Instead, we arrived home at 3 am.

Live and learn right? If I ever go somewhere to buy another classic, now I know what tools to bring! Not to mention a good set of portable speakers for my ipod!

But, all's well that ends well. Once he had his new belt, he drive like a champ. I did have some issues adjusting to the RHD and kept creeping to the inside of the lane - oops! Good thing the car is only 4' wide! Would I do it again? Yes!! Well, I might consider shipping... This is quite possibly a funner car to drive, despite its relative lack of oomph, that my MCS! And, though this was neat now it'll probably get annoying, there was no end to the looks and questions at each stop on the way home. All part of the territory though.

So here he is as of this morning at 8:30:









Interesting how the perspective makes him look as big as the MINIs. He is phenomenally small. Yesterday was the first time either of us had seen a Mini, by the way.

So Monday, we're going to take him around to a few paint shops and get some quotes, as well as run him by my family mechanic to give him a good once over. We have new bumpers and wheel flares on the way shortly from Mini Mania. I can't wait to see him in his "finished" state (right, like that's even possible).

Thanks for reading my diatribe if you made it this far!

 

Oh, that reminds me, I'm headed to Wal-Mart shortly to get some Rainx for all three cars!

 

either way, it still looks like a champ in the making! good luck to you, but that color definetly needs to go =P

EDIT: You should throw some high-lows on that thing to compensate with the lower front then rear. it will look and feel 100 times better!

 

Great story. Nice Mini! Have your mechanic do a complete PM on it & tune.

Now, pack a small snap lid container to carry under your rear seats. Get a Haynes Manual. There is much even a novice can do to keep the Mini running and to fix roadside breakdowns. Put in an extra fan belt, a set of hoses, 1/2" radiator hose, a water pump bypass hose, a set of points & condenser, a distributor cap and rotor, fuses, flashlight, a tire plugging kit, hand cleaner & rags. Buy a tool set in the plastic case at Lowes or similar that has a combination of sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers etc. It also fits under the rear seat. Always carry a cell phone. Get towing on your classic car insurance or AAA.

Rocan, the front is low because the cones are old, hardened and compressed. While hi-los can raise it up, they won't improve the ride. Only new cones or springs will do that.

 

I did wonder how things went and figured you were having so much fun driving your Classic that you by-passed KC and headed for the open road. Once you feel more comfortable with the car, zip on up to KC and join us another day--we'd love to have you visit!