What is a rough estimate of how much you guys had to pay to get your classic and then the repairs to get it up to a safe driver? I really want to get one, but am worried that after the $5000 to buy it (looking on ebay) I'm going to be hit with thousands upon thousands in repairs/maintence.

 

I paid $7800 for my 1980 1275cc. It was ready to go as a daily driver.

http://www.cube17576.com/mini/Mini.jpg

Anything less than $5k will most likely require repairs and work.
$5k-$10k should get you a good daily driver with little work needed.
$10k+ should get you a nicely restored car with great paint and ready to go.

All Minis will require repairs. Small things will always go wrong. But if you search enough you can find a nice daily driver that doesn't need much work.

Be careful on Ebay that you really know what you are getting into. It can be very hard to judge an old car based on a few pictures and ebay listing. I feel that you really need to see and drive the car before you buy. Also note that some ebay cars are 90's cars re-vin'd as an older car which could cause you troubles licensing it.

Here are a few other places to look:
http://www.minimania.com/ClassList.cfm
http://www.westpaminis.com/

 

thanks for the reply and links

 

It all depends how much you can do yourself and your frustration level. Mine was less than $100 in addition to the 6K I spent buying it and getting it to the US.

BUT...I spent hours and hours and hours the first 3 weeks I had mine tracing wires and cleaning electirical contacts to get all my lights/flashers turn signals working. Other than that I replaced a rear brake cylinder and pads myself, and pulled the head and adjusted the valve gap as they were a bit off, but nother else.

AND...every story I hear is different so beware.

 

I paid just under $10k for mine, and now I have automatic transmission problems. I probably shouldn't have driven it as long as I did, but I wasn't about to pay close to $900 just to have it shipped to me.

 

They will all require work. On the good side, you don't need to be a highly skilled mechanic to understand how they function and perform basic maintenance schedules and repairs. Aside form late model injected cars, they are primitive mechanically. Similar to the technology of the 50's & 60's when anyone could work on their car with basic tools, intitiative and a good manual.

Take your time buy the best body shell you can find {learn what that means} The mechanicals are the easy part.

 

As far as parts for routine maintenance goes, where do you get most of your parts from? By this I mean gaskets, oil filters, spark plugs, etc. Just the stuff that you need to keep your Mini running reliably. I don't mind getting uncommon parts from overseas (stuff that almost never requires replacement), but I would like to know that there is someplace in the U.S. that I can turn to for little routine stuff like the parts I listed.

So far, I've looked online and the best places that I've found for parts are:

http://www.minimania.com/
http://www.minispares.com/default.aspx
http://www.minisport.com/ (Apparently down at the moment)
http://www.7ent.com/indexa.cfm

Are there any other websites, preferably something local, where I can easily find the stuff I mentioned? Somehow the thought of waiting for a simple gasket to arrive from overseas doesn't sit well with me. I suppose this is part of owning a Mini, I just don't want it to be more stressful than it absolutely has to be.

 

well it seems that you have all the good locations down for purchasing parts.........

 

Oil filters & spark plugs at any parts store.

www.djminis.com
www.minicityltd.com
www.bmc.on.ca
www.heritagegarage.com

 

Well, here's where I got mine from:

http://classiccore.com/

This guy has a pretty good turnover of different price ranges/quality. You might have to wait for one old enough to get into the states. I think he takes special orders also. 12 grand will get you a kick-@$$ "newer" model - updated (fully restored) classic. Mine was a trade-in daily driver, where there isn't anything wrong, just a bunch of tweaks that can be done to get her to run better, and some cosmetics. I bought her in June for 'round about $5,000 and it took about $2,500 to get her here, licenced, customs, taxes, etc. On the plus side insurance is DIRT CHEAP.
All I've done so far was had her brakes looked at, (supposedly having a back drum turned) $50 and she's still having some brake throbbing. And I initially had to change out the battery. $ 60? I bought the largest that would fit in the battery well, and the alternator seems to be charging it just fine.
Also, I changed the plugs $5 with some that I bought at a local auto store after an hour of negotiation as to which I needed... If it's not in their database - they tend to spaz a little... They promised to find my oil filter which I'm going to look into this next week or so; she's due.
She's still running a bit rough, probably needs the timing adjusted, maybe some distributor work, tie rods, and possibly the exhaust checked in general. My driveway has a lip, and it seems I dented the underside of the muffler. Oops.
Anyway, spend what you want/can. Wait for the car you want. Focus in on the qualities you're looking for and what you want her for. Are you looking for something that might look a little rough, but runs perfect? Something that looks perfect but runs a little rough? (Mine's a bit of looks sharp for being a '78, and runs well enough, but could stand work and has a never ending supply of rattle, buzz and shimmy - but that's part of her charm!)
Oh, and have a bit of a buffer zone in the bank for the inevitable. Oh, yes. It will happen. Also, it's never wise to rely on a classic as your daily driver. And as far as parts go, even a car dealership doesn't stock every single part to a new car, so they'd have to have it shipped in anyway. And if it's a non-essential that needs replacement you can always stalk Ebay.co.uk auctions. - Yes, there's a difference!
Anyway I consider mine to be the "toy" car. And when the main car popped a tire I used her to get to work - back and forth in rush hour traffic. You get the strangest looks that time of day. Oh, and I recommend right hand drive manual. It's the only way to go! Really. Parallel parking is a breeze! The curb is like *right there*!
And if you want to see some pictures of mine, they're in my gallery:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...=23711&cat=500
That should work.
Good luck and let everybody know when you find your classic. Oh, and pictures man! We like pictures. K? LatOr!

 

One of my favorite vendors:

www.gbcarparts.com

 

I recommend not buying until you have physically inspected it. Go over it with the proverbial fine tooth comb. Also, consider getting one or more of the Mini books that list what to look for when buying a Mini. Ideally, the better your choice of Mini, the fewer (and cheaper) parts you'll need to get afterweard.

 

Jeremy,
Check this one out. $7000 and it's good to go.
http://www.westpaminis.com/canadaauto.html

 

Alistair and Pete C are tops! You won't find better to deal with.

 

Um, it's too new to bring into the US. It says '86. Also, it's a 1000 cc and automatic... Not my personal choice on either... Besides that, the rims change from picture to picture. Which would you wind up getting?
Anyway, they may have other nice rides, but I wouldn't try and get that one.
LatOr!

 

It's ok if it's 86, people lie all the time to get their 80+ year mini's registered.