I have seen some Vtec conversions and today I read an article in road and track on the 2007 MINI (while at the doctors office) and was wondering if anyone has put a modern motor in a classic Mini?

Is there a reason a Vtec is used and not a BMW/MINI motor?

I think the '07 was 172hp

 

Cheaper, more parts, more supply of used motors.

 

I know someone who will be at MitM with a Vtec. I am sure he will read this thread. I will not speak his name in case it is supposed to be a secret.
Edit: I thought when I posted this I was in the MitM forum...sorry.

 

honda motor are very easy to come by.......very basic set up as well ....easy to work on.......i use to race my old honda .......very good motors......not sure i would put one in a mini, but maybe the hayabusa ........

 

I talked to someone about using a Hyabusa motor too. He said there would be a lot of fab work to make it a front wheel drive motor.

I have a sandrail and the Busa motor is real popular in the single and 2 seat cars.

A turbo busa puts out a lot of HP and I thought that would be great in a Mini, unique. There is a video of a busa Mini but I think its in the back seat!

 

I can imagine a MINI engine being very expensive and hard to come by.
Probably several hundred thousands MINIs versus millions of Integras/Civics etc.

I always thought that putting a MINI engine in a Mini would be cool, but it's probably not very likely.

 

Size matters

 

experimenting with the unknown is very expensive.

 

I've pondered it, but nothing yet. To much$$$

Nik

 

You can make anything "work". Just depends on how much cash & time you wish to invest. I actually like the Suzuki motor swaps as they're lighter, cheaper and have sufficient power. You'd be amazed what an aluminum, turboed, EFI 3 cylinder, 5 spd , Chevy GEO motor can do in a Mini....

http://www.minimania.com/images/webs.../ministang.mpg

yes, the stang left early, but the Mini won

 

You can actually buy a kit from Z Cars to create a rear-wheel drive "Mini" using a Hayabusa or VTEC motor. I use the name "Mini" loosely since it really is just a Mini fiberglass shell on top of a custom fabricated chassis and suspension.

With 0-60 times of less than 3 seconds it would be real fun to go sport bike hunting with one of those.

 

Well there IS the fact that these conversions have been being done prior to the release of the MINI.

 

Here's a Hayabusa powered Smart - if you can see it through the smoke...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV4HdsDZX6c

 

The SMART car was sick.

Z Cars site was cool. A Hyabusa powered rear wheel drive Mini would be insane but I don't have the know how or the $$$ to do that. The kit looked pretty complete.

I finished a sandrail last year and there were a lot of unexpected cost's in building that. I couldn't imangine doing a build where parts and advice were overseas. Not to mention the resale value, can't imangine that woould be too polular.

 

SMART.....

Too new......

Too NORMAL.....

ISETTA!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJgxMoDn8VA

Ok the vid did suck....

 

Would have been nice to see it actually move and hear the engine. Nice find though.

 

Agreed, I'd love to see it moving too.

 

People have been doing all sorts of insane things to Mini shells for years. Somewhere at home I have a photo of a classic Mini van with a big block V8 under the bonnet. There is a custom cutout in the windscreen for the big air ram on top of the engine. It had been converted to a rear drive with big tubbed rear wheels. It was a drag car and competative with the other funny cars.
I also saw a Mini with a 454 Chev sitting where the back seat used to be. Still front wheel drive, the enging was facing backwards to make it work. Even more insane, this thing was road registered in New Zealand.
If you have the money and the *****, you can squeeze almost any car engine into a Mini shell and drive it.

 

Well sometimes you MAY have to straddle the motor

 

Like this Mini Clubman with Rover V8 mounted transversely (fwd) like the original Mini layout on an Austin Princess gearbox!

Mini Clubman V8

 

In the entire history of MINI, I don't think there's been a real MINI engine in a MINI. (Chrysler, Peugeot or Citroen, or God knows what, yes, but BMW/MINI, no). Still better than the original Austin Mini Cooper that used a British Leyland tractor engine.

 

A pox on your nether regions.... :P

 

Perhaps, but we were able to squeeze 130 horses out of that 75 cubic inch tractor engine.

Long live C Sedan Racing!! (even though it's dead now)