Hello! My name is Cole and I am looking for a Classic Mini cooper. A dear friend of mine has an explorer and she is getting rid of that gigantic piece of crap for a much cooler car. She is a college student so she doesn't have enough money. She came to me cause she wanted a classic mini and I already have a new 07 Mini S so she figured I would know. Well I don't hahaha. i want to help her find one but I don't know where to start. She will be switching the engine for the VTEC engine. I understand that has less problems. I live in Charlotte, NC. Please help!!!!

Also if you need more information Ask me! I will help you as much as I can. Her price range will be from 5,000-10,000 I think.

 

search minimania.com tons of them for sale

 

You realize she'll need $15-$20+K to complete this project? Best to buy one done. There's a VTEC Mini converter in GA. Have the pros do it.

 

I'm sure there are a number of vtec owners that will tell you that they are not significantly more reliable than the original a-series. Remember that putting a vtec in a 20+ year old car that was never intended to have nearly the power than even a mild vtec conversion provides is not a plug 'n play application. Do I think they would be fun... yes without a doubt but it is still a highly temperamental old car... it is not a Civic.
For half the money as the convertion ($15-20K seems right) you can go a very long way to having a nearly completely reliable a-series with enough usable power to really enjoy. I know I have a fraction of that in my car and I just got done with a great weekend at MOTD after driving 200 miles one way from Charlotte to the event without so much as a hicup.
Not putting down the vtec by any means but to do the convertion for added "reliability" I just don't think it adds up. JMTC's

 

I am building a vtec k20 right now. Gone are the days of building one for 15k. It has been done but that was back when guys were just happy enough to have a vtec engine jammed into a mini.
I have discussed this with several vtec mini owners/builders. It is best to budget for $20 grand and expect to spend $25k. Most spend more than their budget.
Especially when there is a certain northern california K20 owner that keeps upping the bar when it comes to goodies.


Good Luck.

TTI

 

20K? Must be the humidity down south...try 55k to play it safe. R&D isn't cheap, you know.

Seriously though, buy a conversion already complete with the bugs worked out. El Profe has one complete and for sale for around 20k - another guy has one for around 30k. But if you want to start with an A series, good for you. There's a beautiful red one for sale in Texas along with many others across the states.

One clarification to Tall Mini - the A series motor compared to the D, B or K series motor isn't anywhere in the same zip code as reliable. BUT, the motor isn't the issue on Honda conversions; it's absolutely everything else...which is what I think you were eluding to anyhow. A car designed for 25 whp doesn't do all that well with 250 whp. It's like Tatoo on steriods weighing in at 190 lbs...something has to give.

Lastly, "upping the bar" is code for making many, many, many mistakes all the while plodding forward. Like Sharon Stone in Casino...it's just so damn hard to stop.

Happy hunting.

 

"A dear friend of mine has an explorer and she is getting rid of that gigantic piece of crap for a much cooler car. "

I love the Classic Mini's,...I have a 1980....I also have a 2005......I believe your friend would be best off getting a newer MINI,...solving all the problems of smaller, more reliable, cool,....cheap to operate,...plentiful,...cost effective as opposed to Vtech conversion,....etc.

just an idea..........

Steve

 

And if your friend has their heart set on a classic mini, a normally tuned A series would reliable enough, and easier to repair than most newer engines. Its a very basic, fun car. Like most folks mention, find a good british car mechanic in the area. There is bound to be one.

 

So what I have gotten so far from what everyone has told me is:

1. VTEC is in fact less reliable than an old mini engine.

2. It may be better for her to buy a newer Cooper.

3. There are different classes of engines on the older models.(Could someone clarify what exactly the different classes are?)

 

1. Kinda. The Honda VTEC motor ITSELF is reliable - the devil is where it mates up with the Mini. What Meno said about a car designed for a FRACTION of the HP that the VTEC puts out must be taken into consideration. Also, keep in mind that even people like MiniTec who are well-versedin converting the cars are still basically doing quite a bit of the fabrication and fitting by hand. That means that getting service down the road may very well be problematic, as what you end up with is a hybrid of vastly different technologies. An old A-series engine will be just as hard to find a mechanic for (I know), but at least, mechanically, the A-series motor is very simple compared to the computerized, variable-injected VTEC. I think this is worth reiterating, since not everyone as the skills to diagnose and repair problems on modern engines. If you can, obviously that's not as much of a concern, but most people still needt to rely on garages for their car work, and either car will be tough to get work for - the VTEC may be refused because there are no documented procedures, and the classic will be hard to get parts for - anything CAN be ordered from MiniMania in my experience, but diagnosing the problem can be tough unless you're good at that sort of thing.

2. It might be. A modern MINI is already set up to handle exactly the amount of HP that the engine will put out. And, the oldest MINI you'll find is only 6 years old. But - as cool as the MINIs are (I own a 2005 MCS) it's not as "cool" as a VTEC-converted Mini classic. depends on what she's looking for - if dependibility on a "daily driver" is the main goal, I know that *I* would never use my classic as my only means of transport and I'm glad that I have my MCS MINI for that role. Also keep in mind that an old Mini has nearly NO modern safety features - this in my mind is very important, given tha tthe driver is a college student, and statistically is at very high risk of getting in an accident. Modern MINIs are fully compliant with all front- and side-impact safety regs and have airbags - only VERY late model Minis (like 1997-8 I believe) are fitted with air bags or any sort of side impact protection. I think this is a HUGE factor in deciding on a daily driver personally... Meno, correct me if I'm wrong, but I BELIEVE that all MiniTec cinversions come with a roll-cage welded in yes? That helps, but there's still not much car around you in a VTEC Mini IMHO...

3. If you mean Meno's reference to B-, D- and K-series engines, those are different kinds of VTEC motors. Diferent series put out different amounts of HP.

Mini A-series engines were all basically the same: 4 cylinder transverse-mounted engines with displacements of 998-1300 CCs. Later models (starting in the 90s) had single-point or dual-point fuel injection (you'll see referneces to SPI - single point injection or DPI - dual-point injection), but most were carborated, and in fact many people convert the injected models to carbs simply because they'rre more reliable and easier to repair (carbed Minis don't need computer ECUs, oxygen sensors and the like).

If she really wants a Mini, a good place to start is either MiniMania's classified section - I got my 1992 Mini SPrite there for only $6k and it was very clean for the price. there's also a place called Turky's Minis somewhere down around you - he's famous/infamous for always having "restored" Minis for sale. he sometimes over-hypes cars though from what I've heard, so be sure to take all claims of "rust free Minis" with a HEFTY grain of salt and inspect then very, very carefully.

Not trying to rain on any parades, honest, but I believe that being informed prior to making a purchase of this sort is important. As much as I love classic Minis, for a college student, I'd honestly start with a new MINI, and put a classic on the "Want" list for later, when you or she have better means to support the car's financial and mechanical demands, and deal with the relative lack of modern safety features the Mini has. I use my classic as a daily driver in the summer and fall, but I only drive about 5 miles to work - if I had to go on the highway every day, I wouldn't do it, mainly for safety reasons. But that just may be me.

 

Imago X summed it all up. Listen to him and make a decision

As for the explorer being a piece of crap.... My/ my dads Daily driver is a 2004 explorer, one of the most reliable cars out there

 

sorry I am just biased about Ford/American cars. I have always preferred Japanese cars.

 

I hear ya... I was that way too before I owned a Suburban - that thing was a tank. It had issues - all cars eventually do - but so did my Honda Civic eventually.

But, from talking with multiple VTEC owners, I don't think that any Mini/Honda hybrid will be as dependible as a BMW MINI from all the accounts I've heard (although the cleaner the rebuild the more dependible it will be, of course).

 

Well my dream is that she would get a mini classic so I can drive it haha. Although I may encourage her to buy a newer basic cooper and get myself a classic cooper. Would I have to get the car registered? I really do want one.

 

You have to get a classic Mini registered like any other car and you can get a historic license plate if it's old enough but they have restrictions.