Hi guys,

I've been looking around for a classic mini for the past few months and one has popped up for sale very close by to me. The seller is firm at $6000. The car runs and drives very well from the test drive I took( has a new head and disc front brakes) and the interior and exterior on a whole are in good shape. There is some rust on several of the usual spots. The front floor pans appear to have been patched, one well and one not as well. The rear subframe has some pretty serious rust with the metal starting to flake on one section. It also looks like the rear subframe mount in the trunk has been repaired at some point. The rest of the underbody is coated in Por15 so its hard to tell exactly whats going on but from the inside it appears mostly solid.

I have uploaded some additional and larger pictures of the car to http://www.flickr.com/photos/tarikatl/. From the pictures and the info above does this seem like a reasonable deal? I fully anticipate a good bit of work in the future but I am having a hard time finding a good baseline price for a mini in this shape from previous sales.

Thanks!

 

my opinion is that $6000 is the least someone should expect to pay for a car that will run reliably and be safe on the road - all the lights work, brakes are solid, car can reach hiway speeds (60) and drives reasonably well at that speed. Price goes up from there with better condition, rare model, modifications (up to a point)

Biggest concern I have from the pictures are the front floor pans. Fresh paint and undercoating hides a lot and as you say, you can see where part of a try was really poorly done. How are your welding skills? From experience I can tell you this repair can get very $$ very fast. After one time paying for some patchwork I found it cheaper to take welding and body repair and painting classes and buying the equipment!

One thing about a used car: it is worth what the buyer is willing to pay and not one cent more.

What year to they claim it is? What engine?

 

The seller says it is a 68 but clearly it isn't. It looks like a MKIV to me. It has a 998cc and it pulled very well and ran smoothly when I drove it. It does leak a small amount of oil, but from what I've read that is to be expected.

My welding skills at present are non existent but one reason I am looking at a classic mini is to have a project and learn some new things. It in no way would be my daily driver. But at the same time I do not want to have to just pour money into it.

 

yep - clearly not a 68!

What size are the disk brakes? I'm guessing 8" and that's gonna point to an 80's car. Headrests, dash, steering wheel, tail lites, badges all say after 68.

The week and year of build is stamped into several parts on a Mini and if these parts have not been replaced clear up the question. Easist one to find is the boot lock plate. Here's my 79's


Similar can be found on the dizzy and the wiper motor.

your engine picture is fuzzy but I see a later brake servo. Engine looks freshly painted and the water pump shines like new?

dates on the pictures say fall of 12? This photo was taken on September 24, 2012 using a

Looks like a project and weekend car - that's what mine is and they are fun. But so far as soaking up $$ - oh yes. Any 25 year old english car is gonna do that.

 

The engine was pulled when it was first imported and freshened up. I will look into determining the actual year the next time I look at it. Also, what do you think is a reasonable yearly budget to set aside for ongoing maintenance of a classic mini? Thanks for all your help!

 

pm sent with a longer discussion but

my maintenance is pretty low cost right now.

The car is a weekend toy and annual miles is less than 2000

so annual maint: an oil change or two, clean the airfilter, grease the suspension every 6 months. Fuel is only a few gallons a month and I have collector car insurance which is inexpensive. Wash and wax ... tires and brakes last a long time when the car isn't driven much.

That's maintenance - the thing to keep in mind is on an old car you really need to expect 'significant things' to happen somewhat frequently. Brake failure, rust throughs, leaks, electrical issues. Some of these can be fixed for a few dollars and some can be BIG. For example, if that subframe issue is serious and ignored you could have the subframe break. That will leave the car undrivable and is a $$ repair even if you DIY cuz as you take it apart your ARE gonna find more problem!

So - it depends . . .

 

From your description only I hear about $6K of work, maybe more.....so is it a $12K car fixed? Cause that's what you'll have in it unless you decide to just drive it till it fails then sell it for parts or whatever you can get for it then.

Owning a Classic Mini (or any classic car for that matter) is a labor of love, if you don't want to do your own work, it's hard to justify (to me) these days.

You can buy a good high mileage Justa Cooper for $6k today, and have a car with more hp, lots of ammenities such as ABS and A/C, power steering, locks etc and it will always be more reliable than a classic, and probably won't rust!

 

You all make good points. My daily driver is Z4M Coupe so I'm not really worried about the lack of power or amenities, just looking for something I can tinker with and drive occasionally. It is true that it is unlikely that all in after the needed work that is a $12k car. It seems like it may be more prudent to save up some additional capital and buy an already restored car.