1991 Mini - Project Trig

[Mini 360]

i like that butt, and i can not lie


since this car is pretty much done..


start on the van

: Like your thinking but the van is my dads retirement 'project' (read, tidy up and enjoy, weekend toy) We are both going to a show in them this weekend though

I would do the van totally differently to him but its not my place to tell him what he can/cannot do to it

[P78]

i like that butt, and i can not lie


since this car is pretty much done..


start on the van

[Mini 360]

Thanks a lot dude! I'm paranoid about keeping it this way, especially since its been painted so many times now.....

[Rally]

Your paint is just insane. I'm beyond jealous. I love your car.

[Mini 360]

Well I took this photo the other weekend since the sun was out but on closer inspection at Fraserburgh the paint was covered in swirl marks from poor wash technique and quick detailer to remove muck at shows.



So Greig popped out to help me get rid of around 90% of the swirl marks. Taped up and ready to go





Greig takes polishing VERY seriously



Mirror shine



And a pic of the boot. Just because.



Thanks to Greig for the help. Halved the time it took to do the car and its now ready for Tain on Sunday (after a few coats of wax that is).

[Mini 360]

Another weekend, another show down. Fraserburgh Vintage Vehicle Fair this time. Ignore the vintage bit, there were 11 plate Focus RSs there......

Met up with Alex and Chelsea and headed to our convoy start at the cock and Bull Pub



Foggy this morning but it burnt off pretty quick



And picked up a few more at Tesco Fraserburgh before we headed in together to make our stand.



I was on the corner of the pitch so got the banner.



And I got to work cleaning for the show and shine



I didn't win anything (an externally restored purple Mini won best Mini instead) but we did win the club stand shield. Rare victory when the RS Owners club name is all over it from previous years!



Again, no issues for me which is always a bonus. Home tired and burnt to a crisp but a good day out.

[Mini 360]

Love old minis! Cool to see youre heading to cleanfest! Its a buddy of mine that runs KIC Myself being a brand ambassador in the USA haha

Nice mini. The color is beautiful!

Absolutely Beautiful.

Thanks guys! I adore the colour. So classy!



Got the car a full wheel alignment done at Reidline Performance in Kintore last Friday, so it behaved on the Thistle Run. Took them 4hrs to get it right in the end but its all good now. Braking is no longer a scary, shaky/wandering experience. Negative camber dialed in on the rear really helps it bite in the twisty bits.

And now Ive had a chance to sit down and edit photos, heres some photos from the 2014 Thistle Run from Newton Grange to Eyemouth Harbour.

With the alarm set for 5am, it was an early start. It was torrential rain all the way to our pre convoys. Met up with a few folk in Portlethen and headed down the road. It was slightly foggy.

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But we made it to Ferrytoll park and ride to meet up with a few local folk, before heading to the start point at the Scottish Mining Museum.

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nuvh2y"]Thistle Run 2014

As you can see, it was still pelting down going across the Forth Road Bridge

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nNMkbp"]Thistle Run 2014

But that didnt seem to bother my co driver Greig :lol:

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nLXd8Q"]Thistle Run 2014

We set off from the start after our drivers briefing ('The Thistle Run is not a race!' etc etc) *You can see that minis are actually pretty spacious inside!

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nLGPwn"]Thistle Run 2014

But first, let us take a selfie...

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nLXchb"]Thistle Run 2014

Ended up in Northumberland at one point. This photo was taken as we waited to cross a small, one car at a time, bridge back into Scotland. As you can see the weather decided to brighten up for the actual run, which made life much easier!

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nJXnQj"]Thistle Run 2014

The run took about 2.5hrs to complete. Totally trouble free for us, but others weren't so lucky. Thats just Minis I suppose! On arrival, a quick polish of chrome and wipe down of body was all the car needed for the show and shine. Greig was on the case, polishing my tip.

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nLPL4Y"]Thistle Run 2014

Sun was ridiculously hot which showed off the car well. So heres its arse.

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nuuYpR"]Thistle Run 2014

Scott (ManicMonkey) had a co driver too, who took this shot (the only decent one I have of the car at the harbour-side actually)



Sadly didn't win any prizes but still had a good day out. We stopped off at Krispy Kreme for donuts and then headed back up the road again.

[url="https://flic.kr/p/nLHjHi"]
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Ace but very long day. Left the house at 5.30am and got back at 9.30pm. Just shy of 500miles total, with no issues. I was going to wheek out the box and replace it before IMM but seeing as it coped ok with this trip, I think i will leave that and sort it all over winter. If it aint totally destroyed, dont fix it.

[Joosh]

Absolutely Beautiful.

[Mercedes_S204]

Nice mini. The color is beautiful!

[Whiskerz]

Love old minis! Cool to see youre heading to cleanfest! Its a buddy of mine that runs KIC Myself being a brand ambassador in the USA haha

[anth]

I hate to be that guy who quotes images, but this thing is just gorgeous!

[Mini 360]

MiniSpares order arrived. All fitted and working well. Diff to driveshaft seals, ball joint dust covers (old ones get destroyed splitting the joint on removal), rocker cover oil cap (managed to snap my old one by leaning on it) and out of shot, fibre washers for the oil pressure gauge line for the unions at the block and gauge.



Fitted up ready to go. Old diff seal had a small split on the ID hence the leak. Hopefully this one will last a wee bit longer!

To do tomorrow, fit a 12v socket for the sat nav/phone chargers, make sure all bolts on the suspension are free for the hunter 4 wheel alignment at Reidline on Friday morning and check fluids ready for the Thistle Run on Sunday!

[Maerius]

Love this!

[Mini 360]

Located a wee oil leak. Driveshaft to diff seal. Leaking onto the pot joint and spraying oil all underneath the car and up the back of the engine. Lovely! I needed to redo the engine bay ancillaries paint anyway but this has ensured that the bonnet stays shut for shows for this season as its a mess!

Waiting for parts to arrive (few other bits and pieces thrown in for good measure) but got it ready for the change today. Split the ball joints to release the hub, split the pot joint from the diff and bungeed in place. Quick swap of the seal and back together in no time some night this week. Hopefully sorts it!



Few other little issues. Bonnet catch refuses to close properly (easy fix) and found a fair bit of swarf on the sump plug. My guess is its coming from the gearbox. It crunches into third up and down the box so I think its starting to take its toll. Drained the oil for the diff seal anyway and fresh stuff will go in. Was going to be changing the box before IMM anyway but hopefully it doesn't damage the engine too (why did they have to make the A series share oil between engine and box again...?) If it does damage the engine, I guess it will be time to go 1293/1340 far earlier than anticipated :lol:

[Mini 360]

Thanks dude!