Classic Mini Vtr - Project - Saxperience

mikey362vtr · 26th April 2009, 00:26

Okay so here goes, tomorrow its the big bolton abbey meet which i cant go to coz im strap for cash the month. completly gutted was looking forward to it the sun the cars the people and so on.

so i thought id dedicate tomorrow as the first day of the project. so befor i start heres some pics of the car when we i got it, it is my second car just the engine is in another mini and it has pretty much been completly repanneled so the interior is non-existant at the mo.

so heres the car

So theres the car. tomorrow you will see lots of black panels which have been replaced.

The plan is to get my self a vtr engine in good condition preferably with all ancialries wiring loom ecu the job lot and put them in the mini. first problem will be mating up the saxo engine to the mini and seeing wether i need a clubman front end or ill get away with a saloon front end (clubman = square saloon = round) and to see what i need to do to fit the engine what i need to build on and what i need to chop away. of course that will be once ive got an engine lol.

Dave89 · 26th April 2009, 00:28

looks like a fun project mate

keep us updated (Y)

blackvtrt · 26th April 2009, 00:34

need a extened end or clubmand, there's an offroad version on vtr wheels, somewhere bright blue with demon tweaks down the side! Can I ask y a vtr engine? not the most powerfull and easiest convesion!
Can do a vauxhall or vtec and if u dont go for the bigger engines can get them under a round nose. Produce about the same if not more power and all the conversion parts u can bu of the shelf if u get stuck with the fabricating or there alot of people who could advise u on vaux, vtecs and alot of info out there for them!

mikey362vtr · 26th April 2009, 00:42

basically it goes like this, i like to be different and i like a challenge. now the gf left me a couple of weeks back and ive decided i need to take my mind off it and im gonna get well stuck in to this. if that makes any sense.

now the reason i dont want a vauxhall engine is coz it to common (and people put them in nova's which i hate) n you can get them under a round nose. eventually ill put a vts engine in with proformance cams and wat ever else i think of. but i wanna just get all the running gear and the car sorted befor i go above the 100bhp line. plus it could just be me but ive never herd of anyone do a vtr engined mini befor. id like to be the first lol

blackvtrt · 26th April 2009, 00:47

As said bud if u read my post has already been done, bright blue mini on vtr wheels with demon tweaks wrote down the side

mikey362vtr · 26th April 2009, 10:54

an off road version? u mean like a dirt racer?

Mystic^p · 26th April 2009, 11:00

The VTR engine fits the round nose mini mate, ideally you can build your own spaceframe style front subframe, but its possible to just mod the minis subframe to fit it.

Theres a guy called BATESPEED on 16vminiclub whos running a VTR mini atm.

Saxy1 · 26th April 2009, 11:38

Sounds like an interesting project mate.

jamie_w · 26th April 2009, 12:20

16v it

Mystic^p · 26th April 2009, 13:11

16v might be a big harder because the minis brake & clutch cylindars + the bulkhead would probably need shifting to allow the extra depth of the 16v head.

mikey362vtr · 26th April 2009, 13:53

ive been talkin to batespeed on the mini forum. its do able and i now know that. i intend to use the orginal mini subframe and use some box section to build it up once its all fitted and done and im happy with everything ill strip it out and get another subframe take to the matel shop near me and get them to build a tubular space frame for it coz itll look better when i get the vts in lol.

btw im lookin for a cheap vtr engine if anyone has one needs to be close as poss to sheffield

Berg · 26th April 2009, 15:12

be interested to see this done

seen a mini clubman on ebay a while ago with vts conversion

mikey362vtr · 26th April 2009, 17:13

well ive spent the day strippin an old sub frame from a p reg mini has been sat in the garden for about 5 years lol. its in really good condition except its got some surface rust which ive attacked with the wire brush on the drill and ive taken 5 coz my hands are killin lol.

got some pics of the mini to. need about £100 worth of panels not including the fibreglass front i want. so plenty to do. will post pics later

mikey362vtr · 28th April 2009, 21:41

I never got round to up loading the pics of the cleaned up subframe, the mini at the moment and all the holes it has in it lol. so here they are lol

and as of about 8.30pm tonight i have an engine courtesy of ebay so ive not got lots more to do lol

mikey362vtr · 3rd May 2009, 20:56

So time for an update, I've done alot since last time i posted. Got the front end off, stripped the electrics from the engine bay, removed the left side engine steady and started to clean the bay up get it ready for sanding and painting befor the engine goes in. So heres at pic of the bay without the front end.

Anyway on to something that you dont get much of on here, Rust. Rust! and Sh*t loads of it that plus filler and some sort of bathroom sealant. This has really pissed me off mainly because for pretty much the last year ive been driving around on nothing but dust its that bad. Anyway heres some pics of the shoddy panel work.

And heres a pic with the wind screen out

so as you can say theres plenty of wholes to get shu tof by bying a new flitch panel, doorstep repair piece, outer sill, drivers side floor pan and a new scuttle corner. yet more cost to a low budget project fortunatly mini panels are cheap... ish

mike

-Alex- · 3rd May 2009, 21:01

Jesus that rust is appauling :|

mikey362vtr · 3rd May 2009, 21:10

your telling me pal. looks like in the past someone has tried to repair it/cover it theyve patch welded the flitch panel on one side of the patch then wax oiled it and then just attached other panels using filler and some sort.

on the upside takin a day trip to whitby to get my engine on tuesday

blackvtrt · 3rd May 2009, 21:11

Tbh bud doesn't look that bad for a mini. Ur scuttles in good nick and windscreen area solid, so not that bad. The inner pannels next to the air vents always go. Once u start cutting them apart u just keep going unfortuntley. What u need a new floor pan for? is it bad underneath? the sill will cover 90% of that, then just abit of plate!
The problem is once u replace A panels, wings etc, u can protect them up the best u can but, ull always burn parts of it away when u weld, so they rust from the inside up and out over! Can look relavitley ok from the outside but are rotten right through!
Dont give up on it

Oli_K · 3rd May 2009, 21:15

got a single plug vtr engine at ricky-p's if u want it

mikey362vtr · 3rd May 2009, 21:19

under neath is completly rotten, its the lack of panels thats holding me up now i mean dads gonna do me the welding coz hes genius at it lol, im hoping to have it road worthy by august for mini in the park at santa pod to take it down the drag strip. its a big ask but its do able... i think lol