Noob from Kathu

[Deon1275E]

Hi everyone, I would like to introduce myself with a short background of my mini. So here goes.

My dad bought an almost brand new secondhand 1984 (i think) 1275E in '95 for my mom. I'd like to say, like all female car owners but Id rather try stay on the safe side, the mini was'n taken care of especially on the interior. She was my mom's commuter for about 5 years untill we moved to the Northern cape (kathu). From the time when we moved to kathu in 2000 until now she hasnt done 1000km. The clock currently stand at 54k original kilometers. In 2006 my dad and I opened the engine and repaired broken rings. The motor is mechanically in tip top shape. Every now and then I'll give her a swing and with no trouble she'll start at first swing. Now, I've been thinking alot about this the past year or so to get her back on the road to full glory. The biggest problem and reason why she has been standing in the garage for more than 10 years is the effen brakes. We tried almost everything and replaced almost eveything but she never had proper brakes. (Well she has very good brakes but only in one wheel) Anyway, I joined this forum to gain some knowledge from you experts and hopefully get contacts when it comes to restoring the old girl.
I tried to post some pics but couldn't succeed.

Glad to be here and hope to hear from anyone!
Regards
Deon

[minitim]

Welcome Deon!. You won't be short of expertise and advice over here.

[DomMINIque]

Welcome Deon.

There's a thread in the suggestions and tips section on how to post pictures. If you still stuck then let us know one of us will help you out.

As for your braking problem, someone here will be able to help you out I'm almost certain of that.

[Jared Mk3]

Welcome

Get a thread started so we can sort your braking problem.

[Vinay-RS]

Welcome Deon Let's see some pics of your E. It is so cool to hear that it has been in your family for so many years. Adds to the character of the little cars.

[abri]

Hi Deon,

I can imagine parts are probably not easy to come by in your part of the world, so if it would help, feel free to let me know if you need something picked up and mailed to you. I'm in Cape Town. Brakes can be a pain in the arse...but generally after replacing the cylinders at the wheels and servicing the brake master most problems are solved. What is the state of your brake hoses and shoes?

[Deon1275E]

Hi again,  havent been on the forum for a long time now and my mini is still just standing in the garage as she's been for the past 16 years. With this I am not including the once in a while start and driving up and down the road. the engine is realy in good shape. Oh and as a maintenance engineer I must mention that dont just start her up and go before I havent done a quick prestart inspection. 

Okay so I have been thinking about this for a while now but I dont have time to do a proper restoration and thus I have some questions or need some opinions.
1. With the body and engine being in very good nic, would it be better to return her to original or rather just go all out and make it a nice looking mini. (I mean stock standard they aren't that good to look at.) and by nice looking i mean just a new complete paint job complete interior reupholster, wheel arches and mags which is not standard.
2. If I were to do the back to standard restoration what would she be worth, I mean I know I will have to respray as there as some dents and the paint is dull, but I dont want to restore it and spend 30k on the car if afterwards its only going to be worth the same amount. 
3. As far as I could remeber its a '84 model. I dont think they are very colletable are they? Thus is it worth spending time and money on it.
Lastly, I have been thinking of just selling it as it is taking up space, but what would she be worth. Obviously all you okes on the forum would like to pick it up for a bargain price but the money I'll get wont mean anything to me as it has a lot of sentimental value to me. anyway, what would you guys be willing to pay for it. 

Here is some honest detail on the car's background and condition.


The car is as far as I know rustfree as I live in Kathu (kalahari) so it basically hasn't seen any moisture.
The interoir is still 100% original and in good condition (seats) but all carpets are gone,
Also on the interior side, the paint on the doors on both driver and passenger side is chipped and has a lot of scratches.
The dash has a crack or two and the original rear window panel ( where people usaualy put the speakers) is missing (we made a new one from presswood.)
Its missing a few cosmetic parts like the dash ash tray, cabin light (bulb and cover), rear ash tray and the fan/heater pipe
The body has a few minor dents but really nothing major.
Engine:
As previously mentioned it has 54k km on the odo now.
My dad and I opened the engine about 1k km ago (10 years ago) and fitted new pistons, rings (10 thou oversize, block also bored) and cam chain tensioner and complete engine gaskets and seals.
So heres the other thing on the engine, when my dad fitted the new pistons, it appeared to be the wrong ones. The pistons did not come flush to the top of the block when at TDC as the original pistons did. They came about 3-5mm short. So from living in the middle of nowhere and not having the time or money at that time we just did a backyard mechanic job to solve the  problem asap. we took the block to a local machinist and ground the excess block down. This seemed to be a fast and easy fix but then when we assembled the engine the pushrods were too long...hahaha. well so we just grinded that shorter as well. We also gave the engine a nice spraypaint job which at the time looked really good, but we quickly learnt that heat resistant spray cans doesn't last and most paint came off after the first pressure washer attempt...hahah I know, idiots arent we. Anyway the engine runs like a little beast even with all our mods. I once took her up to 160km/h (yes past its marked down 140 mark but my buddy was driving behind me in his car and thats what his speedo was showing.)

So as also mentioned previously, the main reason for the car just standing in the garage is because of its brakes, and we tried everything to our limited knowledge to try and fix it but never had any luck.

Now you know basically everything about the car so what would it be worth if I decide to sell it?

regards

Deon
   
   
   

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o and here is a photo of the engine. all photos posted are as the car is now.
   

[Vinay-RS]

It looks like a relatively clean car and having an original interior and rust free bodywork would help with any potential sale.

I must admit, the rebuilt engine sounds a little dodgy, although you've been completely honest when describing it, which may help a potential buyer make a decision regarding a rebuild.

Apart from Coopers and Cooper Ss, most mini models aren't worth a heck of a lot. Many people rebuild or restore them because they love their cars and want to enjoy the car even more.

Recently however I've seen a few other (non special) minis sell for good money. These are either one owner cars or have had a lot of time and money invested in them to raise them to that quality.

Since it is a 1275 E, which isn't the most collectable model, you would probably end up spending well over the value of the car to restore it. I hope that helps and best of luck with whatever you decide to do. Personally, (since it has a lot of sentimental value to you,) if you can (i.e. you have the resources of time and money to) rebuild it and enjoy driving it, I think that's what you should do.

[Jared Mk3]

It's your car, fix it up as you see fit. However, decent original or restored to original cars are few and far between. In the long run, I think a standard restored car will hold some value. Maybe not right now, but definitely in the future. When all the Mk1s etc are gone, people will move onto other cars, like your E. This is all my opinion of course, but hopefully it does help.

[Deon1275E]

Thanks for the advice guys! So I'll keep it and one day do proper restore.