Progress on my 75 Morris Mini Pickup

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
May 27, 2002
Messages
3,354
Location
Bolivia
For those who might of missed it, this is the Mini I bought a little over a year ago. The front had been extended to fit a 3 cyl suzuki engine, cutting the frame to pieces so it no longer stood on its four wheels. The Big Volvo truck bumper didn't help.
page2-1001-full.jpg


A little cleaning and I had this
page2-1006-full.jpg


I gave him back the Suzuki engine and kept original engine, which is almost useless. In theory it only needed a timing chain.
page5-1005-full.jpg

page5-1004-full.jpg


Used all the latest technology to pull the engine out and discover how badly cut up the front frame was.

page8-1000-full.jpg

page8-1001-full.jpg


The floor was eaten by the battery that had been eaten by rats
page8-1016-full.jpg


My first order of parts came from the UK (my twin grandchildren showing off the tires)
page11-1001-full.jpg

page11-1000-full.jpg


Body wok started and tire positioned to see how far to flare the fenders
page11-1003-full.jpg


Lots of body panels to fabricate
page11-1005-full.jpg


Floor and front chassis had to be cut out and a new floor fabricated out of a Toyota mini van. Later it will be flattened the rest of the way.
page14-1007-full.jpg

page14-1011-full.jpg


So I stripped and sandblasted the rear chassis and suspension, adding a little paint

page14-1001-full.jpg

page14-1000-full.jpg

page14-1003-full.jpg


After polishing the trumpets, installing new bushings and knuckles, I assembled it.
page15-1004-full.jpg


Then discovered the wheel bearings were not usable (forgot to check)
page15-1005-full.jpg

page15-1006-full.jpg

page15-1007-full.jpg


Now to wait three weeks for the bearings to get here from the UK. Also still waiting on the engine and new front frame from Chile.
 
Well done so far! Glad you are putting some real tires on it. Those other ones look like they belong on a hand-cart or something.

I love those original 1970's paint stripes! Would love to see it done in something "cute and sporty".
 
I loved the corvair build you did. This one looks like a great follow up. I did not know there was a pick up version......

Keep up the great work, and the pictures of your progress.
 
Excellent progress.
I've got a '51 Henry J that will need similar body work. I'll gladly let you do your skills on it any time you want!
 
Love that roll bar and the "cherry picker"(s?), too!

Those modern 4-bolt wheels (vs. the 120 degree three-bolts on the '62 Renault) are nice. Has anyone ever put a 208 hp BMW/Mini) drivetrain in one of these?

Cheers!
 
Quote:
Has anyone ever put a 208 hp BMW/Mini) drivetrain in one of these?


Not sure about that, but there are a lot of Honda conversions to the Vtec that go up to 195 hp.

I'm just going to up it from the original 998cc 38 hp to a 1275cc 70+ hp from a later mini. Adding disc brakes.

Thanks for the comments. Got a way to go, but
 
Good Lord!
You did the Corvair, you're doing this (real) Mini and the Dauphine, and you're doing them all to a very a high standard, and you have a business as well.
There are restoration shops that can't match the pace and quality of your work.
I truly admire your ambition and follow-through.
 
Finally something to report on the Mini. I decided not to keep waiting on the promised engine from Santiago. If it finally gets here I'll just have to find another mini for it.

So I bought a front clip from Japan in the port in Chile. The engine and body part got stuck at the border til next trip (10 days), but my body guy, who went to get it, was able to scavenge a few of the parts off of it so I could start.

So here is what I have at home now, spending today cleaning and polishing. Tomorrow I'll finish up the front sub-frame and paint it.

This will go back ahead of the Renault since I have tags and paperwork for it.

I'll end up with what is probably the only 1975 Morris Mini pickup with Cooper-S disc brakes, a 1300cc Mini-Cooper engine, automatic transmission, air conditioning, roll-up windows, and a bunch of other things.

AC_condensor_and_radiator.jpg

alternator.jpg

Polishing_alternator.jpg

grill.jpg

headlights.jpg

drive_shafts-brakes.jpg

front_sub-frame_bottom.jpg

front_sub-frame.jpg

front_suspension.jpg

front_adjusta-ride.jpg
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top