Description
1977 Austin Mini Clubman 1310c, tax and mot exempt and as a classic ULEZ compliant, ha!
A much loved car of mine and a shame to sell but I must slim down the car collection. I purchased the mini around 2014 and is was a solid car it needed some work, as ever, this projects got carried away and it ended up being a full strip down. Whilst the rust was not bad the inner sills were not great so my certified welder friend jigged and replaced the inner/ outer sills and full floor. Our thoughts were, do it once and do it properly. Well that is how the project kept progressing, all of the panel work was sorted and resprayed, the chassis parts were removed, cleaned and painted. Another good friend who originally trained building race mini engines took the engine in during COVID for a complete rebuild, then we had the car and timing sorted by local carb specialists Airy Tuning. Chassis has done 37000 miles but obviously enigne is nearly new and only done a few hundered.
The car is road ready and has been great fun for the last couple of summers. It is mechanically sorted, started and runs great but the interior could be tidied and the car finished off the standard you want. I just have too many projects underway and this one deserves someone who can take this project to the next level. It is ideal for someone who want a totally usable car to fettle, as you dont have to worry about the bodywork, chassis and engine.
It has always been garage stored and never run in winter or the wet since I have owned it.
Block is A+ at 1310cc
Minispeed head at Stage4, 10. 5:1 CR.
3. 7 Final Drive. Dynno guy states 90MPH in 4th and 6000 Rpm.
Omega 6. 5cc Pistons.
Arp head studs etc.
Roller rockers
New timing chain and oil pump
Metro A+ Crank.
Swiftune SW5 Cam, which is a nice fast road cam, rather than lumpy full race.
123 electronic ignition.
Indicator and Lligh stalks updated to latter more reliable type from 1990 era. Needs column cover.
Adjustable front and rear supension parts.
GAZ adjutamble dampers
The dyno run in late 2023 has the car at 95Hp @6500 RPM in current spec. It runs an HIFF44 SU carb which is probably a bit small for the new engine and the carb specalist who tuned it on the roling road believes there is more to be found. I have run the car on an LCB and RC40 exhaust so it has a great note but not too load for the neighbours. There is a the older 50mm exhaust in the spares bits, it was just a bit too loud for my liking.
We have all bought some from Ebay and it was far from that described so here is the nitty gritty known small issues. Interior heater has been stripped and resealed but need refitting. Rear Left, small 8mm patch of paint damage. Front panel seam trims pop away at bottom. Interior door lock trim missing. Front offside wing-to-body panel, paint along this seam light crack due to body flex which is common. Front wash bottle needs re-connecting. New Wiring harnes and re-done fuseboxs but could do with a tidy behind the dash. Front wheels lightly rub on arch spats and need 5-10mm relief. No radio fitted. Steering colum has the later and improved Mini switch gear but needs a plastic clamshell putting around it. One empty gauge hole on dash as this was where I ran the Lambda meter but now use it on other cars. Underside is great but a new light underseal at rear would be sensible. Could do with some new carpets and the bucket seats could do with a bit of carpet shampoo to get them looking their best.
So many classics are nice on the outside, polished on the inside but a can of worms and rust underneath, this is the opposite, the interior does needs finishing or you decide you want to re-work it to your spec but all the bits are cant see are sorted, the chassis, engine, sub frames. I know I’ll never get back what we spent on it but have put in a reserve as its too good to go for pennies. Honestly, cars dont like sitting around and its a real shame for it to wait in my storage and not get out more. Its time for the next person to get have some fun. Bank Transfer on collection, I will also gather up all of the odd and ends and spares etc.
Thanks for looking. J.
