The Ulitmate Economy car!!!!

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I have an odd fetish. I love the original Austin/Morris Mini. I have wanted one for a long time now. I was reminded of this today when I saw a caravan of old Minis going down the road, each of them in a different body style. Anyhow, I want to build one with a Honda VTEC engine swap like this:

The whole story of the swap is here: http://minimikebc.tripod.com/

Basically, this car uses a Civic EX engine from a 92-95 model. It puts out 125hp in stock form. However, the car it came in was around 2600lbs, while the Mini is 1200-1500lbs ( depending on year and engine). So, the power to weight ratio is about the same as a G body with a 350hp engine. What's cool is that the Mini was made for 40 years (1959-1999) with very few changes. Other people have swapped the twin cam engines from a Civic Si or Integra GSR into them(160-195 hp rated) , but you have to lengthen the nose because the engine is too big!! You really have to see one to appreciate just how small is it. It is 3 feet shorter than the new Mini ( it is 10 feet long by 4.5 feet wide!!!).

Other interesting Mini facts:

The Mini Cooper won the Monte Carlo rally outright multiple times in the 60's, beating out much larger and more powerful cars.

Minis came with 10 in dia. wheels standard, but over the years wheels of 12 or 13 inches were optional.

The Mini was designed for the British market because of oil shortages in the 50's from the Suez canal crisis.

The original Mini came with a 850cc engine and got over 50mpg. The largest engine was 1275cc

The Mini's oil pan was it's transmission.

The Mini's designer (Alex Issigonis) was knighted by the Queen for designing the Mini.

Minis were last sold new in the US in 1969 ( I think) and Canada around 1980.

You can still buy a brand new body shell for a Mini through BMH, originally a subsidiary of British-Leyland, the company that produced the Mini in the 70's through the 90's. They also still make new bodies for MG's, and Triumphs. This predates Dynacorn doing Camaro bodies by about 15-20 years.

 

[Coveted]

that car on stock size wheels n tires, with a d15b6 engine trans and ecu from a crxhf would see 70mpg


edit other people swap the k20 into it which is making over 200hp.

Also in the picture, thats not a d series intake manifold, atleast it dosent look like any of the ones I've seen, I wonder what it is.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

If you read his site, you'll find he did a ton of work to get everything to fit, including the custom intake manifold. My thought was to use individual throttle bodies off a big bike engine to cut down on space problems, and run the fuel system off a Megasquirt, and the ignition from a MSD box ( with timing curve built in) using the Honda distributor. Either that, or bike carbs and a MSD. Activating the VTEC solenoid would be done with a RPM switch from MSD or somewhere else. I also considered using the transmission off a Civic VX or CRX HF to get taller gears so that it would not over power the max 185 60 13 tires the car can take with flares. It would also be a little better on gas that way.Another possible engine to use is the GM Ecotec, as this has been done in England where the engine comes in Vauxhall Astras. This guy built his own front subframe, but this conversion is so popular that you can buy them pre-fabbed for a number of different engines. The Suzuki Swift GT's 1300cc DOHC 4 would be another possibility as it does not weigh too much, is small and has been made to fit by other people as has the Chevy Sprint Turbo's boosted 3 cylinder. Then again, how about AWD by using the drivetrain from a Subaru Justy turbo?

Here's another Mini I found, this one with 13 in wheels and the "Sport Pack", as well as a B 16 or B18 swap.

It's off of Mini Mania's site, the US's biggest Mini parts supplier.

http://www.minimania.com/web/SCatagory/Reviews/DisplayType/News/DisplayID/1887/ArticleV.cfm

 

[78mali350]

I just got watching The Italian Job and i love the minis in that movie. the old one and the three new ones. anywho. i love these cars. they just seem to be hard to come by

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

If you look really hard, they are out there--just not cheap. I looked around today online and found runners as low as $3500, but they are in Canada, so you'd have to deal with importing them and shipping. Their stock engine/transmission is not a very reliable idea either--part of the reason I want to get one to swap.