And in the second part of our Mini double header, the BMW MINI One from 2001 is given a thorough inspection.
With the MINI One at his home, Rob Hawkins starts to pick over the car and compile a long list of jobs to be done.
The rose-tinted glasses are definitely off, but I’m forever optimistic that the £400 2001 Y-reg MINI One I have at home isn’t going to turn into a bottomless money pit. Being an early model, I plan to keep it as original as possible, which may mean overhauling some parts instead of replacing them. That may not always be feasible, though. The defective rear brakes that were noted at the last MoT test in July 2020 may be caused by a sticking brake caliper and need replacing for instance, but I’d like to hope I can overhaul the caliper with new seals, helping to keep the original BMW component. From a point of being frugal, the rear brake discs are rusty, but have plenty of remaining metal (they are not worn excessively), so I will remove and clean them to see if they can be saved. A replacement set of discs and pads only costs around £60-£80, so all is not lost if my budget method fails.
There are a number of minor irritations with this MINI One. For example, the passenger door electric window doesn’t work. I can hear the motor attempting to power into action when I flick the switch on the centre console, but nothing happens. According to several forums, owners and specialists, thumping the door panel just above the speaker can fix the problem and stir the motor back to life, but I think I’ll remove the door card, check the electrical connections and grease the runners instead of simply hitting something. Then I’ll try hitting something.
From the limited driving I’ve completed in this MINI One, (which basically consists of moving it off my driveway and into my garage!) the steering feels very agricultural and clunky. The MINI’s steering is a combination of hydraulic and electric assistance – there’s an electric pump instead of a belt- driven pump, which then feeds the hydraulic power steering fluid through to the steering rack to provide powered assistance. Typical of an old design, the steering isn’t particularly light, but there are also a few knocks and bangs when manoeuvring the car. I’ve checked the fluid level inside the power steering reservoir and it is up to the maximum point on the dipstick, but worryingly it’s a murky brown colour. The fluid should be Pentosin CHF 11S, which is usually green. I checked with my local MINI specialist, mad4mini, and they explained that the power steering fluid shouldn’t usually need renewing, although it may have
been incorrectly mixed with Dexron II which is recommended for the later MINIs. A refresh of the fluid, lubrication of the steering column linkage and a check over of suspension bushes may discover the cause of the notchy and seemingly not so good steering.
Whilst the fluid in the power steering reservoir may look a little dubious, at least it’s there – unlike the engine coolant and oil. A few days following delivery of the MINI, I parked it in my garage and checked the oil level to find it was barely showing on the dipstick. It took the addition of 1.5 litres of oil before the level was between MIN and MAX. Similarly there was hardly any coolant inside the expansion tank, which is secured to the engine bulkhead. I topped it up with diluted G12, but was fearful of the fact that the coolant inside the engine may have run out as well, especially if the expansion tank outlet was blocked. So I squeezed a number of coolant hoses and could hear liquid being moved. I ran the engine for several minutes to allow it to warm up and later checked the coolant level. This had dropped by a small amount, so it was topped up again. Both the coolant and engine oil will need to be monitored to see whether fluid is being lost. However, I’ll be completing an engine service, so the oil will be drained. This led me to wonder when the last service was conducted. Strangely, the air filter looks as good as new, but the pollen filter looks worse than the inside of a Dyson after several years of abuse and neglect. So whilst the air filter can survive for a few more miles, new service items need to include engine oil and a filter, a pollen filter and a set of
Whilst the fluid in the power steering reservoir may look a little dubious, at least it’s there – unlike the engine coolant and oil
spark plugs to be safe. And still on the subject of safe, the MINI arrived with only fumes remaining inside the petrol tank, so I added a couple of gallons to reduce the risk of blocking the fuel system with dirt.
There are also a number of exterior cosmetic problems that should be fixed on the MINI. Most of the exterior black plastic trim has faded, so I’ll see if there are any magic potions to help restore it. Ultraviolet light in sunlight usually causes plastic to fade, but I’ve found some interesting remedies. For example, I once managed to revive the faded plastic arches on a Corsa B using a heat gun, but it doesn’t seem to work on this MINI. I’ll shop around for some Back-to- Black or other plastic restorer to see if any of them can help.
Elsewhere, there’s some trim missing from the nearside front corner of the roof and I need to fit a new bee-sting aerial at the back of the roof because that is also missing (the base it should be screwed into is still present). The worst of the cosmetic defects on the outside of this MINI concerns the bonnet, though. It has a mottled finish and looks as though someone has attempted to respray it, but the paint reacted. It’s beyond a cut and polish, so a respray is the only answer.
Inside the MINI, there are a few tatty pieces of trim, including the gear knob that cuts into your hand and water marks on the seat, but overall the interior isn’t too bad. The digital display for the steering column-mounted tacho doesn’t work (this displays information such as outside temperature) and nor does the aforementioned passenger electric window, but otherwise everything else seems to be in good order, including the electrically adjustable door mirrors. And I’ve even plugged in a Launch fault code reader and cannot find any stored or pending faults.
However, the boot tells a different story and highlights a common problem with the MINI – water ingress. There’s no spare wheel or toolkit underneath the false floor, but instead there’s what can be best described as enough water for a foot spa. Surprisingly, the water is clean and the surrounding metalwork is free from rust, so all I need to do is drain it and find the source of the leak. Water can leak through via the high-level brake light, the rear wiper, registration-plate lights and plinth and the tailgate seal. I’ll remove all of them in an attempt to find and fix the problem.
So over the following six issues of Classics, I’ll be reporting on how I tackled all of the problems raised so far, although plans may change at times and jobs such as restoring the plastic trim or respraying the bonnet may take a back seat over more pressing tasks. Plus, who knows what else may go wrong? Wish me luck.