mason@vax.ftp.com (Nark Mason) (02/05/90)
I met a dude recently who has a austin mini (no idea what year or engine) with no interior, and was given a car he can only describe as being and MG and looking like an austin america. Supposedly both of them run. He says the 2 cars chare the same drivetrain and interior. He was going to take the interior out of the MG and put it into the austin, but he's moving to colorado in march and has another project that will take all of his time til them, so he's offered them to me, $500 was a rough price he gave, we can probably haggle. I've seen the mini, sure enough it's got no interior and needs a paint job, haven't seen the MG though I'm curious. Someone Else said it's probably an MG 1100. Does anyone out there know what this MG might be, and is it worth having? I've always thought the mini's were the *cutest* little things, though I'm not sure if I'd want to drive one.\ But who can turn down a couple of cute (or ugly) british cars?
"Ralph E. Droms" <droms@sol.bucknell.edu> (02/05/90)
... a car he can only describe as being and MG and looking like an austin america. The Austin America was a follow-on to the MG 1100. He says the 2 cars share the same drivetrain and interior. I doubt they truly share either, but I'm speaking as a former MG 1100 driver who has no real experience with Minis (although I did see a "little old lady driving one in Clearwater, FL earlier this month!). They might share a drivetrain, in the sense that both use derivatives of the same engine (the Mini included, I believe, an 849cc engine, while the MG 1100 used the 1049cc version of the Spridget engine). I doubt they share the interior; e.g., the MG 1100 has a dashboard. The MG 1100 is enough larger than a Mini - roughly the size of a VW Rabbit or Honda Civic (early model year) to be a "real" car, in which one can take as many as three adult friends (as well as oneself) for a drive. If MG had begun importing them a few years later, perhaps during one of the oil embargos of the early 70s, they might have been more of a success. Naaahhh... - Ralph
archer@hsi.com (Garry Archer) (02/05/90)
> Date: Sun, 4 Feb 90 17:05:04 EST > From: yale!harvard!mit-eddie!vax.ftp.com!mason (Nark Mason) > > I met a dude recently who has a austin mini (no idea what year or engine) > with no interior, and was given a car he can only describe as being and > MG and looking like an austin america. Supposedly both of them run. He > says the 2 cars chare the same drivetrain and interior. He was going to > take the interior out of the MG and put it into the austin, but he's moving > to colorado in march and has another project that will take all of his > time til them, so he's offered them to me, $500 was a rough price he gave, > we can probably haggle. I've seen the mini, sure enough it's got no interior > and needs a paint job, haven't seen the MG though I'm curious. Someone Else > said it's probably an MG 1100. Does anyone out there know what this MG > might be, and is it worth having? I've always thought the mini's were > the *cutest* little things, though I'm not sure if I'd want to drive one.\ > But who can turn down a couple of cute (or ugly) british cars? Me Dad in England used to have a Morris 1100, a "J" reg (1970-71). Of course, there was a duplicate Austin 1100 version. And British Leyland back then had to have a "sporting" version. So they beefed up the suspension, tuned up the engine, pryed off the Morris/Austin badge and glued on an MG badge, hence the MG 1100 was born. I'm sure they did a little bit more to it, but that was basically it. I never heard of the Austin America until I came over here nearly 10 years ago. A few years later I saw a photo-ad for one and I immediately recognised it as a Morris/Austin 1100. My guess is that the Austin America is not the MG variant though. Me Dad's car drove very nicely. I enjoyed the oversized steering wheel. It was pretty peppy, but by today's standards it would probably be considered slow (I'm guessing a 0-60 time of 15 or 16 seconds). If I remember correctly (it's been over 10 years since I drove it) it had a soft suspension. My lasting impression was that the steering wheel was a little off centre for the driver, off to the left (towards the passenger seat!) a bit. I felt that I had to sit turned to the left a smidgeon to drive it. Perhaps it was just me. Hmmm, that is interesting to say that the 1100 and a Mini share the same driveline and interior. I wouldn't know about the driveline, except that it must be pretty much similar. Parts of the interior could be swapped, I suppose. The front seats maybe? The rear seats in the 1100 would probably be too wide. The dash on the 1100 is definitely different. Me Dad's Morris had one of those ugly bar type speedometers instead of the much preferred dial or rotary type. Of course, the Mini didn't have much of a dash or parcel shelf/glove box anyway. Anyway, between the two cars, I'd choose the Mini any day. If the Austin America is a good runner, probably you should keep it in driveable condition and invest in new or used interior parts for the Mini. There appear to be many places that specialise in Mini parts. But finding parts for an Austin America may not be all that easy! This way you could have two driveable cars at a reasonable price. Garry Archer Esq. {noao, yale, uunet}!hsi!archer -OR- archer@hsi.com Health Systems International, New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.A. "An Englishman never enjoys himself, except for a noble purpose." - A.P.Herbert
George.Emery@p42.f4.n105.z1.fidonet.org (George Emery) (02/05/90)
> I've seen the mini, sure enough it's got no interior > and needs a paint job, haven't seen the MG though I'm curious. Someone Else > said it's probably an MG 1100. Does anyone out there know what this MG > might be, and is it worth having? It's an MG 1100, probably from Canada. The motor should be 1098cc (unless someone has done a swap) and the drivetrain will be identical to the Mini's, except the final drive will be different because the MG 1100 (and Austin America) use 12" diameter wheels instead of 10". If you use the drivetrain on a Mini, unaltered, you'll be able to accelerate to 60 quite quickly, but redline at 65 mph. 12" wheels would put it right or changing the final drive would work. A concours MG 1100 or Austin America can be had for a MAXIMUM of $1500. Restoring one is definitely NOT worth it. If either car is running, has brakes, and they aren't suffering from the British Disease (rust), then $500 is a fair price for both. If the MG 1100 has an automatic transmission, then it's worthless, for the most part. The block is specific to the transmission, though it's possible to drill out the necessary oilways to use it on a standard transmission, and parts for the automatic are scarce and expensive. [By the way, if anybody needs an automatic transmission, there's a working one sitting in my garage which the owner would gladly sell] I've been wanting to get an Austin America so that I can turn it into a convertible -- just hack the top off of it. You have to be careful you don't cut too low on the rear window pillars as the trunk hinges are up inside them. Add 13" rims from a Pinto, some underplating, a rollbar, and you have a nice fun rough-road summer car which you don't feel bad about thrashing. > But who can turn down a couple of cute (or ugly) british cars? I know what you mean! -- George Emery - via FidoNet node 1:105/14 UUCP: ...!{uunet!oresoft, tektronix!reed}!busker!4.42!George.Emery ARPA: George.Emery@p42.f4.n105.z1.FIDONET.ORG
George.Emery@p42.f4.n105.z1.fidonet.org (George Emery) (02/06/90)
> My lasting impression was that the steering wheel was a little off centre > for the driver, off to the left (towards the passenger seat!) a bit. I > felt that I had to sit turned to the left a smidgeon to drive it. Oops! I forgot to mention that as one of the prime characteristics of these little beasts! To from one of these to a GT-6 is a rather bizarre act... the GT-6 has the pedals offset in the other direction. > Parts of the interior could be swapped, I > suppose. The front seats maybe? Yes. The front seats are more desireable than the Mini's because they have additional padding, a headrest, and more of a bucket to keep your derierre from sliding into the other seat while cornering. There's a slight disadvantage because they'll sit higher than Mini seats and just barely fit the width of a Mini. The extra padding is nice, but if you're over 5'10", then your head will be constantly brushing the headliner... I use the seats for autocrossing because I can then see the fenders clearly. -- George Emery - via FidoNet node 1:105/14 UUCP: ...!{uunet!oresoft, tektronix!reed}!busker!4.42!George.Emery ARPA: George.Emery@p42.f4.n105.z1.FIDONET.ORG
mason@vax.ftp.com (Nark Mason) (02/08/90)
Well, last night I agreed to buy the Mini and the MG1100 for $400 providing I don't barf when I see the MG, which I haven't yet. I don't know why I would buy these, I have a TR250, triumph trident and a '47 GMC coach already in the restoration queue. I wonder if the NIMH has ever done a study on what chemical imbalance would make people buy these things, maybe we should get a bunch of us together, shove 'em in a parking lot with a lot of dolomited, minis and other ugly british cars (in various states of disrepair) with "For Sale: $100" stickers on them, and take brain tissue samples to see what's churning around in there. He says the mini has been partially race prepped, it's got racing seats, no interior, a widened track and flared fenders and a tiny (I mean *tiny*) steering wheel, I have no clue what the engine's like. The guy who's selling these dropped by last night, came upon me in the garage and said "hey, I was by the junkyard last night, they were crushing a 'B, I got the wire wheels off first, they want $15 each for them so I thought of you. Hey, I see you already got a pair, looks good... what'd you pay for them?"... (mumble mumble a lot more than $15 each so shut up)
archer@hsi.com (Garry Archer) (02/08/90)
> From: yale!harvard!mit-eddie!vax.ftp.com!mason (Nark Mason) > > Well, last night I agreed to buy the Mini and the MG1100 for $400 providing > I don't barf when I see the MG, which I haven't yet. ... I think we all had faith that you would buy 'em! Don't worry, I believe you'll like the MG. You can't lose too bad, getting *two* cars for $400 !! > .... I wonder if the NIMH has ever done a > study on what chemical imbalance would make people buy these things, maybe > we should get a bunch of us together, shove 'em in a parking lot with a > lot of dolomited, minis and other ugly british cars (in various states > of disrepair) with "For Sale: $100" stickers on them, and take brain > tissue samples to see what's churning around in there. This sounds like a WOOOOOONDERFUL experiment (heh, heh, cackle, cackle and other sounds of evil laughter...) Keep us informed about the cars when you get them. Good luck! Garry Archer