Whilst I always support doing things for charity whatever it is, to describe driving from tip to toe of nz in a original model mini as adventurous is just bloody silly. Sure plenty of mature people here have done that and more in even less suitable cars when they were all we had. 'Anyone who has seen Goodbye Pork Pie will understand what a madly adventurous experience it would be to go on the same journey as the yellow Mini in the movie.' http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/our-people/67445646/Mini-set-for-maximum-trip
There I feel better now.
richardmayes,
Mar 26, 12:21pm
Depends on the condition of the mini.
It sounds like that car has an overheating problem and they are basically crossing their fingers and relying on a few Hail Mary!s to get them through.
Adventure? Maybe.
Some sort of ordeal? Probably.
whqqsh,
Mar 26, 1:01pm
When I was 7 or 8 years old mum & dad took me on a round the south island trip in mums mini (it was tidier than dads mini), drove from Aucks to Welly, across on the ferry then down the west coast & back up east coast, tent stored on the roof-rack, bags of clothes in the boot & me sitting/lying on the bedding on the back seat. It's just what people did back in 60s-70s. Next time we went down was in the Valiant. luxury by comparison lol
tamarillo,
Mar 26, 1:16pm
They all have overheating problem, it's built in having radiator to side of engine.
bwg11,
Mar 26, 1:30pm
Rubbish. Minis did have a few common problems but overheating wasn't one of them.
socram,
Mar 26, 2:16pm
Never had an overheating problem either. From 1967 to 2002, always had a BMC Mini of one sort or another, from 850cc Mini vans, through modded 850's, modded 998 Coopers, full house 1320cc Cooper S and other 1300cc Minis. All with standard radiators and some did huge mileages, often pedal to the metal!
Had carburettor icing, but never overheating.
mike1345,
Mar 26, 2:42pm
They weren't one of the worlds best selling cars because they were crap.
purple666,
Mar 26, 2:54pm
You haven't lived if you have never thrashed around in a hotted up Mini. Not quite as much fun in older years (thats me not the car).
tamarillo,
Mar 26, 3:27pm
Ok well I shoulnt hAve generalised. Mini 'can have overheating' I should have said. And indeed some I had did but came right with care and work. A lot of electric fans were sold for good reason. And re designed front ends (bigger bonnets or kit cars) often allowed one to put a radiator in front for good reason.
I haven't had one for a long time but imagine the cooling system would need to be in top order to manage today's traffic.
So not absolute rubbish.
tamarillo,
Mar 26, 3:33pm
Well true, though can't work out how the hell I fitted in them! Had a Lynn rogers (is that right name) rally motor in an 850 to run it in, that surprised people.
robotnik,
Mar 26, 3:37pm
Actually what they are doing is pretty dangerous and a bit silly really.
Those cars have no airbags, traction control or anything much safety-wise and if you hit anything substantial you're dead.
saki,
Mar 26, 3:41pm
A good adventure get back to the motoring of the 60s and 70s and before the cars had multy driving aids and safety features.
stevo2,
Mar 26, 3:48pm
Not heard much about overheating but water on the electrics is real common.
richardmayes,
Mar 26, 3:51pm
Minis in general may not be susceptible to overheating problems, but the car belonging to the lady owner in the article really, really DOES. read the article!
richardmayes,
Mar 26, 3:52pm
Not sure if serious?
purple666,
Mar 26, 3:57pm
I reckon they are safer than modern cars due to the lack of distractions, not many buttons or switches etc, you have direct feel and control, and you sure know when you are going fast that it is time to concentrate on the task at hand.
clark20,
Mar 26, 6:44pm
Yep, I have a Lynn Rodgers head on my MG Midget, now about 95 hp and lots of fun
socram,
Mar 26, 7:02pm
'was', not 'is'. Easily solved with a waterproofing kit that covered the coil and distributor, then later cars had a splash guard. A can of WD40 was indeed part of the toolkit in the early days.
After my first trip up the UK's M1 motorway on a sodden Friday evening, that meant stopping every few miles, the waterproofing kit was fitted the day after, resolving it permanently.
sr2,
Mar 26, 9:00pm
Good on them I say, not everyone's idea of an "adventure" is the same. (I can't help but ask what adventured you've had recently?).
elect70,
Apr 12, 1:41am
In 1968 3 of us traveled from welly to Kaitia for xmass hols , up the west side & down the east side . with tent surfboards etc , in 1960 mini other than broken fan belt never had a problem
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