The rebuild of Jemima Puddleduck

[gweir]

jimmyjamjar pid='6549' dateline='1500647340']Not much progress this week, been attending to setting up rainwater tank. but i did manage to clean up the seats but am having problems with the seat runners which wont slide properly, I'll have to strip them and figure out a way to make them work. No 1 child came round and helped with the cleaning and also with cutting and  fitting the acoustic panels for the floor. I also managed to decipher some of the wiring loom but still can't connect with what I am seeing and which diagram in Heynes BOL is the right one, what I would really like is to find a wiring layout rather than a diagram which I find confusing. I alo did some prep worek on the bonnet as the spray job I did on it was pathetic. I must add that I am the world's second worst spray-painter  (I figure there must be someone worse than me ).

   

I printed this colour diagram on an A3 and had it laminated. Maybe this could be of use to you as well.

   

A "layout" of the wiring

   

https://www.minimania.com/catPage/9-73/9...-Harnesses

[jimmyjamjar]

thanks that will be a big help going foreward

[jimmyjamjar]

Did a bit more on the sound proofing with high density foam on the firewall, still got to be glued in but will leave that till harness is fitted. I also remounted the pedals, what a mission! I eventually cut a piece of dowel to hold the pedals onto the return spring and then when I got them lined up in the bracket  I used a screwdriver to pushed the dowel out and inserted the shaft. fitted the hand  rake and adjusted the cables.

I took a look under the car and found that the battery cable was damaged. At some stage it was patched with rubber tubing tied with wire and wrapped with insulation tape , not good, so I will put in my spare which is like new. I also noticed that the fuel pipe only goes from the rear to about level with the gear lever position, surely this is not right? that leaves about more than a meter to the fuel pump so my question is can I just replace it with new rubber fuel hose, the existing is real dodgy and looks like it is currently a piece of gas hose, brittle as hell ? or is it best to get a new pipe all the way from the floor under the tank to the front sub frame ?

I know I sound like a stuck record but the wiring harness still stumps me  I have removed the loom that goes to the boot and on checking the colours they don't match up with any of the diagrams in the BOL or the one Gweir posted.

       

[Willy]

On the wiring loom, it is all a bit of a puzzle. Mine was a 1100 Clubman but was wired for rear fog lights, window de-mister and rev counter. It is possible that somewhere along the line someone changed some wiring in the car. . .

Mine at least matched in colour to most of the diagrams I could find.

[jimmyjamjar]

Well not much progress visible the last while but I was doing a lot of those small things that seem to take a lot of time yet not much visible progress. THe big news and relief all round is that I got the motor running Whoopee! I am so relieved that after more than 12 years the beast lives! I battled a bit at first checking all the settings and clearances and timing etc. but it would just not run  but then I discovered the carb was not functioning, the piston would not lift properly and so when i squirted some pewtrol in it would briefly fire but not carry on. I also found the jet was not set up properly. I took the carb off and put my spare on and hey prest Vroom Vroom!

My front taper roller front wheel bearing kits arrived only to discover that one of the boxes had no oil seals in it , Mini Spares appologised and have sent mew the missing seals which should arrive any day now . I nervously tackled the cutting of the wheel arches on the front for the new 13" wheels. I did not fancy cutting and bending a a new stiffening lip as suggested in the literature and opted for pop riveting a portion of the cut out piece onto the edge of the cut and it seems to be nice and rigiid again. I was surprised at how tough the metal was as I had to use a new jig saw blade for each cut.

Then on Sunday when we had the family round for a birthday celebration I roped the guys in to help me push the car round to the garage, one small hitch the Mini is 3.1 meters long and the beam that  have my hoist connected to puts the engine at 2.9 meters! so we had to lift the engine up and two of the family pushed the engine and then i let it down 30 cm deeper into the garage so we could close the door. I am getting quite excited for the day when I will hoist the motor into the car. I just need to get some stainless bolts forthe mountings.

               

[DomMINIque]

Sometimes it's the things that make no noticeable difference to the eye that make all the difference to when you get to driving the car.

Any progress is good progress. Well that's what I tell myself.

[jimmyjamjar]

It's been a while since I gave an update so here goes.
At last! After 15 years without, Jemima Puddleduck is once again engined. I struggled a bit with getting the mountings bolted down. The drive shafts have been rebuilt and are now in as is the gearshift mechanism, this time around with a stop leak kit installed. I have three exhaust systems, the part with the expansion box and main muffler, but I have had a new front pipe made up as the existing one was a bit dodgy. This new pipe has a much thicker wall dimension than the old one and I had to make some adjustments to the flare on the manifold end so the clamp fitted. I have decided not to use the stainless system and use one of the others which still has the Bosal stickers on it. I might still use the stainless later but need to get two small cracks either side of the hanger bracket welded. I also made up a front hanger bracket using a U-clamp and a bit of flat steel twisted to shape.
 
My best efforts at fixing the stripped sump oil plug failed so I called in the local tap and die mobile workshop who came out with a beautifully kitted out bakkie and in under an hour he had re-drilled and tapped the hole and fitted a new drain plug, I now feel much happier that I won’t lose oil. I also made a bracket for the remote starter I am putting in the engine compartment
 
So we are getting there slowly and then I had a setback when my compressor stopped compressing which is not good as I still need to do some spraying of small parts and the cut-outs on the wheel arches. here are some pics of the latest progress, which I feel is far too slow but as previosly mentionedonly having one had that works propewrly makes the going slow.
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[Jared Mk3]

The sump plug is always the first thing to get damaged or bodged on a Mini. I don't know how people manage to do it . . .

Congrats on getting the motor back in

[jimmyjamjar]

As you can see in the pic the sump fins have been ground away at some time. I think I must invest in a sump guard to protect the bottom of the engine from getting graunched , when flying low over speed bumps, although I must say I have become a very sedate driver the last few years since I turned 70.

[DomMINIque]

Congrats on getting the motor back in!
Always a big step in the right direction.