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Car Forum / MINI / October 2003VTec'd Mini?
Hey All, Long story short. I posted here a few months ago about a mystery mini which turned out to be a 76 Leyland mini that has been modded to have a canvas top over the back half of the car. Anyway it's still sittin out there an winter is comin here in Canada. I been thinkin bout a winter project. Coincidentally we been shoppin to replace my wife's 84 Honda Accord - still a great car (one of the greatest I have to admit) even after 242000 miles but rustin. We'll probably replace it with a Subaru Outback maybe Legacy in order to get AWD. However I started looking at Sports car mags featurin compacts, rice burners an the like. I have to admit the turbo'd WRX Subarus an the like are kind of intrigin even for a guy who has always been basically a mopar guy as I know there is no replacement for displacement. Super Bees an Roadrunners (especially with hemi engines) an the like have always been my favorites. Anyway in my readin I ran across an ad in which people are puttin Honda VTecs in minis an I got to thinkin... I can get a VTec engine I got a mini how hard is it to do? Is 160+ DOHC horsepower (SOHC about 130 hp) worth it? I just read an article on moddin up a 1.6L VTec to over 200 hp without a turbo. How will a mini handle it? Is it wasted horsepower due to suspension issues? Will it fit under the hood without a total front body redo? (I realize that the suspension will need some beefin up) Is there a better an less expensive option? Could this car be used in say solo or autocross events (I'll never make NASCAR - I'm realizin that now :<() an I know some of these events are run around here in Western Canada somewhere. Just wonderin... I'd welcome any observations on what I'm thinkin. If I'm crazy - say so. TIA Take Care! -Ed- > I can get a VTec engine I got a mini how hard is it to do? Is 160+ > DOHC horsepower (SOHC about 130 hp) worth it? I just read an article [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > TIA Take Care! -Ed- There are a number of people doing VTec conversions in the UK. The company we deal with actually lengthens the front of the car to accommodate the Honda unit. It is not straight swap, that's for sure! There are also kits available with suitable subframes to take this engine, but I don't have any direct experience of them. I think you will find that the inherent problem is traction. Any front drive car is afflicted with a limit of traction way below that of a rear drive car. The more power you try to put down, the more weight transfer rearwards and the less grip you get at the front. When we were at Lotus and it was owned by GM, the company cars were mostly Astra's. The test drivers preferred the 1.8 to the 2.0 because it was actually quicker in everyday use. The power was more useable. I would suggest that a decently set up 1380 Mini will be just as quick as a VTec car in real life use. But it has to be said, it has nowhere near as much street cred!  SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk Check this out, not VTEC'd but mate she looks good :-) http://www.twincamturbo.com ---------------------------------------------------- This mailbox protected from junk email by Matador from MailFrontier, Inc. http://info.mailfrontier.com > Hey All, > [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > TIA Take Care! -Ed- Take a look at http://www.btinternet.com/~honda.mini/hybrids/VTEC/Watsons.htm > Check this out, not VTEC'd but mate she looks good :-) > [quoted text clipped - 37 lines] > > > > TIA Take Care! -Ed- There are a few links to vtec-minis in the Mini Repository: http://www.minirepository.com/links/?id=3 In particular: http://www.btinternet.com/%7Ehonda.mini/hybrids/index.html http://www.watsonsrally.co.uk/ http://www.16vmini.co.uk/ Enjoy! Signaturevisit the Mini Link Repository! http://www.minirepository.com Another link I came across today: http://www.bseries.net/html/specs/benginespecs.php Engine specs for all b-series Honda vtec engines - might come in useful when choosing an engine for your mini. Signaturevisit the Mini Link Repository! http://www.minirepository.com Hey All, Great links - especially that B series chart. Steve - if your still out there - the issue of usable power combined with handling is exactly what I'm interested in. Plus not gettin outrageously expensive of course :>). The 1380 engine you mentioned - what is it out of? I'm in western Canada - so engines common to you may well be as rare as hens teeth here. I know there are a fair number of VTecs out there and other engines as well. I was thinking that the VTec as modded in the Oct 03 issue of Hot Compact and Imports would have plenty of power for a mini at the low end and have that top end VTecs are known for as well. I'd never consider a turbo or nitrous for a mini precisely because of what you said - not enough weight on the front to use the power. I'm wondering to what extent a heavier? VTec and bigger tires and the correct rear suspension can help this. As I indicated I'm looking for performance not just a powerful but basically useless engine. My biggest concern is will it fit under the hood. Apparently a SOHC 1.6L VTec does. See the following link. http://minimikebc.tripod.com/ I'm not sure what the response of a SOHC to some engine building would be. There are kit subframes for these engines so I think it might not be too horrible bad to do the work although it doesn't look easy. Any more thoughts? Take Care! -Ed- > Hey All, > [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > TIA Take Care! -Ed- > Steve - if your still out there - the issue of usable power combined > with handling is exactly what I'm interested in. Plus not gettin [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > correct rear suspension can help this. As I indicated I'm looking for > performance not just a powerful but basically useless engine. Ed, The 1275 A-series unit can be taken to 1380 using offset bores and 73.5mm pistons. It then allows for a +0.020" overbore when it wears out, taking it to 1400. This is achieved with a standard stroke crankshaft. If you were to restroke the crank, you can go to 1430 or 1460. But these are starting to get more race orientated. The most common source (in the UK!) of 1275 motors is the Metro. Have you spoken to Mostly Mini's in Richmond to see if they have a core 1275 available? In my view (and others may not agree) a Mini is about optimum with 90-110bhp at the wheels. With this amount of power you will still get tyre (tire !) smoke when you are feeling the urge, but on the move you will be able to get the power down through corners. SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk Hey All, An additional note or two. First - as to the B16L mods - they upped the real horsepower about 20 hp at 2500 rpm and added about 35 ft-lbs of torque as well - this in addition to improving high end (high rpm) performance. Basically by using different pistons, connecting rods and crank they upped the displacement of the engine to near 1.8L using a 1.6L engine block. Also they added some breathing improvement. I saw another website where someone was suggesting doin a rear engine (maybe quasi-mid-engine) mini using a Subaru boxer engine (turbo'd ?!?) and all wheel drive! What a concept. Put the weight toward the rear, put the gas tank up front and then use Subaru's proven AWD system. I bet it might make the mightiest mini yet. Unfortunately I don't have the technical knowhow or tools to do it - an it certainly wouldn't be a mini but talk about interestin. Second - I don't know if this board is into the kinds of questions I'm asking. Are there other boards or lists where I should also (or instead) post? Take Care! -Ed- > Hey All, > [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > TIA Take Care! -Ed- Hi Ed, I had the great honour to be passenger on "RingMini" on the Nuerburgring in Germany a couple of weeks ago. That is a VTEC powered Mini Van, incredible loud, incredible fast and unbelievable much fun ;-) (Still can't get the grin out of my face...) I never got the feeling that the suspension couldn't cope with the power of the engine. Even when pulling hard, the tyre didn't go off in smoke. (Of course we were permanently drifting on the track but that was more due to the driving style of Achim ;-) You can get infos on www.ringmini.de - unfortunatelly in german. The Van is a bell nose Mini and the engine is a very tight fit, with two smaller radiators, one in the wheel housing, one in front of the starter motor. But I have once seen a guy with a flipfronted bell nose who had the Honda engine in. (Not sure if it was the VTEC, but I think so) This had a full radiator behind the grille. Cheers, Michael you could soup up a 1380 but how relable will it be and with the oil leaks and stuff is it worth it. Having had a dogs dangely bits a series and now a vtec i would never bother with the a series again also fuel economy is a lot better in the vtec the only bug bear is the cost. Had a few teething problems but runs like a dream always stars and no problems the power is realy mind blowing. sus As a 1380 user I have to ask, where did you buy it from? I need to know so I don't buy one from them in the future. I have a reliable leak free engine that will leave almost anyone standing at part throttle in daily traffic. As for the reliability of a car that has been heavily modified and has a huge amount of power going through a chassis that was originally intended for use with an 850?? Well it is obviously going to be much more reliable isn't it?!?!!? The non a series mini is always going to be a novelty and a great fun or project car but that is what it is always going to be throughout the entire life of the car - an ongoing project. Same as with my pickup. You run a 33 year old car as your daily driver and you are going to see the business end off your socket set every couple of months. If you run a highly modded car, you are going to see the business end of your socket set most months - if you don't wrap it around a lamp post first. The Muffin Man > you could soup up a 1380 but how relable will it be and with the oil leaks > and stuff is it worth it. Having had a dogs dangely bits a series and now a [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > realy mind blowing. > sus Although I have no direct experience of the VTec motor, I would tend to favour the mildly tuned 1380 route too. If built properly (like any engine) it is reliable and leak free. It also tends to generate perfect power and torque for a Mini. I would hazard a guess that it would make for a far quicker car in real life than something producing 150bhp. Having said that..... there is a real grin factor associated with a conversion like the VTec. We have a customer with a 5.7 litre V8 Chevy in a split screen Morris Minor traveller.... oh and did I forget to mention the supercharger???!! All interesting stuff, but I would not like to try to hustle it through the lanes! SignatureRgds Steve steve@dsnclassics.co.uk www.dsnclassics.co.uk > As a 1380 user I have to ask, where did you buy it from? I need to know so > I don't buy one from them in the future. I have a reliable leak free engine [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > > realy mind blowing. > > sus |
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