1959 Morris Mini Restoration

By Dan Guenther

This picture is how my Mini looked before the bodywork was started. The entire restoration was completed in May 2003 after aprox. 2 years from start to finish. My goal in the restoration was to preserve this 1959 and keep it as original as practical. The car was obviously owned by other people who added or changed to newer Mini items such as the grill and interior etc. I also wanted to bring back the look of the original Old English White paint and grey-fleck interior as documented on the Heritage Certificate. The car was drivable when I got it home. It ran well however stopping was another story. It went for a short test drive and then I stripped it down to bare rolling shell.

Front Wings were removed and then we decided that the front panel would also be replaced. Rear subframe was removed and was in very good condition, rear radius arms needed attention and were then rebuilt.

Mostly Stripped to bare metal and some new panels installed. I used a gallon of aircraft paint stripper to remove the orange and then the original layer of paint. The cheap orange paint came off easily and the original paint was harder to remove.

Side view with all major work completed.

New wings, front panel, and “A” panels installed. I used “heritage” front wings and an after market front panel. The after market front panel I had purchased was a later style with cutouts. Fortunetly the old panel's front corners were in good so they were cut off and then welded to the new panel.

Primed and inside painted. The doors, bootlid, bonnet, and wheel rims were all painted off of the car. The complete underneath of the car, that was not replaced, was scraped and brushed as clean as possible then chemically treated, washed, primed and painted.

Painted and ready to return to my garage for assembly. The bodyman/painter Jim Turnbull and myself spent aprox. 100 hours each working on it while in his shop. Jim applied Dupont's Imron 5000 paint that is a little whiter than the original Old English White. Imron 5000 is a super-tough polyurethane enamel that is commonly applied to buses and semi trucks and is known to be durable, low maintenance, and easy to keep clean paint.

Engine was rebuilt by previous owner. I freshened it up and re-installed. All new hoses, water pump, and radiator etc.. New axle boots, rack boots and coupling joints were used. A NOS bean-can master brake was obtained and the clutch master and slave were rebuilt.

Front subframe was stripped and painted in the car. Transmission case would have been originally painted, I decided that I liked the “aluminum” look.

Above pictures show the wiring to the floor start button and the electric fuel pump mounted to the rear subframe.

Newton Commercial carpet installed. Very nice molded fit.

Interior completed with all Newton Commercial components and reproduced door pulls. Original grey fleck material and proper 2 tone with black vinyl for a “deluxe” trim combination. I also had to obtain the correct chrome window latches. The car also once again has factory rear-pocket lights and switches which is unique to only the very early cars.

The original painted grille, new mustache, whiskers, and bumpers installed.

It was May 2003, Bonnet is now on and ready for a test drive. The only thing missing in the picture above was the wheel covers.

Mk1 wheelcovers have rectangular cut-outs, not half circles, and they are also slightly smaller than later style covers. 10 x 145R Kumho radial tires were used.

On the Road Again ! We had only a few minor problems after the all that work and several test drives to the city. The voltage requlator required adjustment as it was not charging enough. The gas tank had to be removed and cleaned again after the tank screen was partially plugged. The car drove excellent, perfectly straight down the highway without even having an alignment. I was very happy. I could not believe all of the attention a little old car could attract!

Our first car show in July 2003 at Kildonan Park,

Winnipeg , Manitoba , Canada.

New parts installed include complete new interior, windscreen, all weatherstripping, bumpers, moustache and whiskers, tail lights, front wings, front panel, bonnet, bootlid, headlight buckets and trim, inner and outer “A” panels, door hinges, rear valance, main crossmember, drivers side floor, battery box, complete brakes including drums, shocks, various suspension components, complete exhaust system, floor start switch and battery cables, radiator, tires, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc., and etc.

Thank you Jim Turnbull for the expert assistance with body work and paint.

Thank you fellow members of the Mini Mania message board for advice, information, and motivation.

Thank you to the people who provided and offered for sale, some of the parts I required.

If you would like any additional information please email me at danguenther@mts.net