Tip: When removing the door striker, the exterior handle is connected via a rod and clip. In order to disconnect the two, it's helpful to slide a pair of pliers into the door and use that to pull them apart. Just be careful not to break anything!
as it should be. I decided it was time to install the door handles and boot lock. I figured, it wouldn't be too difficult to take off the old ones and put on the new ones, but it's not as easy as I thought. For starters, the door panels were not very willing to part from the door itself. Then, a couple of the screws were stripped so now I have to drill one out. Fun...
Tip: When removing the door striker, the exterior handle is connected via a rod and clip. In order to disconnect the two, it's helpful to slide a pair of pliers into the door and use that to pull them apart. Just be careful not to break anything!
0 Comments
One of the hardest things about working on this Mini is that it's titled as a 1975 but I'm fairly certain it's not. For starters, Minis didn't come with reverse lights until 1976, I believe. The radio in it appears to have been fitted as standard because the antenna is stock. It also has a 3 gauge cluster that was more commonly found in Minis of the 80s.
The other thing that makes it tricky is that the car has been repainted (you can see silver under the hood and under the carpet) and the engine is from a Metro. All these things combined make it tricky to decipher what parts I need to buy and what is standard and what might have been added afterward. I'm fairly certain the interior is stock because it's too ugly to have been purchased as a replacement. I'm fairly certainly that if I can trace the interior, I can figure out what year it is. Well it's good news bad news time. I had the battery tested and there is nothing wrong with the battery. The good news is I fully charged the battery and now the headlights work! The bad news is that now it means it's something else.
One of the mechanics I know suggested checking the alternator belt. It's so stupidly simple that I probably never would have thought about it. UPDATE: Sure enough, I've checked the alternator belt and it's extremely loose. I tightened up the alternator and I hope that will improve the charging, but I think a new alternator belt will be in order either way. |
Archives
January 2022
Categories
All
|