It is indeed the same car. I will do some more research to see if I can pin down the year of this Mini. In the meantime, I'm considering the Corbeau A4 as a comfortable seat upgrade. The current seats stop in the middle of my back (I am a little over 6 feet tall), and those seats look like they will fit well, look good, and most important, keep me from too much lateral movement...

I am located in extreme Western Massachusetts, virtually on the New York, not too far from where Cosimo used to have his Mini collection.

You probably need a couple of pieces to retrofit one as they use a large flange to connect the pieces.

Where are you located?

Terry

If that is the same car that you posted with the seat cover question it is more than likely a 97 through 2000 model which would have came with a catalytic convertor so it should be easy to source.

Image Gallery

Yes, I'm reviving a thread from several years back, but this relates to a question I was going to pose as a new topic, so I'll do it here instead.

I have what I believe to be a late 80's (87, perhaps), Surf Blue 1275 LHD with AC made for the Japanese market. My VIN plate is under the bonnet, right behind the alternator. Car was purchased from another forum member (pologround), and was pretty well sorted out when I bought it. No rust. ran quite nicely from the start. My mechanic couldn't find evidence of original RHD, but I would think they all had to be RHD originally. I love the car, and find myself driving it more with each passing year. While it does great on gas, the environmentalist in me is concerned with the amount of particulates and other pollutants spewing from the exhaust. Please forgive this question in advance, but has anybody installed a catalytic converter in their Classic? I just want to do the right thing for the environment, even though I realize my tiny action won't really change anything on a global scale, but I would feel just a little bit better about driving it...

We just bought a 1995 Mini Tartan Edition with 65,000 kms on the clock. VG condition generally, no rust and the faded paint and clear coat lifting problem. I'm having a local detailer do a cut & polish job on ours in the next couple of weeks as he says the paint is easily recoverable. Car is 4 spd standard with AC. Even had period Kenwood AM/FM/Mini Disc player installed. Stations are a bit off...like 981 Am for 980 and the FM dial only goes up to 90.0. I'm applying for collector status due to limited production numbers and Rover no longer being in business.

Having a minor concern with the AC unit bearings/clutch being a bit noisey but I'm working on that. All North American Minis suffer from varying degrees of rust, where the JDM cars are rust free...even after 18 years. Almost impossible to find in GB or NA cars.  Love the 1275 Fi engine, bit softer suspension with Konis instead of ball & trumpet and even more reliable electrics. This will make it the 5th "original Mini" I have owned. Sold our 2003 JCW MCS to buy this one...funny thing, we sold our 1979 Jade Green & tan Mini to buy the MINI. Such is the circle of life.    

minibitz in NZ-

"What goes around comes around"  !!!!

Just think about the shipping costs from Japan to the U K and then onto North America-

And your correct , moke prices are crazy, just look at any decent moke for sale in OZ now- $20,000. Au or so- I am talking about a well done Californian model, 1275cc with a good top and side curtains-Then add on shipping to the east coast of N/A- not much if any profit left-

BIG AL-

A lot of these cars are also finding their way back to the UK. I'm pretty sure there are a couple of companies specialising in this. Last time I went back to the UK we found a garage with a whole forcourt full of fresh re-imported minis.

I imported a couple into NZ about 5 years ago and the prices I paid then would only get me half a car now as demand from other shores has bumped up prices. I've also seen a few Mokes come up on the auctions. They go for HUGE money!!

x2 what malsal says, and I'd make the guess of 94 when it moved to the boot.

I agree with you AL, they are nice.  Especially if they are a 1275, manual, MPSi Injection, AC car with the gussied up interior.  Even having that refined wiring harness is a plus!

Best,

MSH

The newer 90's ones where they used the inner fender to mount the condenser and fan is when they moved them to the boot. I would guess yours Spitz is the earlier type with the condenser sitting at an angle facing the grille.

My plate isn't in the boot....inner LH wing....right behind the AC thingy  ( probably why they moved it to the boot..lol )

And l should also mention that if you are looking for the vin plate location in a JDM spec car, try the boot-The plate is affixed to the boot floor just left of the battery, obviously so much equipment under the bonnet, that was the only other place to put it-

BIG AL-

MSH-

I will continue to  bring them East as long as the market here in Ontario stays strong-They are probably the best value (mini wise) as any mini ever produced-

In saying this, mokes are exempt from this statement as they tend to find their own market and price range-

The only real downside to JDM spec cars is that they are RHD, it doesn't matter to me but regulatory officials are taking a tougher stance with all RHD vehicles-

But you can't beat the factory air when it is 90 degrees F outside-

BIG AL-

Hey Al,

 Yeah, I noticed you folks in Canada were getting quite a few.  I'm curious if any of them now in the U.S. are coming thru from up north.  Some of them look like new cars, so look aged well beyond the actual age.  I agree with comments others had made about spot specific rust and heat or UV related damage.

 I don't know about total production intended for Japan, but I remember a rumor that the strong desire for Classic Minis in Japan was one of the reasons Rover was able to keep making it, especially when the purchase by BMW was going on ( completed ). This market probably explains the efforts of Rover / BMW to do many of the JDM mods.

 I've also found that tech info that is Japanese Export Market specific is Very hard to find.  Through experience, many of us have noted the special wiring harnesses and fittings, which are much more modern. Plus a couple of other JDM specific differences. I suspect that while the tech info may exist, it would be in Japanese.  Then, it would probably be doubtful that that same info would have been translated in English. ( I have seen a JDM owners manual that clarifies the mysteries of the blade fuse type of fuse box, and was lucky to get an interpreted page for that, but that is all. )

 Also note the special nature of the hybrid between SPi and MPi at the end of the run. To this note add the fact that I've found that the serial number on the Rover FI computer / brain box for the auto wasn't the same as one not intended for the JDM.

Are thinking of bringing in some to the east coast?  Your plan for YVR entry is, as you mention, very expensive to then ship cross country.  Probably only worth it on exceptional examples.

Very interested in this topic, so please feel free to EM me directly.

Best,

MSH

O K- That does it, everybody turn in their rivet gun and ask George for AMNESTY right now-

BIG AL-

Re-Vinning in NZ- Never !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BIG AL-

In NZ we have a different set of criteria as to what can and can't be used on the road. Importing used minis is no problem, you can bring in what you like, but getting the vehicle road registered is a whole other ball game. They don't pass emissions or crash regulations that are now in force. The way around it is to apply for an exemption as a specialist interest vehicle. You have to meet certain criteria including that the model was produced in limited numbers, is a special addition of some sort etc etc.

The tough part is that the vehicle must be in NZ when the exemption is applied for. You can't find a car overseas, apply for an exemption, get granted the exemption and then purchase and import the vehicle. The vehicle needs to purchased and shipped here with no guarantee of getting it on the road. Also if granted you can't sell the vehicle on for 4 years and can oly apply for one exemption per calendar year. I guess to cut out dealers working around the rules.

You see plenty of "1970's" or "1980's" registered minis that are clearly Jap spec SPI models so I'll let you all guess what happens there.

The shop in Japan that did the MKI retro stuff and other work on mine has a bunch of Minis for sale, and they also sell a lot of parts so they must not be shipping them all out of country, at the events they host huge bunches turn out.

//www.minikids.co.jp/car.HTM

So, if we are getting a lot of Jap spec minis here in Canada then there must be an equal amount or even more being exported to OZ & NZ >

BIG AL