THE RestoMod Mini Video from Classic Mini DIY



Hey everybody, Cole here with Classic Mini DIY. It is finally time. I finally get to share with you guys the next stage of Classic Mini DIY, the big project that I alluded to in my last video, and we're going to dive deep into what is going to happen over the next few months here for Classic Mini DIY. So stay tuned for that. You won't want to miss it.

Now for those of you who have been with the channel for a long time, you know that I am not one to buy a whole bunch of different cars. I'm not that kind of YouTuber where I just kind of buy a new car, do a new project, buy a new car, do a new project. That's not my MO. The way I normally like to operate is to purchase and own a single vehicle or a single project and refine and grow on that single vehicle over the course of many years.

And what we are going to be embarking on now is the final chapter of Bad Wolf. And it is going to be a big chapter. It is larger than any project that I have tackled before. It is larger than probably all of the other projects you've seen on this car put together combined.

So what exactly is going to be happening?

Restoring my mini again.

Now we are going to be approaching this restoration a little bit differently than probably 90% of the restoration on classic minis that you guys have seen on YouTube. I am going to be approaching this as this car is something that I want to keep in my family and in my ownership for the rest of my life.

This is a car that I feel like it's an extension of who I am. As a result, I want to build it out to meet every requirement I have of a classic mini and focus on making it what I am going to be calling a restomod mini.

At its core we are still maintaining the A-series engine which will also be turbocharged. So that key heart of the car is not going to be changing but how the rest of the body interfaces with that will be.

We are going to get much more in depth with this as the year progresses and we dive into the different projects in order to prepare the car for paint as well as all of the electrical business and engine updates and changes that I'm going to be making.

So with that we will be upgrading a few of the different components in the car including but not limited to the timing system, the master cylinder system. We might change out some of the braking equipment, radius arms, all of that stuff is still kind of in the works right now.

I have my long term part sponsors, seven mini parts as well as their co-owner Mini Mania. They are coming on board to help provide some parts for this build as well as some instructional videos to help you guys out. So stay tuned for those.

I genuinely cannot wait to share with you guys. But one big shift I'm going to make on the engine and it's something that I want to mention now because it's actually a new product that we carry at Classic Mini DIY. And that is the first ever production sold bolt on Classic Mini Throttle Body that is drive by wire. Now what that means is that this is a fuel injected throttle body. So your injectors get mounted right at the top. And then of course instead of a cable driven throttle you are now introducing a motor driven throttle which is what's used on most modern caros these days. And this is paired with your ECU. So you have an electronic pedal. You press that and then the butterfly opens up a corresponding amount. Now at its core that's how it works. But what this also allows you to do is do some really cool complex throttle management and idle control.

Now when this gets installed on the car I'm going to go into a lot of detail about it. But this is available for pre-order on my store. If this is something that you want to pick up for your car. This is a very special item it bolts directly onto the HIF44 flange. Just like our other fuel injected throttle body. But this one has the benefit of being drive by wire.

Then on top of that you heard me mention it before. We are going to be repainting and redoing the entire shell of the car. You guys have come to know Classic Mini DIY and my car Bad Wolf by its blue color. But we are making a change.

And you guys probably might have guessed based on the thumbnail of this image. The new car is going to be Willow Green. I'm very, very excited about the change in the color. I am a big fan of green and I think it is just exceptionally classic looking. The thumbnail which I must mention is sourced from Swiftune and their page 3 racing Instagram. This is a deep inspiration for the new car.

A lot of what you see on that picture and in that car on that thumbnail is going to be very similar to what I'm doing on my car. I absolutely love that. I love the look. I love the feel and it's just going to be so fun.

So that is the high level of what is coming these next few months at Classic Mini DIY. Our next episode is when we are going to be diving into the work. We are probably going to start mapping out a lot of where our electrical wiring is going. We are going to strip out all of the old stuff.

Now I know that you guys love to give me crap about this but we are going to be pulling the engine again in order to prep the shell for paint. And I am just picturing it as I am saying this. All of the comments that are like Coles Pull in his motor. Yeah, I'm pulling my motor again. But it's what's got to be done to achieve the goals that I want.

So I am just, I cannot express to you guys how excited I am to have you guys embark with me on this journey. And if you have any questions about what we're doing, want any more details, post those in the comments section below. And if you guys like the idea of a rest of my mini and it's something that you might be interested in helping support or you want to see more videos like this, consider heading over to my Patreon.  You get access to all sorts of really cool discounts, features as well as a live private chat.

We have an amazing time in that chat and I really encourage you guys if you think you are going to own a mini, if you have a mini and you want some DIY help, we're very active in there. Myself included and we help each other. It's a very low stress and very casual environment to ask even the simplest of questions or the most complex ones. We're always there to help and it does help the channel if you become a patron as well. It's going to help me do a big project like this and make more videos in the future. So I really appreciate you guys joining me on this episode and you guys know the drill. I'll see you on the next one. Bye.

Watch Part 2 - Restoring a Classic Mini Part 2