Old mini

Oct 18, 2003 9 Replies

Older mini, with piano type hinge on opening rear quarter light. I'm replacing the hinge on one of these windows for a friend, after it came adrift due to rust. My question is.:- Is the hingepin visible on the outside of the car or the inside? I suspect the outside as it would be difficult to fit otherwise, but I want to make absolutely certain before I seal and screw it in position. TIA. Mike.


Yes

Just like the other side.

r

"ops" > after it came adrift due to rust.

inside?

otherwise,

screw it

Thanks, r

Somehow I did suspect that. :-)

It would have been easier, but as I've never seen the car, and the owner is away at present, I couldn't check. I was just given the window with the hinge removed by his mate, and asked if I could repair it for him. The rivetted connecting link, rivets, and w/frame at one end of the hinge had rusted away, and as he'd already removed the hinge and cleaned it up, I had no way of telling how it was originally fitted, except by logic, which is not always correct. :-) Thanks again for the info. Mike.

That's fairly rare. I think some Mini Coopers and possibly the Elf and Hornet had piano hinges on the rear side windows. Most Minis just had two flexible straps which were screwed to the B-pillar on the inside.

The windows open outwards so the hinge will show on the outside.

Outside, like on my '62:

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Only the early Mini's had this type of window. I think it was changed in the mid-late '60s.

Seems to be common to rust away at the bottom, it's happened to my car on both sides...

light.

friend,

Elf and

just had

inside.

It's off an early Mini Cooper S which he was rebuilding. I've had the window for weeks. So long in fact that the rest of the car is finished, so I thaught I'd better get my finger out and let him have it back. :-) Not one of the easiest jobs I've done. In fact it was a sod to get both ends of the hinge to butt on the frame itself, when I put the glass back. Mike.

It may have been better to get a secondhand one than repair the old one.

If you had asked on the alt.autos.mini they may have given you one or two good ones (I have here about 6 or 8 accumulated)

rm

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