Austin Mini Sill/Front Floor Replacment - Flexing

[Championship White]

When replacing the front floor panels and sills would I be fine welding a single brace between the two door pillars of 2mm thick box or will I have a more comprehensive frame to stop any movement?

I've read the Aston Martin tutorial on the site but would like the opinions of those who have done it on a classic Mini or anything similar.

 

[ibrooks]

What's the inner sill like? and the door step? How much of the front floor do you really need to replace?

It's far better to replace one part at a time rather than chopping away wholesale. If the step is OK then I tend to do the outer sill first without racing but make sure that the door gap doesn't grow from top to bottom.

If you can get away with just using part of the floor repair panel then I would. Cut back to good metal around the moth eaten bits and then lay the repair section inside. Use a marker from underneath to draw around the hole on the repair section. Now cut the repair section bigger than the hole and joggle the edge to your line so that the repair section will sit in the hole and look flush from below. Weld from below filling in the joggled edge and if you want it to look invisible grind the weld back flush. Also weld inside the car around the edge of the repair panel. This gives you a double seam of weld around the patch with the overlap on the inside hidden under the carpet whilst from below the repair will be near invisible (especially if it gets a textured finish like stonechip).

If you really must remove the whole floor and/or inner sill then you need to brace the door gap top to bottom and from the door step to the tunnel as a minimum. Front to rear tends to be less of an issue unless you've got the inner and outer sills off at the same time as the door step.

Iain

 

[Championship White]

I'm getting the front floor panels with the inner sill attached - number 10 on here http://www.somerfordmini.co.uk/eshop/index.php?main_page=page&id=18&chapter=4

The step looks passable but it's very rusty right on the spot welded lip and disintegrated under a pokey finger so I would imagine it will need patching or replacing. My plan was to do a '+' shaped brace for the door and then an extra one going from the shifter tunnel to the inner sill and then replace the floor and inner sill first, see if I an fabricate a repair for the step if not replace the step and then do the outer sills. Is that the wrong way around to do it?

 

[ibrooks]

If the lip of the step has gone then it'll need replacing - if you can poke through it with a finger it'll be like tinfoil for at least an inch upwards of that and it's a fairly complex shape (lots of folds that are radiused and not quite parallel to each other). Get a genuine one as some of the pattern parts are nowhere near. It's a real pain to get in behind the A-Panel so unless that's tip-top remove it for access and stick a new one in whilst you're in there.

If the inner sill is rusty and we've established that the step is coming out then yes brace the door gap top-to-bottom, front-to-back and establish a good datum side to side from the tunnel or the other side of the car to the inner sill.

I know it's a lot harder removing the rusty metal but try to do one panel at a time. I'd be trying to get the floor and inner sill out whilst leaving the step and outer sill in place so that you can use them to help align the new metal. Once it's in you can remove the next bit knowing that you can now use the new stuff to align the next panel.

Iain

 

[pedrobedro]

I've not had problems with after market panels for mini as long as you get them all from one supplier. Saltofix used to be the main player and took over Pop On and Veng as well I believe, panels were made in Spain and Italy but far East took over and priced everybody out of the market. Minis were never that accurately put together in the first place so there's plenty of leeway Heritage panels are ridiculously priced compared to copies but you pays your money and takes your choice as they say. Scissor jacks were always my favourite tool for holding things up while tacking together and don't take too much out at once. Floor pans always look neater if you replace the whole lot to the centre tunnel and the original sill was only spotted underneath with swaged gaps which were an invitation to rust.