Lakeland 997

Lakeland997 · Post by **Lakeland997** » Sat Oct 06, 2018 10:18 pm

And so here it is up to date at the moment. I can now hopefully fit the modified flywheel and get the engine in.

Post by **Polarsilver** » Sat Oct 06, 2018 10:54 pm

Lakeland ..I run a very similar 997 to what you are preparing .. Rod & the SMMC Boys also built my engine with steel flywheel onto the original 997 crank .. all built onto a 4 speed box with 3.7diff.. the result my 997 engine has speed & very good torque.
I do try keep off high speed roads such as motorways & you will find the drive experience is much different to the 1070 & 1275 engine cars however the 997 is still a fun Mini to Drive.

Please make sure you apply sealant to the head stud threads into the 997 engine block or coolant water will & can leak up the studs!

Lakeland997 · Post by **Lakeland997** » Sat Oct 06, 2018 11:14 pm

Thanks Polar. I’ll look into your tip about the head studs before I re-fit the motor.

Post by **251 ENG** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 9:55 am

Looks fantastic Andy .

Post by **Andrew1967** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 10:01 am

Have to agree - that looks stunning

Post by **Hipwell** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 11:30 am

Fantastic rebuild, looks perfect.

BLT · Post by **BLT** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 2:01 pm

Beautiful car

Robinmk1 · Post by **Robinmk1** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 2:17 pm

Lakeland997 wrote:And here we are today!
Did I mention it was originally Fiesta Yellow?
They've even wrapped ribbons around it for me... how sweet.

That looks absolutely fab ... think MK1 could do with similar treatment but I dread to think of the cost.

Post by **Old English White** » Sun Oct 07, 2018 3:40 pm

Lovely. And what a great colour combination too. A rare car now, the 997 Cooper.

Kiwi Craig · Post by **Kiwi Craig** » Mon Oct 22, 2018 2:57 am

Lakeland, can you tell me the diameter of your steering wheel?

bmcman.ie · Post by **bmcman.ie** » Mon Oct 22, 2018 11:31 am

gorgeous! my favourite colour, well done.

Lakeland997 · Post by **Lakeland997** » Mon Oct 22, 2018 6:12 pm

Kiwi Craig wrote:Lakeland, can you tell me the diameter of your steering wheel?

It's a 13" Motolita.

Highnumbers · Post by **Highnumbers** » Tue Oct 23, 2018 12:05 am

Absolutely stunning, very nice work!

This thread may well change my mind about Fiesta Yellow. It's beautiful, and I love the blue interior.

Rich997 · Post by **Rich997** » Tue Oct 23, 2018 11:02 pm

Polarsilver wrote:Lakeland ..I run a very similar 997 to what you are preparing .. Rod & the SMMC Boys also built my engine with steel flywheel onto the original 997 crank .. all built onto a 4 speed box with 3.7diff.. the result my 997 engine has speed & very good torque.
I do try keep off high speed roads such as motorways & you will find the drive experience is much different to the 1070 & 1275 engine cars however the 997 is still a fun Mini to Drive.

Please make sure you apply sealant to the head stud threads into the 997 engine block or coolant water will & can leak up the studs!

Very nice job Lakeland, the colour scheme and your attention to detail is ace.

I empathise with your flywheel troubles, one of the more challenging aspects of resurrecting an early car, along with finding the list of unique 997 bits ...

Just wanted to echo Polarsilver regarding the head studs, it was a heartbreaking moment to see water bubbling up the stud holes when I ran my engine up. I imagine you have used high tensile studs from a reputable source, I found the first set of 'standard' studs were a terrible fit.
Reverting to the premium grade Mini Spares studs with thread lock worked for me.
Also had trouble with a copper head gasket at the same time, which didn't torque down evenly.

Good luck with the first start.

Post by **Charlynsane** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 8:34 am

Really nice job,

There is no body number on your car?

Lakeland997 · Post by **Lakeland997** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 9:55 am

Rich997 wrote:
Polarsilver wrote:Lakeland ..I run a very similar 997 to what you are preparing .. Rod & the SMMC Boys also built my engine with steel flywheel onto the original 997 crank .. all built onto a 4 speed box with 3.7diff.. the result my 997 engine has speed & very good torque.
I do try keep off high speed roads such as motorways & you will find the drive experience is much different to the 1070 & 1275 engine cars however the 997 is still a fun Mini to Drive.

Please make sure you apply sealant to the head stud threads into the 997 engine block or coolant water will & can leak up the studs!
Very nice job Lakeland, the colour scheme and your attention to detail is ace.

I empathise with your flywheel troubles, one of the more challenging aspects of resurrecting an early car, along with finding the list of unique 997 bits ...

Just wanted to echo Polarsilver regarding the head studs, it was a heartbreaking moment to see water bubbling up the stud holes when I ran my engine up. I imagine you have used high tensile studs from a reputable source, I found the first set of 'standard' studs were a terrible fit.
Reverting to the premium grade Mini Spares studs with thread lock worked for me.
Also had trouble with a copper head gasket at the same time, which didn't torque down evenly.

Good luck with the first start.

Thanks Rich, I'll take the studs back out and seal them. I've seen the same problem before on my 1275 rally engine with the extra stud at the thermostat end.
On the 997 I've used ARP head studs and an AP 270 gasket (now sadly unavailable).

Andy

Lakeland997 · Post by **Lakeland997** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:23 am

Charlynsane wrote:Really nice job,

There is no body number on your car?

No, unfortunately it was already lost when I got the car. Only the FE number and chassis plate were present.
I know what the number is because it is listed on the Heritage Certificate. I should probably have had a plate re-made and fitted while they were restoring the body.

Like many such cars, the original registration of this car was also taken. It was PCB98 (too desirable) and that is now gracing a Range Rover somewhere!

Andy

Post by **Charlynsane** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 2:22 pm

Minimails does some excellent body number,

it should start with AO

Post by **SMOKE GREY** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 9:12 pm

Lakeland997 wrote:
Charlynsane wrote:Really nice job,

There is no body number on your car?
No, unfortunately it was already lost when I got the car. Only the FE number and chassis plate were present.
I know what the number is because it is listed on the Heritage Certificate. I should probably have had a plate re-made and fitted while they were restoring the body.

Like many such cars, the original registration of this car was also taken. It was PCB98 (too desirable) and that is now gracing a Range Rover somewhere!

Andy

PCB98, A Blackburn, Lancashire number.

Post by **Peter Laidler** » Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:47 pm

Shaggy dog story coming up.......... A week or so ago, I seem to recall someone writing in about a body shop '.....near Calne.....' that would only do a complete and total body restoration as opposed to what he wanted, a partial job. I was going to answer his post by saying that he ought to read this thread and take heart fro Lakelands brilliant body restoration job and set about doing it himself. There's just SOOOOO much brilliant advice from the body restoration pro's, semi pro's and amateurs on this forum. And it seems to me that it's all freely given too. Anyway, if you're out there disappointed owner, start at page 1 of this thread, slowly read and digest your way through and see what can be achieved

Great job Lakeland. A pleasure to see............

mk1-forum.net

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