1.
How much did the kit cost and what exactly did it contain?
"See AMT's information pack"
2. How much did
your engine cost and what spec did you go for?
"The Vauxhall engine cost me £600
it came with the alternator, starter and the fuel rail inc injectors.
It is bog standard. A complete gasket set cost me £93 ! I've only
used a couple of the gaskets yet."
3. What other
parts did you have to supply to fit the engine.
"See AMT's information pack"
4. How easy is
it to fit the engine and sub-frame?
"The sub-frame took about an hour
to fit. The engine and box took about the same. The plumbing in
and fitting up of the engine ancillaries is still ongoing."
5. What modifications
do you have to make to the body of the car
"Cut off everything from the A panels
forward. Drill holes for the brace bars and the bottom chassis legs."
6. How do you mate
the Vauxhall ECU to the Mini wiring loom?
"You don't. I used a DTA ECU to control
my throttle bodies. Andy supplies all this kit inc a custom loom."
7. How do you mate
the gear-change mechanism to the Vauxhall transmission
"You don't, although Andy said someone
had done it. Use a Vauxhall gearchange and linkage, adapted to fit."
8. How much do
you think it's cost in total?
"A fair bit, it depends how much you
want to spend on the fueling side of things, it would be much cheaper
to use carbs. Buying a complete salvage Astra/Cavalier etc. would
be definitely the best way to go. I had to scrat around all over
the north of England finding the bits I wanted, as decent scrap
yards or performance breakers don't seem to exist in Cumbria."
9. Any other info?
"The gearbox was £90
You must use the Astra GSi Exhaust Manifold
Buy Andy's adapted pedal box, unless you're an engineering genius
Use the ABS front end or a clubman
Get clearance for the gear linkage as soon as possible, don't leave
it too late.
All the other conversions I have seen (VTEC/Vauxhall/Suzuki/Ford)
have been far inferior to AMT's product."
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Drivers side. You can see the frame brace bar this time, you can just
about make out the hinge bracket for the front end just to the right
of the towing eye. The manifold will be fully wrapped later on.

Passenger
side. You can see some of the frame, the rose jointed tie rods,
the gearbox in the centre and the rad to the left.

The DTA ECU sits behind the dash, out of harms way.

Engine
bay shot, showing the throttle bodies, new brake fluid reservoirs,
the thing on the middle of the bulkhead is the air temp sensor.

A full
engine bay shot.


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