The first installment of Project Binky. Can two basket cases from Shropshire create one serious Mini? We're attempting to build the fastest Mini on the planet. The plan is to try and shoehorn all the engine and running gear from a Toyota Celica GT4 into a rotten Mini. Can we do this monster engine swap? Can we build an Austin Mini GT4? Join us on this roller coaster ride of a build.
These are some of the outtakes from the shooting of the trailer for Project Binky. Those of a nervous disposition should not watch this video.
In the first episode of Project Binky, we take a rotten old Austin Mini and strip it down to a bare shell. We then take an angle grinder to it and cut it to pieces. It's only then that the customised rebuilding process starts. We're trying to create one of the fastest Minis on the planet. We're going to rebuild it with the engine and running gear from a Toyota Celica ST185 GT4. Or at least that's the plan. Whether it comes off or not is another matter. We're filming this as it happens so what you see is only a few weeks behind where we're actually at so we're not sure yet whether we can do it. That's kind of the fun though. Stick with us through the highs and the lows of the project. Hopefully it'll be worth the agony and cash.
In the 2nd episode of Project Binky, we start to get down to the nitty gritty of the build. We strip out the front bulkhead, make all new suspension mounting points and drink a lot of tea. We also travel to Goodwood for a cheeky track day. The project to fit all of the running gear from a Toyota Celica ST185 GT-Four into a Mini 1000 without widening or lengthening it, really starts to take shape.
Project Binky: A Toyota Celica GT-Four engine, gearbox and running gear is being shoe-horned into a 1980 Mini 1000. In episode 3, the turbo-charged 3SGTE engine gets put aside as we concentrate on getting the rear suspension and sub-frame mounted in the back of the Mini. Silliness abounds in this monster project.
Recorded on New Years Day after a heavy night of Jack Daniel's, here's the two of us from Bad Obsession Motorsport, hungover answering a bunch of eclectic questions from you lot on the build of Project Binky.
Project Binky: A Toyota Celica GT-Four engine, gearbox and running gear is being shoe-horned into a 1980 Mini 1000. In episode 4, the Mini finally gets an engine. All the running gear gets installed and there's a miracle prop-shaft situation. It finally dawns on us that it just might be possible to get the 3SGTE engine in the car and the project might just work!
In episode 5 of Project Binky, we finally manage to get the front bulkhead finished and make a start on making good the rear end. The quest to build one of the world's fastest Austin Minis continues.
Bad Obsession Motorsport's mental project to shoehorn the entire running gear from a Toyota Celica GT-Four into a Mini without lengthening or widening it continues in episode 6. The shell fabrication is nearly complete.
In episode 7 of Project Binky, the Mini gets most of the chassis fabrication completed, the radiator gets sorted and the car gets electric windows and central locking. Oh, and Nik has a birthday party. The quest to build one of the world's fastest Mini's continues....
The quest to build one of the world's fastest Mini's continues.... In Episode 8, we get a pair of nice doors, Nik gets annoyed with the boot lid and we both flip out over the front end panel work.
Yes it's taken a long time, but episode 9 is finally here. The shell is complete along with a few extra flourishes. We start on the interior and the BOM family grows by two. Oh, and Nik gets a haircut. Follow the madness of the project trying to build one of the world's fastest Mini's.
These are some of the outtakes from filming the first eight episodes of Project Binky. There's very strong language from the start.
The quest to build one of the world's fastest Mini's continues... In episode 10 of Project Binky, we mainly concentrate on getting the controls sorted. There's pedal box and steering action along with a fight with some major bump steer.
In episode 11 of Project Binky, we grapple with bumpsteer and Ackermann angles, we wrestle with the gear-shift mechanism, sort out the passenger seat and fit the handbrake. And we drink tea of course.
In episode 12 of Project Binky, we get to grips with the exhaust after finishing off a lot of the bits left earlier on in the build. The quest to build one of the world's fastest Minis continues...
In episode 13 of Project Binky, the Mini gets a new fuel tank, we finish off the parcel shelf, complete the firewall and take a look at the wheel situation. There's homemade contraptions, MIG welding, TIG welding and a shed load of grinding action! And tea, lots of tea.
In episode 14 of Project Binky, we crack on with figuring out the arches, not helped by a faulty part. We come up with a new technology - LRP - and we start to plumb the fuel lines in. There's most of the usual stuff including tea obviously! Thanks for watching, we hope you enjoy it!
In episode 15 of Project Binky, we wrestle with brake lines and fuel lines, make a couple of reasonably nice braces for under the car, argue over P clips and drink a bunch of tea. There's also a biscuit dunking incident. Hope you enjoy it!
After a major disaster smashing one of our tea mugs, we thought it might be fun to attempt to TIG weld the thing back together. Here's how it went down...
We make many mistakes, we shoot many takes, we swear - a lot. These are some of the outtakes from filming episodes of Project Binky. There's very strong language from the start. Hope you enjoy it!
In this installment of our seemingly never ending quest to build one of the world's fastest Mini's, we wrestle with the power steering, make a minor adjustment to the flip front mechanism and think about how to get some heating in the car.
We make many mistakes, we shoot many takes, we swear - a lot. These are some of the outtakes from filming episodes of Project Binky. There's very strong language from the start and a guest appearance from Edd China! Hope you enjoy it!
Here's another Q&A video; the second installment. Shot in a freezing cold workshop, we hope this explains some of the burning questions you might have. There's plenty of questions unanswered, so we might shoot another one, time willing. Don't worry, work continues on the Mini... Hope you enjoy it!
In episode 17 of Project Binky, we get down and dirty with finishing off the custom HVAC unit for the Mini. It's a long and involved process that took far more time than we possibly imagined, but now it's done we move on to fix some other drawbacks of the mini in modern day motoring.
In episode 18 of Project Binky, we wrestle with the wiper system, add another superfluous modification, tackle some trigonometry and sort of start on the electrical system. It's all systems go in the continuing effort to build one of the world's fastest Mini's.
In episode 19 of Project Binky, we make a start on the vehicle's electrical system, make a few brackets and drink plenty of tea. It's all systems go in the continuing effort to build one of the world's fastest Mini's.
In episode 20 of Project Binky, we continue working on the mini's electrical system and solve (we hope) the ancillary drive conundrum. There's an unbelievable amount of work in this one, far too much to show in one 30 minute episode without killing it dead, so there'll be an additional machining video out in a couple of weeks for anyone who'd like to see more of the detail in the latter part of this episode. It's all systems go in the continuing effort to build one of the world's fastest Mini's.
This is part one of how we made the flexi-shaft auxiliary drive system in episode 20 of Project Binky. There was far too much to show in the normal episode run-time, so we thought we'd make an additional series of videos going into a bit more detail of how we did it.
This is part two of how we made the flexi-shaft auxiliary drive system in episode 20 of Project Binky. In this part, we make the brackets to hold the alternator, a pulley, an adaptor and then put it all together. There was far too much to show in the normal episode run-time, so we thought we'd make an additional series of videos going into a bit more detail of how we did it. Hope you enjoy it.
In episode 21 of Project Binky, we work on the interior of the car building a centre console and some door cards among other bits and bobs. This is all just so we can crack on with the rest of the wiring. Honest...
In episode 22 of Project Binky we fit some nice speakers, a custom stereo, an ECU and we wire up everything in the boot including the fuel pump. The countdown to complete strip down for paint has started...
In episode 23 of Project Binky we fix a hole in the sump, modify a radiator, finish a lot of the wiring and make a bracket with brackets for the interior light and dashcam. We test the electrical circuits, and there's some shenanigans in our Subaru for good measure.
In episode 24 of Project Binky we take a close look at the radiator pack and somehow squeeze a quart into a pint pot with a multitude of heat-exchangers. We also make a start on the ECU and engine wiring.
In episode 25, we get to making brackets for some sensors, do some more wiring, sort a jump post, fix the clutch master cylinder and make a little washer bottle and horn mounts. It's all go with the build of one of the world's fastest Minis.
In episode 26, we continue with the myriad little jobs needing sorting. There's brackets, tea, an exhaust manifold, an uber linkage and some filtration. It's all go with the build of one of the world's fastest Minis.
Just a quick video detailing what's coming up after the mini is completed. And a call for some help...
In episode 27, we continue with the myriad little jobs needing sorting. We're so close to stripping it down for paint, but there's still a bunch of stuff that needs sorting, so we crack on like a pair of lunatics...
In episode 28 we work on the panel gaps, finish off a few little jobs and actually, finally, totally strip the car down for paint!
In episode 29 we have an absolute tonne of stuff to re-furbish and make good. There's powdercoating, painting, stripping, blasting, plating and many more ings besides.
In episode 30 of Project Binky we take a look at the power under the bonnet: the engine. It needs a cambelt, and oil change and nothing else... Honestly...
The Outtakes Part 5
We break out the TIG welder again for some more fab work as there's a turbo that needs fitting! Things get cleaned and more superflous parts get ordered off the interweb.
Bracketry Award - Judging the 2020 IQCS Semi-Finals
Howie Did It - Toyota E154F Gearbox Strip and Rebuild
In episode 32 of Project Binky we finish off the engine build with more brackets, sensors, wiring and a shed load of fab work. A lot to pack into this one, hope you can appreciate the amount of work involved.
In episode 33 of Project Binky we finally get some colour on the Mini! As usual, nothing is straightforward and the paint job takes on a life of its own.
In episode 34 of Project Binky we start the reassembly. But before it gets too exciting, we need some sound deadening, heat management and rust proofing. The painted shell begins to take shape as a car and not just a selection of parts.
In episode 35 of Project Binky we really make some progress on getting the mini started for the first time. Lots of stuff gets bolted to the car, the wiring loom gets finished off, we have some nice machining done and we try not to scratch the paint as the engine gets bolted up.
In episode 36 of Project Binky we carry on where we left off at the cliffhanger ending of episode 35. There's a lot more stuff to put on the car before we can attempt to start it, but will it go?
In episode 37 of Project Binky we add more parts, run the engine up to temp, go to a show, break things, fix things and generally get annoyed.
BOM at the Historic Rally Festival 2021
Howie Did It - Retrimming Honda S2000 Seats
Best of Binky Gag Reel
In episode 38 of Project Binky we continue the final assembly, but on the way there's still time and opportunity to fab up some more bits, and the sumptuous new interior is fitted.
This is a video on how we went about creating a lifting, lowering, movable hydraulic platform capable of supporting around a tonne. Nothing suitable was available to buy, so we made one. This is how we did it.
We try and answer some of the more frequent questions we get asked across our social media platforms. Doing it this way was significantly less arse than replying individually.
