The Houston Chronicle's Post by Heidi Van Horne

February 12, 2015, Our Bremen Mini Mark has been honored to have Heidi Van Horne post an article on her Houston Chronicle Blog about it. Here is the link for your reading pleasure: 

http://blog.chron.com/heidispics/2015/02/bremen-mini-mark-is-a-rare-and-sophisticated-model/  

Heidi did an excellent job of capturing the uniqueness of this car and sharing it with her reading audience. She has a series of other fine articles on her blog so why not take the time to save it to your favorites? 

Hopefully her post will enlighten her readers and others to what we have know as owners, the Mini Mark IS Rare and Sophisticated!

2015!

January, 2015! Happy New Year everyone. I hope 2014 was a very good year for you and that you were able to spend some time behind the wheel of you Bremen Mini Mark.
Even though it is snowing outside as I sit here writing this I am already making some "drive to" plans for the upcoming year. 
I am finding less and less to do on the car during the winter months, so it must be finished. 
Still getting many views on this blog as well as the Facebook page, and still finding a few cars that I haven't seen before. 
Keep posting the questions, pictures, and just what you are doing with your Bremen Mini Mark. That is the only way we can keep them alive! 

Purdue North Central Car Show.

Purdue North Central hosted a car show Saturday September 13th. It was a COLD and over cast day, and not many cars came out. Being a Purdue alumni I braved the weather spent the day bundled in a winter coat of all things. Rather than hand out awards at this event the decision was made to post the cars on the 2015 Purdue North Central Student Government Calendar. It looks like I will have June, an appropriate month for a small red Mini Mark roadster. Here is the link to the Purdue Facebook page on the Car Show. If you are in the area next September stop out and bring your car!

Join us now on Facebook

After posting to this blog and not being able to have other owners easily share their experiences and photos I decided to finally start a Facebook page as well on the Bremen Mini Mark.

Just put Bremen Mini Mark in the find box and you should pull it up. I have taken all the photos I have found from owners all over the world and shared them on Facebook and also added some of the marketing literature I have been able to find on the Bremen Mini Mark.

Facebook I hope will also allow owners who want to find a new home for their Bremen Mini Mark to post information and pictures, getting that info to others who are interested in buying this great car.

             

Give it a look and a LIKE and lets see where it goes!

Orak Shriners Car Show

 

Saturday, August 16. The weather was overcast but beautiful and the possibility of rain held off as I took our Mini Mark to the local Orak Shriners Car Show in Michigan City, IN. Lots of cars of all ages, and brands with even more car enthusiasts out enjoying all the cars. At three o'clock when the awards were announced the Mini Mark was fortunate to receive a "60-76 Custom Class" award.
This show was a bit different than most the car has been to in the last year as the Shriners had a panel of judges inspect the cars (it was not done by popular vote). This meant that the cars were judged on condition and merits, not by popularity. Our record book of each phase of the rebuild helped I think to show what condition the car was in when purchased compared to the beauty it is now. I think it also helped that we did all of the work ourselves except for the paint. There were many compliments on the car, and as usual a new group of people who up until today were not aware of the Bremen Mini Mark.

The Wind Wings

How many of your Mini Marks came with Wind Wings? How many still have them and they are solid to the windshield frame? Unfortunately when we bought our Mini Mark they were on the windshield, but had been mounted numerous times and had the holes to prove it. They were just "hanging" and I wasn't sure how to revive them. During the restoration I made sure to weld all the holes shut on the frame, but it just didn't seem like this was a design that worked well over time. Also, the original design was just stainless butt hinges, not very stylish. We finished the restoration without Wind Wings, but I still toyed with a design that would do them justice and would be streamline, firm and last. Finally I came up with a design which I think fits the car. Making use of the groove already in the windshield frame I set out making a set of brackets out of 6061 aluminum. I fabricated frame brackets and then glass brackets, finally polishing them to make them shine. New Plexiglas  wings which have the edges polished as well for the clear glass look. Stainless acorn nuts with stainless threaded rods join the hinge halves, and a plastic high durometer bearing between each hinge half. I did drill some small holes in the inner side of the frame to mount the new hinges, but they will hold up over time, and because of the design they will not loosen from wind resistance. It gives the windshield the finish look for a roadster, and should keep a bit of air out of the passenger compartment, another finishing touch.  

The Gilmore Auto Museum and a Mini Mark

Thursday July 17 was a beautiful summer day, temperature in the mid 70's, and just a few wispy white clouds in the sky. We left the house around 7 AM and headed to the Gilmore Auto Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan. We took the scenic back roads rather then the interstate, why not, it was a beautiful day?
 
 In just under three hours we pulled into the parking lot at Gilmore. There had been many changes to the museum since our last visit including a new Visitors Center and Library. I had some business in the Library with Dick B. and after I asked if we could get on the grounds to get some pictures of our Mini Mark.

Dick made a phone call and when the call was concluded advised we could get the pictures, however Hemming's Motor News was also on the grounds that day and doing a photo shoot for an upcoming issue. We drove onto the grounds and found their crew taking pictures at the filling station. There was an immaculate blue Tucker, (number 47 of 51 produced) getting pictures. I talked with the museum helper with the crew and was told that they would be shooting for a while, but I could get a few shots as they changed locations on the grounds. We then drove over to the Diner and started taking pictures there, (yet keeping an eye on the service station).

Around twenty minutes later the crew packed up and moved to another location on the grounds. This left the Service Station open with the Tucker still there. We quickly moved in and started shooting the Mini Mark, in the company of the Tucker. It was rather ironic, I had wanted pictures of just the Mini Mark, but I could never have arranged a photo shoot with the Tucker.
For around the next half hour I took photos from every possible angle. Then a driver came and took the Tucker away. This gave me the opportunity now to do some solo shots in the same spot. I spent the next 45 minutes getting solo shots at the station, in front of a barn they have on the museum campus and the Ford museum.
 It was funny, all the while we were there waiting and taking pictures, people seemed as inquisitive of the Mini Mark as they did the Tucker and other classics there, stopping and asking questions, wanting to find out more about it. Not one person I talked with had ever heard of the Mini Mark. After taking all the pictures we toured the museum and then headed back home. The ride back was just as pleasant, and the weather just as enjoyable. Made one or two stops along the way (we found a Sinclair Museum in Cassopolis, Michigan) taking a few more pictures and then finally back in the garage. The Mini Mark did over 300 miles round trip and performed wonderfully.

If you are ever up around Gilmore it is worth a visit, and keep an eye on Hemming's for their shots without a Mini Mark!

Buy, Sell, Trade, Barter, Exchange, Recycle

The blog has been getting quite a few posts from owners and sellers looking for a way to buy or sell a Mini Mark. There have also been many questions on parts for the Mini Marks. With that in mind I thought it might be a good idea to have just a single post on the blog where that information can be exchanged. If you have your Mini Mark and you want to find a new home, or are looking to add one to your garage; you need a part, or have one to share, post it here. If you are having trouble finding a part, another owner may be able to put you on the right track.

IF YOU HAVE PICTURES PLEASE LEAVE YOU E-MAIL ADDRESS SO VIEWERS MAY CONTACT YOU AND YOU MAY EXCHANGE THEM.

The only fine print I will post along with this is that I take no responsibility for anything that is sold, bought or other. This post is merely to connect people who have the interest of keeping the Bremen Mini Mark alive. Buyer beware!

Good luck to all!

May 2014

The last days of May and we have finally seen some warm weather, warm enough to take the car out and have some fun. We took a long drive over the Memorial Day weekend and had lots of waves and thumbs up as always. Since the weather was COLD before Memorial Day I was able to put another coat of wax on ours, and get a polish on the chrome. It really does shine when you get it out in the sun. Even the smallest part of the car, like the headlamp can create quite the photo effect when the sun is shining on it.

So many owners have found the blog and left great comments. With all of the cars that have been found so far, an owner of a Ford Pinto Mini Mark, just shared his cars information. I knew Bremen marketed a Pinto version with an automatic transmission, but never had run across one yet. I must admit the thought of an automatic transmission is appealing, but it probably isn't as much fun as a stick shift!

4th of July and parade days are coming soon, so get your Mini Mark polished up and show it off!

Spring 2014

I am not sure about you but I think this has been one heck of a long winter. Snow, cold, more snow, more cold, still cold. Even though it is spring by the calendar, it is still a bit too chilly to get our Mini Mark back on the road for this season. With May just a few days away and the car shows starting up, well one can only hope for warm weather soon.

It looks like the blog is still getting many views (around 6,000 so far) from owners, questions being posted and answers posted back. That is GREAT! Sharing our problems, fixes, ideas, history and just news of what is happening with your own unique Mini Mark. There are even a few postings of cars for sale. Although I take no responsibility for what shape or condition those cars are in, this at least gives us a chance to keep the Mini Mark alive.

During the winter months we have done a little maintenance on our Mini Mark, (for the most part it has been in a warm shop under cover during the winter). We replaced the master brake cylinder and bled the brake system. If any of you ever replace the master cylinder, follow the instructions and bench bleed the master cylinder first. This sure makes the rest of the process easy and quick, plus, with a bench bleed, you get ALL of the air out of the master cylinder before you install it in the car.

Next we replaced the oil sump plate and studs. We went with a billet aluminum cover and so far it seems to seal a bit better than the stamped steel version. While we were finishing it up we decided to replace the oil filter with a chrome one for VW's.  I found one thru Car Craft VW in Riverside, CA. Do yourself a favor and stay clear of Car Craft. First of all they lack customer service, and second, they don’t stand behind their products. Their web site brags about shipping the next business day,, I found out not so, it took 3-4 days to get it shipped. When we received the oil filter it looked nice and we put it on, then filled up the engine with oil and started it up, no leaks. A few weeks later I started it up and backed it out of the garage to wash it. The oil filter gasket blew and dumped over two quarts of oil out before I found out and killed the engine.

I contacted Ron at Car Craft and he said "sorry, blew the gasket, right?"  "That is common with VW motors that have the HD oil pump, when you start them up you can't rev them until warm,,,, happens to some of my buggy customers frequently,,,,". 

I just about seized an engine and never even got a "would you like it replaced?" just a,, "sorry". If I had been driving on the road, I would have lost all the oil and seized the engine. It took me around two hours to clean up the mess from the oil spill before I pushed the car back in the shop to find out what happened.

I checked the filter and I think it is basically a bad design. There is no solid metal ring to support the gasket and the gasket is rather soft compared to other filters. We ran a Fram last year, and never had a problem, warm, cold, rev'd or idled. Fram’s gasket design is much better, and it is supported by a metal ring to avoid a "frequent blow out". I did a bit of research on the Fram we used, and found a KN filter in chrome. It is a motorcycle filter, but has the same thread design, the no drain back with engine off, and the gasket is the same size and has a good support ring as the Fram does. It is a little bit smaller (capacity) than the Fram, but there is the oil sump filter in the VW, and it isn't like I will be putting lots of miles between oil and filter changes. I put the new filter on, filled it back up with oil and started it up, rev'd it, 50 PSI pressure and no leaks. I ran it for a while at various speeds and all looks good, no leaks. I will keep an eye on it, but my suspicion is it will hold up just like the Fram did. Do yourself a favor and stay away from Car Craft, put your time and money with a better parts house who stand behind their parts.

Here is a picture of the KN filter in place- NICE!!

I would still love to hear stories from more owners as well as their experiences! Sharing them for other owners to read as well. Meantime, get the wax on your car, get it buffed out and get ready for the car shows, parades, poker runs or just Sunday afternoon drives in the sun. Keep these unique and stylish Mini Marks out on the road for people to see!

Happy Holidays

Winter moved in quickly where we live in Northwest Indiana, it was late summer and then suddenly the temperature dropped quickly and snow began falling. Our Mini Mark is now snuggly tucked into the shop with a warm car cover over it. There will be a few small projects before the spring thaw and the first drives of 2014, but overall the finish of the restoration in 2013 put the car where it needed to be.

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all the followers of the blog this year, and all the businesses used during the restoration for without you our Mini Mark wouldn't be what it is today. In 2014 the car will be out on the road when the weather warms and making more road trips, tours, and car shows.

 Please stop by next year for updates on Mini Mark's located, more company history, and new happenings of our Mini Mark.

Fall 2013

As fall sets in and the leaves begin to change just an update on the last few months. The end of summer has been very enjoyable with great weather. The car has been out making road trips and getting more miles on it. We have put almost five-hundred miles on it since getting it back on the road in July. I have checked everything over a few times and no adjustments have been necessary.

It is still a real pleasure to drive and it is still amazing the response it gets. We took a drive to Three Oaks, Michigan yesterday and parked the car to browse the city. When we were walking back we saw someone taking a picture of it. That is just one occasion, there have been others. That also doesn't include all the thumb's up, waves and just plain head turning when driving down the street.

When we purchased our car it was from Larry F.  a local restaurant owner. I was able to trace back to the person he bought it from (Thurman M. in Shipshewana, IN) and after some research I was able to make contact with him. We talked on the phone for around an hour and I was able to piece together a little more about the history of our Mark. He said he had a job that took him on a route along Highway 15 south of Bristol Indiana and one day he found it in someone's yard for sale then finally purchased it. The location he conveyed to me wasn't that far from Bremen where the car was built. Assuming that was the first owner of the car, it makes us the fourth owners. I guess it is just hard to believe that the little car has had that many owners over the years.

There are still many warm days ahead for fall and it will be fun to get the car out and more miles on it. Unfortunately the cold midwest winter will follow and a rest until spring.

The Car Show

July 27th, 2013. It was an overcast, cool Saturday and the first local car show since we finished our Mini Mark. The La Porte County Historical Museum was hosting a car show and I had decided it was time to see how the public responded to the Mini Mark. There was a nice turnout of cars, and spectators as the day went on. All total there were probably close to seventy plus cars on display all ages, makes and colors.

There were many owners and spectators who were interested in the Mini Mark and stopped by to see what it was. Probably the most asked question of the day was if the Mini Mark was a kit car since it had a VW engine and pan under it. I had put together a history book of the restoration, and took some time to answer their questions and explain that it really was a factory built car, not a kit, and built in Bremen Indiana, only around fifty miles from the museum.



Three o'clock came fast and it was time for the awards and results. All of the owners gathered around the registration tent and I waited impatiently to see if the car would be awarded. There were a few trophy's presented and then number 16 was called, (that was the our registration number). We had won the President of the Museum's Award! Wow, not a bad result for the first showing after the restoration. It gave some confidence to all the work which we had done for the restoration.  It was exciting to share the car with the public, and educate some of them on this stylish little car.

I am not sure what the rest of the summer and fall will bring, time will tell, but Saturday turned out as a big positive!

The Interior Part 2

With the carpet complete, and the end in sight, it was time to move on to the last stages of the interior. We had decided to do the upholstery work ourselves after delays with the shop we had chosen. The seats were the main concern, but I started checking the web and found that Pacific Customs Unlimited had narrow width custom seats available at a reasonable price. After working back and forth with them to verify the dimensions, the materials, the designs, the cost, we crossed our fingers and ordered two new non-returnable  seats. The only difference I was able to identify was that they did not extend up to match the curve of the rear deck. They offered a few different options of head rest and high back, but we decided to go with the standard seat.


We ordered additional material, both in the grey suede and black vinyl so that the balance of the interior would match the seats. Delivery went faster than promised and within three weeks everything was here. I rough fit the seats and made new mounting angles to the adjusters. The door panels and side trim panels were the next task. We did away with the buttons and just did a vertical seams with foam backing. The door panels and side trims turned out great, good look, good color contrast with the red body and black carpet. It was really coming together and looking great!


The last challenge was the console. We had saved that to the last. I had enlarged the hole for the door, and added two speakers to the console up towards the top facing the seats. I took around three hours cutting patterns taping patterns, cutting material and in my mind figuring how to sew it all together. With all of the contours the final count came down to four panels which needed to be sew together and then assemble on to the fiberglass. We seamed then french stitched the panels, taking time between each step to test fit it onto the console.

It was Sunday afternoon when we finished sewing and it was 92 degrees outside, not much cooler in the workshop. I started with a small section and spray glue.  A half hour later, I decided to call it a day and rethink what I was doing. All of the way through the rebuild, (going on three years), and inches from the finish line,,,, problems. I spent the next few days starting from page one on the attachment of the vinyl to the fiberglass. I re-started by sanding all the fiberglass, removing all the old paint and the glues which were on it. I followed up with landau foam, contact cemented to the console. I left spaces between the foam panels for all the seams on the cover.  The next few evenings were spent contact cementing  section by section to the foam.  FINALLY after a week of small glue ups I was finished. I called it a night and planned on the final install over the weekend. Saturday morning I made a few patterns and glued carpet to the interior of the console.  A few final tucks and staples around the speaker holes, installed the speakers, and into the car it went. A few loose wires to attach for the speakers and interior light and the console was bolted in place. Eight nuts to attach the seats to the adjusters, and it was finished. We learned a lot about upholstery, and finished the job under what any of the upholstery shop's had quoted us.

It was hard to believe this was the same car that barely made it home almost three years ago. Yes there were hours and hours of work which went into the rebuild, but they were well worth it. The day was still young so we took it out for a nice afternoon drive. It really does have the effect, people driving up along side with thumbs up, honking, waving, and just stares. There is a lot more summer to go and it will be fun just getting out on the road and driving.  There is a local car show next weekend, and if the weather is nice, it will be in the mix.

FINISHING TOUCHES~ Since we had decided to purchase new seats, there was that small area on top of the seat that didn't meet up to the curves on the top of the body. After driving the car a bit, and looking at the seats, I finally came up with an idea of a finishing touch for the seats. I  began crafting small "head rests" to cover that open area above the seats. We had additional grey suede material left over from the seats so that would be the covering for the head rests. We thought of giving a little identity which would be visible when the car was parked. Why not embroider the Mini Mark name in that small space. I did some research and found Dale at Precision Ink & Stitch in Galien, Michigan. I sent him the same script we had used for the wheel covers and he had it digitized, making it ready to embroider on the suede.

I drove to Dale's on Saturday and watched as he put the Mini Mark name on the material. It looked GREAT! I took them back home and within a few hours we had the two head rests finished and installed. This was that finishing touch needed for the seats, and gave a little extra identity to the car for people wondering what it was.

The Interior

I know it has been a while since I have made a new post to the blog, so let me bring you up to speed with where we have been.

Back in February I took all the upholstery to Palmer Upholstery in Michigan City and told him I needed it back by warm weather, I guess I should have been more specific, for which year the warm weather was in! After numerous calls, and visits, I finally went and picked everything up the first week of June, nothing had been done to it. We were now on to Plan "B" and "C", find a new upholstery shop, or do it ourself. I checked with a shop in South Bend, IN and then after weighing several factors we made the decision to do it ourself. One good thing about our choice was that we could drive the car while completing the upholstery details.

Our first project was the spare tire cover as outlined in the previous blog. Once that was completed, it was on to the carpet. The original carpet which I saved when we tore the car down was in numerous pieces for some reason (VW style).  I thought I could do the passenger compartment in one piece. After making patterns for the shifter, emergency brake and pedal assembly it was time to make a few cuts. With everything now stripped from the inside, and the carpet piece cut oversize, I started to fit it into place. I had installed sound and heat barrier when the pan was rebuilt, so it was just getting the carpet fit over it now. I used 3M spray adhesive in areas to ensure fit and attachment and after allowing dry time moved to a new area. I wrapped the carpet up to the bottom of the door, and up along the inner front panels. It was really starting to take shape. I moved on to installing carpet in all the area behind the seats. It really isn't visible, since it is covered by the console and seats, but I wanted that finished look.

Around 8 hours in and I had the interior carpet in place. The best part of this weekend was that when the day was over the seats were back in and the car was out on the road for part of the shake down drives. Around 25 miles and many people stopping to wave and look as we drove by. Day complete!

Last week we started the carpet and this weekend it is already wrapped up. We finished both sides of the firewall and the front trunk area. All told the carpet took less time than I thought it would, and it really looks sharp. We have had the satisfaction of doing it ourselves and my suspicion is it looks better and is more complete than the upholstery shop would have done. We also laid out and fabricated the boots to cover the emergency brake and gear shift out of black vinyl, attaching velcro to the bottom of each to secure them to the carpet. This also allows removal should it be necessary to work on the emergency brake or shifter without pulling the whole carpet. We also put velcro on the heel pad securing it to the carpet. If it ever wears or needs replacement it will be easy to do.

Wrapping it up, a good vacuuming and still having weekend left it was time for a drive, another 25 mile shake down and home in the garage.

There isn't much left of the interior, but the story of that will continue.

The Spare Tire

Hopefully if you are reading this you have had the opportunity to take a slow gazing walk around a Mini Mark? The lines are so smooth, flowing and stylish, that is until you get to the rear of the car and the engine cover. The rear bumper is swept out in the center, and it looks like there should be a continental tire mounted there. The engine cover is even rounded in the shape of a tire.

There are two spare tires, one on each side tucked in the running boards. I made an early on decision during the rebuild to eliminate the running board spares, I just didn't like the way they looked, they broke the flowing lines of the fenders. The more I looked at the car, the engine cover needed a completed look of a continental tire. I took some measurements and tried to match it to a 12 inch or 13 inch tire. Both seemed a bit too big and the weight factor of a wheel and tire combination when you have to open the engine cover could pose a problem. I researched continental kits and the ones I could find were for the back of custom vans, way too big for the Mini Mark.


That wasn't stopping my vision of putting a continental tire there. Why couldn't I make a lightweight spare? I could get the size that I wanted to match the circle that was there from the factory, and make it light enough to still raise the engine cover. I picked up some 1-1/2" thick Owen's Pink
Styrofoam and cut two 24" squares. I then cut a piece of 1/2" birch plywood and made a sandwich with Gorilla Glue to hold it all together. Clamping it overnight and cutting the exterior in a circle  then cutting out the interior. Shaping the "donut" to look like a tire, building a mounting pad out of 1/2" plywood, and then coating the styrofoam with wood glue, I was finally able to start the fiberglass layup of a tire. While I was doing all of this I was able to find a 13" NOS wire wheel cover to match the 14" set I had put on the car, and I made the inside of my "tire" to accept that 13" wheel cover. Layers of fiberglass, resin, sanding and finally it was complete. I knew there would be a bit of a clearance problem opening the engine cover when the tire was in place, so I had engineered two stainless drawer slides to mount the tire to the engine cover. This allowed me to raise the tire assembly to clear the rear bumper when opening the engine cover, and slide it back down in a neat package with the cover closed. Some additional sanding before a few coats of black paint and then off to get a black vinyl tire cover made to complete the look. Even unpainted this was the look that I was envisioning, it completed and took away the unfinished appearance of the engine cover.



SUCCESS! As you can see from the picture to the side the spare tire cover is complete and the tire is now in place. It didn't take long, two days of patterns, cutting, sewing and finished. It is the look I originally envisioned and it didn't take three months to finish. The next step will be the carpet- patterns, cut and fit, inch by inch getting it all into place.