1300 or 1500?

Hi all, I have a fully running 1500 which has had no welding to the underside, however also have a 1300 sitting in my garage. The question I have, is that I bought the 1300 as a bit of project about 1 1/2 years ago. The car needs total restoration, of which my main concern is the windscreen surround which has rotten through on the bottom external corners. I know people have secondhand windscreen frames however not sure how easy these are to weld onto the main car and will this effect the structure afterwards? I also owned a 1300 some twenty years ago and can't remember the difference in the performance, gearbox ratios compared to the 1500. When driving the 1500 it seems a bit under geared as on the motorway it seems to struggle a bit unless really revving it. I have thought about stripping the 1300 to it's bare shell and utilising all the parts onto my 1500 however can't make my mind up partly as the 1300's are so rare. I love the look of the 1300's with the seventies deckchair fabric. Can anyone give their honest advice what I should do as I used to be a mechanic some years ago and have done restorations before but just need some good advice before I decide on anything? I look forward to some responses!!!

If its any help I have a very good full screen, as you said about a full refit I would not be to keen but you can graft the parts from this one in better than using the copy bits.

Michael

I would have made an effort on saving the 1300. But everything has a price. And it is difficult for us to determine if this car is worth saving. Do you have any pictures?

Michael, thanks for your response. I don't want to waste your time, however would you be able to send some pics to me at- damon.singh@tiscali.co.uk .The dilemma is that the worst part of the frame is the bottom part on the corners, near the wing areas. Many thanks

Pictures sent three in total

Kai, I enclose some photos however not sure it really shows the severity of the corrosion. The worst areas are the corners that meet the front wings. Apart from this area, the rear suspension turrets need welding, new floor pans/ sills/ door skins/ nose cone/ front inner wings/ front indicator panels/ rear valance areas all need work. Also underneath one of the front suspension mounting brackets has a corrosion hole around it and not forgetting the o/s rear wing has had a smack at some stage. Can you tell me overall what the driving is like on your 1300 compared to the 1500 please as it's a four speed box? I guess at the end of the day X1/9's aren't really worth that much and it seems a shame to get rid of the 1300 for scrap, however perhaps I could remove all the 1300 parts (trim/ engine lid etc) and put on my 1500? Let me know your thoughts? Much appreciated!