Morris Minor Owners Club

IMPORTANT 2nd footnote. I had the AF460 (copper) gasket fail. Usual point, between two centre cylinders where the head is thin and the siamesed exhaust port causes more heat. Got a race headgasket cos my head has been cut too close to the gasket when it was ported, just where it failed: C-AHT188. Mi...

A footnote on non-identical heads I forgot last time. The heater outlet on 12g940 is closer to the outside than the standard 1100 head. You need to put a nick in the rear engine steady bar to clear the valve.

I have the distributor puzzle sussed. It's to do with the distributor cap. P20 of the Haynes manuaul (sky blue 56-71) shows a distributor cap with the #1 plug lead heading from the bottom left corner. The leads exit opposite from the spade terminal connection. This cap suits the Haynes Morris descri...

Quite agree Ray. When I removed the dizzy I used the twin wing bracket so the clamp bolt was untouched. It was comfirmation of the Mini Haynes view rather than the Morris Haynes view. I also had the TDC problem you mention - the bottom of the piston skirt protrudes below the bore and gets in the way...

If you a rebuilding a 1098 engine, the Morris haynes manual says insert the distributor drive vertical with the small offset to the front of the engine and it rotates to the 11 o/c position. This was not how my engine, believed to be standard, was timed. It conformed to the Haynes and BL manuals for...

I had this fouling problem too. The cause is that the new pump is 'universal' and has castings for two, three and four bolt small block A-series oil pump fixings. My 1098 original pump had a 3 bolt fixing, one at the top of the triangle. The new pump has catings for a four bolt square pattern fixing...

Ford axel, that makes it easier. You need another 11% rolling radius to hit 60 in 2nd. Currently you have 185mm width * 60% aspect ratio = 4.4in tyre height. Add the wheel radius, 7in for a rolling radius of 11.4in. Say you found a couple of 4 bolt Ford alternative wheels with 185R14 tyres instead (...

Hi Cam, You'd crack 7 if you don't need 3rd, and maybe had a tad more traction (looks like std wheels on the '69). Maybe you should borrow a couple of 14in rear wheels or 175/80 tyres for a test... You're only a few % off 60 in second. Two other thoughts - if you borrow a GPS you can calibrate your ...

Forgot to mention - you also need a hole in the engine plate to clear the pivot pin of the tensioner pad. About 12mm to allow the tensioner adjustment movement. The tensioner pad was wider than the duplex chain, from the Haynes pic some are less so. Don't think the Turbo bit has anything to do with ...

Jumping back to page 1 Cam, my 1380 NA mini with 125hp (calculated from 1/4 mile speeds) ran 7.0 and 7.2 when I took it through the lights, 0-60. It was 700kg on the weighbridge, and my traveller is 800kg in the book, surprisingly light in comparison. Given RWD, I'd expect your Moggie to run at leas...

Just fitted a 1984 Metro turbo tensioner, used with a simplex chain, to a duplex set from a Mini 1275 on a Moggie 1098 engine. The tensioner pad is wide enough for the duplex chain. Motivation: had the duplex chain, my simplex chains were all worn, hate engines that sound like a bag of nails. From t...

Well it's a harder cutting job of course but feasible. The measurements would be the same but there will be more metal to remove (no initial recession). I'd guess the 30 deg cut would extend to the diameter of the insert. The insert probably has enough metal to stay in place and not crack, but I wou...

I believe you Ray. I was only 0.03mm the wrong side with no mods. Rod is not correct. [/quote] I've used one on a standard 1098 with no pockets, one headgaskets and correct tappet clearances. [/quote] That's options d), b) and c). So you're using a) :) My exhaust valves have 1.5mm vertical height ab...

Just had a go, and I think it’s an each way bet. A summary of the measurements: 1) there’s cam lift. 2) This is multiplied by the rocker ratio. 3) Subtract from this the tappet clearance. 4) The valve face then moves down to the cylinder head face. 5) Then there’s a little more clearance from the ga...

Just bought a pair of Halogens from Morris Minor Centre Birmingham, and they have domed fronts. Not quite as much as the Lucas sealed beams - maybe 1/2in protrusion compared to 3/4in, but because they use a metal shield inside the glass freznel is mainly vertical stripes and they look quite period. ...

So checking up, I actually used the one from a Montego 2.0l. This is right sided, but uses a poly-v belt. I swapped the pulley for a single V. It does use spade terminals (the connector was good) but I ran a high current cable from both large terminals direct to the starter solenoid. The point about...

Good point Ray. Avoid the temptation to go as high as possible, above 55A you'll spend your time readjusting the belt. The high current ones are for high current electrical systems, like interior fans that take 30A (easily possible today) not 5A like a minor. In a minor, most of the current goes to ...

So here's a trade off, and I don't suppose we will have consensus. On rebuild, I too take the plugs out and crank for pressure. But normal starts, well, the bores are splash lubricated so if you crank without start you are trading bearing wear for bore wear. Up to you. On fuel injection, A-series ha...

I will try and identify mine, at a guess '85 escort 1.3, but if you wander around the breakers yard you will find there's only a few makes and formats on all cars. Anything that has the following spec will do: 1) Single 'v' fanbelt. Obvious really, don't go for a double fanbelt, it will have too muc...

Alternators are inherently more reliable than dynamos - the alternator has slip-ring connections rather than the multiple pole brush connections required of a dynamo. Having said that, the early mini Lucas alternators (ACR series) do suffer from old semiconductors and I have has failures. But you wi...