well i've bought one...what do i do now..??

[flymike]

Hi There

i have always wanted to restore an old car, my grandad had a Morris Minor when i was very young and theres something about the old minor that always provokes thoughts of long warm summers, picnics, black and white photos, green fields etc etc. so i thought it's got to be a Minor.

after much searching and rust filled hair i found my car. LDE 723F a 1968 two door 1098cc thats mostly brown. however it's also mostly welded with only small holes in the boot floor, all the rear hangers have been replaced anlong with the bushes front and rear. the engine ran first time with the old method of pouring petrol straight into the carb and has come with lots of old bags filled with lots old rust.

it's also come with a four new wings (fitted but now removed), the car has been partly restored over the past 14 years and has been dry stored.

i paid £120 for her.

amoung the bags of bits that came with her are 14 window winders and 7 headlights .???!!!
replacement carpets in good condition, the seats are good all round, most parts are there except for (and i've only had her for two days)

front hockey sticks, front light rear rubbers, wiper arms/blades, seat belts, wing mirrors and a negative battery lead (goes to soleniod)

could do with due to condition, indicator stalk, rear valance, rear bumper iron, rear crome bumper with over riders, rear bumper support posts and a complete new wiring loom.

not looked at the brakes yet but pipes look in good order and i have a bag full of brake parts..

so if anyone out there has any parts or more importantly advise then please e-mail me at. mikeDOT3alandATvirginDOTnet (email edited by Rogerrust to confuse the robots!)
i am a complete novice at this but not a complete idiot (well not a complete one anyway) idiot that is..?

also how hard would it be to convert her into a convertible..?? and would anyone have parts for sale for this..??

any information you have would be great. ie where to get parts, how not too loose you fingers, what to check for and "WHERE DO I START"..

Cheers
Mike
Broughton Astley, Leicestershire.

[RogerRust]

Hi Mike,
there is an active branch in Leicestershire. Someone will be along soon to give you the details!
Sounds like a good deal. Pleased to see another one being brought back to life!

[jackkelleher]

I've looked at converting mine to convertible, though I eventually decided against it for reasons of my own that bear no significance to this story...
The kit is available from online order, and comes with the necessary strengthening bars keep the car structurally safe. These and other parts require weding into place, and the interior does have to be removed to make way for the strengtheners. I would say the biggest challenge to the project is a proficiency in welding. However, for a slightly higher fee the garage that provides the kits (I can't for the life of me remember the name, I'm afraid) will do all the work for you and deliver a nice convertible Moggy to your door.
I too am fairly new to this, but I started with dismantling the carburettor (because it looks nice) which is a good way to start with the car, I think, although if you need a new loom it might be worth jumping in at the deep end and doing that... If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask me- I'll apply my not-so-great knowledge to giving you an answer, because I've had just a few problems to solve with mine in recent months... I can't offer as much help with those wider questions as perhaps others can, though.

[moggy_moo]

welcome aboard! I have had my moggy only a short time, and I love her to bits, she is also BROWN,
this site will help no end

[docgibbons]

the guy who supplies the conversion kit is john at mid sussex minors. he's a wizard welder as well, and will do the whole lot for you if you want for, i think, about £1400.

[flymike]

thanks chaps

i reckon i'm going to start with the " if it's bolted on take it off " approach. weld, spray and then service parts, bolt back on replacing with new/replacement or repaired parts as i need them.

is this a good way forward..?

is there anything that i shouldn't take off..??

Cheers for your help so far...this is a great site.
Mike

[bigginger]

Start with the structure of the body, then sort the brakes. Just about everything else is 'cosmetic'

[jackkelleher]

Sounds like a good approach. Does the engine feel sound, though? It might need a bit of work to make reliable; treat it badly and your entire car will be one big (and useless) cosmetic!

[HarryMango]

there is an active branch in Leicestershire. Someone will be along soon to give you the details!

Ah - that would be me then

Mike - The Leics Branch meet at 2000 hrs on the 2nd Wednesday of the month (just gone) quite near you at the Coachouse Inn at Mallory Park Race Track. If you PM me your email address, I will put you on our newsletter mailing list.

I also recommend joining the main club which you can do from the link on the left hand margin of this site - you will then receive the club magazine which is packed full of articles & adverts for most of the Traders for parts etc.

Rog

[flymike]

sounds great, have pm'd you my address, thanks for the invite.

have managed to aquire quite a few parts needed, thanks to those who got in contact...have a bit more of an idea of the undertaking i have taken on..!!!...but feeling better now after having a drink.

cheers
Mike

[flymike]

Sounds like a good approach. Does the engine feel sound, though? It might need a bit of work to make reliable; treat it badly and your entire car will be one big (and useless) cosmetic!

yeah engine is sound (so far) but then i've only ran it the once due to the rad being off, the oil in it is like new and she started first time no knocks bangs or smoke, the engine however is not clean and looks untouched, but it has only done 56,000 miles, a friend of mine who restored a consol including engine rebuild said it sounded real nice.!! i'm sure time will tell with the engine, i'm trying to persuade him that his engine rebuilding tallents are going to waste and really for his own good should rebuild mine.!! he he...don't ask don't get.

cheers Mike

[jackkelleher]

Go for it... Don't waste energy if you can have something done for you. Good that the engine is healthy, though- it'll be more gratifying when you finish the other work because you can jump straight in and take it for a spin... Well, good luck.

[chickenjohn]

If they're not allready off, I would remove the sill covers/finishers to have a look at the state of the sills inside,l as they rust from the inside out. They are held on by 4 screws along the top and five bolts at the bottom.

If you find rust here- don;t panic- all the panels are available and not too hard to fit, if you can weld, but you should definitely make sure the sills are sound before contemplating convertible conversions etc.

Where to get parts, I use either Bull Motif or ESM do a quick google- you can see all their parts on their web bases catalogues.

other than that, good luck and have fun!

[Kevin]

Welcome aboard Mike and good luck with your project if there are more bits you need the best place to put an add is in the Wanted Section.

[jackkelleher]

I've had a couple of bad experiences with ESM- it could be a one-off, though. I've never heard anything but good about Bull Motif, though...

[bmcecosse]

The engine oil probably only looked 'like new' because all the crap will have settled to the bottom of the sump. Ideally run it until fully hot - then drain and change the oil and the filter as soon as possible.