Hello!

Post by **captain_70s** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 2:56 am

Hi,

I have been thinking of using a Morris Minor as a 1st car, as I am 17, but have a few worries.

The first being the fact I'll be running a 40 year old car on a daily basis, and it will have to live outside due to my lack of a garage. This also limits the work I can really do on the car without a roof over my head!

Also I am also worried about the millage I would do, which may well be over 10,000 a year, and although I am sure with regular matinence I could keep the enging running surely it wouldn't be too long before it died.

If possible could any of you give me any info on mpg, the specs say 38mpg, but in a 40 year old car on todays roads? Info on the best cruising speeds and honest description of handling would be really nice too.

Any advice, help etc would be greatly appreciated, also I would be buying on a small budget.

Cheers,

Anthony

Sun Apr 12, 2009 5:08 am

welcome to the moggy message board anthony, when you go to look at a moggy if you have any specific questions, feel free to post here and most people will try to answer your questions.

I ran a moggy as my only car for about 18 years, and yes 38 mpg is more than possible on long runs. I was getting low 30's driving around town with mid 30's being the norm. On the other hand if you rev the car wildly and hang on to gears as long as possible to get the maximum speed out of each gear you will not be able to get these mpg's.. it is all up to you and your driving style. I had a friend that strugled to get 20 mpg out of his 1.6 escort.. as soon as i saw his driving style i was shocked he manged to get 20!

Provided you change the oil regularly and keep it topped up there is no reason for the engine to die any time soon. As for other regular maintance greasing is straight forward and easy ( provided it is not raining and you are lying down in a puddle ). brakes are straight forward as are all the other regular service point.. the most difficult part of the service is that you have to lift the carpet to top up the brake master cylinder!

Crusing I find 60 comfortable not only on the car / my ears but on my wallet as well. Handling is fun and predictable, hence why 20 + years on i still have my first car.

As for advice on buying, test drive a few different cars so you know how they should drive before actually buying one. The most important thing on a moggy is rust so pay particular attention to the shell try and find the best you can or you mind find that you are having to do more maintance than you hoped for.

Post by **aupickup** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 8:44 am

also bear in mind that shiny is not all ways the best

go for a good solid honest car, there are loads around that fall into this catagory

if possible take some one that knows about moggies with you, that will save you a lot of greif, as so many have found out to their cost

so as charlie says

good luck and welcome

Post by **eastona** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 9:36 am

Welcome on board Anthony,

Echo what's said above. There are loads of us who us them as every day cars, doing average and above average mileage.

Don't stint on the maintenance, I tend towards little and often, doing a rolling service over a few weekends. I generally do around 250 miles a week to work and back but most months I put in two or three 200 mile motorway round trips. I generally get high thirties, low forties, I don't hang around, but I have mainly longer runs. More is possible if you're patient!

Mine also lives outside. As others have said, go for a car that's been used every day and is solid structurally. I took an ebay punt on mine, and it's proved itself, but I wouldn't recommend this unless you look at it before and set yourself a reasonable limit. A Morris Savvy friend would be very helpful for the viewing!

Get yourself a good one and you won't regret it. eminently practical cars with loads of character.

Andrew

Post by **aupickup** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 9:40 am

or give me £3500.00 and you have mine

Post by **captain_70s** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 3:32 pm

Thanks for the welcome.

or give me £3500.00 and you have mine

Should I stumble accross £3500 I shall definately consider the offer!
Sadly my budget will be slightly less than that, not much, just a couple of grand less!

I have been considering many cars for my 1st including, Allegros, Escorts, Vivas, Marinas and the BMC 1100 series.
But as far as ease to find and parts avaliability go the Minor is leauges ahead.

I am thinking of the late 1000 models with the 1.1 litre engine, and would love a traveller but sadly them being the most expensive and the added problems of wood rot have nigh on cancelled them out.

I was wondering about mpg because many 60s cars struggle to top 30mpg and I'll never be able afford to support such a low mpg. I was also worried about insurance with me doing 10,000 miles a year, but classics generaly seem to be cheaper to insure than moderns.

Actually finding a car shall have to wait sadly as I am un-employed, and my rural location make it hard to get a job, at the momment I have so little money I can't even offord to post my Provisional License form!
Hard to belive I had over £800 this time last year.

Post by **flowersGTR** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 5:09 pm

charlie_morris_minor wrote:
I ran a moggy as my only car for about 18 years, and yes 38 mpg is more than possible on long runs. I was getting low 30's driving around town with mid 30's being the norm. On the other hand if you rev the car wildly and hang on to gears as long as possible to get the maximum speed out of each gear you will not be able to get these mpg's.. it is all up to you and your driving style. I had a friend that strugled to get 20 mpg out of his 1.6 escort.. as soon as i saw his driving style i was shocked he manged to get 20!

that would explain alot
i get high 20's giving it a bit of stick

Sun Apr 12, 2009 5:33 pm

flowersGTR...that sounds like a lot of stick

Anthony... do not rule out an early car as many have been fitted with 1098 engines at later times in their life

Post by **Sidney'61** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 5:36 pm

charlie_morris_minor wrote:Anthony... do not rule out an early car as many have been fitted with 1098 engines at later times in their life

And I don't suppose the slightly earlier 948 engine is much different, it's just as capable for daily use as the 1098.

Post by **captain_70s** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 9:13 pm

Sidney'61 wrote:
charlie_morris_minor wrote:Anthony... do not rule out an early car as many have been fitted with 1098 engines at later times in their life
And I don't suppose the slightly earlier 948 engine is much different, it's just as capable for daily use as the 1098.

Having looked at all the models I chose the 1.1 due to the improved 0-60 time, 31 seconds I would have thought, although fine in its day, would be harder for daily use now. Against the speed of newer cars at least, also the 31 seconds was recorded with a brand new car. Not one 40 years old.

Having said that, I don't know if the 948 engine is easier to work on or a smoother engine. My choices are mostly based from specifications and reviews.
There are sadly not many Morris Minors I have seen around here, 3 actually. A Traveller in a village parade, another that parks at my college and a Series 2, 2 door saloon in Dumfries.
So I haven't had a chance to ride in one.

Post by **Matt** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 10:01 pm

A standard 1098 is perfectly capable in modern traffic! Think about all the 600cc cars out there at the moment, they cant be much faster???

Post by **wibble_puppy** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 2:26 pm

Hi Anthony, welcome to the forum

Post by **simmitc** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 3:24 pm

Hi Anthony, just to echo what others have said, Minors are perfectly suitable for every day cars - that's what they were designed for. I have got "only" Minors, and used to do 18,000 miles per annum in one, including high speed dual carriageway and rural. A new job means that I'm down to about 10,500; but last year went from Essex to Edinburgh and back, the year before to the Isle of Man via Liverpool. Never had a moment of concern about "getting there". As long as one looks after the car, it will look after you.

Think: No road tax, cheap insurance, cheap parts, all DIY jobs, no special computers needed; and good mpg. The 948cc should give you around 42mpg, the 1098 a good 35mpg - both based on my "average" driving. For a rural area, even in a modern car you won't go much faster than a Minor anyway, due to bends, junctions, villages, and tractors; so just enjoy the Minor. Don't forget that there's also an excellent social side to owning a Minor.

Hope you find a good one. It's worth joining your local branch so that someone can help you look over any prospective car, and steer you away from trouble.

Post by **mickessex** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 4:24 pm

Hi Anthony, I use my 948 everyday, about 13,000 miles a year. I drive between 50 & 60 mph with no problems, as long as you keep the car well maintained, and at regular intervals it will be fine. I also keep the car outside on the drive due to no garage, this has never been a problem for me.

Mick

Post by **aupickup** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 4:43 pm

yep can only say whats been said before
jsut watch the brakes, you have to give a bit more distance

but these can be upgraded to discs later if u wanted

Post by **mike.perry** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 5:20 pm

A 1098 Minor should be no problem in traffic, my Series MM with s/v engine is quite capable of being held up by Golf GTIs etc.!!!

Post by **captain_70s** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:05 pm

How are the 2 engines regarding steep slopes? There are not too many hills around here but I wouldn't imagine there to be alot of torque in engines of that age and size..

Also what differance does the ammount of passangers in the car make? I have been in a Micra that was fine with 2 people but when carrying 5 it started to strain the 1 litre engine.

I would imagine a Minor is simillar.

Post by **alex_holden** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:34 am

A standard 1098 copes fine going up very steep hills (steepest I've driven up was 1:4 IIRC). Coming down them, you have to be careful to use engine braking to avoid overheating the brakes.

There's an ordinary 'steep' hill (steep enough to make you out of breath if you walk up it) in a 30MPH zone on my way home from work, and I don't have any trouble keeping up with modern cars on it. ;)

Extra weight obviously slows you down slightly but I had no problems driving around Ireland with three people and a ridiculous amount of luggage in my Traveller.

Post by **wibble_puppy** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:43 am

alex_holden wrote: I had no problems driving around Ireland with three people and a ridiculous amount of luggage in my Traveller.

I had some fun doing rally driving in it on that trip, on one particularly hilly, windy stretch of road

Post by **dalebrignall** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:36 pm

hi and welcome,a moggy is perfect for everyday use,and parts are readily availiable,i drove back to stalbans from holyhead on less than a full tank about 260miles,that gives you an idea on fuel consumption.