Morris Minor Owners Club

Thanks Kevin - Dad's just got himself a 4dr so it looks like that may be a good way to go for his rubbers!

On one post I mentioned a good use for olive oil, well may as well put it in this post as we're coming to when it was needed.
The Velvet/Rubber for the top and sides goes in alot better if first you get some kitchen paper use some oilve oil on it and as u push the rubber in u wipe the rubber with some olive oil, this really helps to get it in smoothly otherwise you have a big struggle on your hands (And yes this is what we did to fit ours)

No wonder you car is Smiling if you gave it a good oiling.
I will remember this tip as mine are to be done soon thanks.

Today I took the old hose off and discovered that not only is the mount on the water pump getting rusted but the one on the head itself is shot. What tips do you have on dealing with this one?

Oh dear, that is a nasty job because although it has a groove
to allow you to unscrew the pipe from the head it is usually
so corroded and flimsy that it doesn't work any more. The
pipe just collapses when you try to remove it. I have tried
knocking the walls inwards to break the thread, drilling out the
pipe with gradually larger drills etc, with no luck. One solution
if all else fails is to find a bolt of the correct diameter, tap the
head to suit and, when fitted, drill a hole down the centre.
I don't suppose you have an A series specialist machine shop
near you?? ( original replacement pipes are available)

Yes Willie the pipe has collapsed - it did that when I took the hose off.

I think I could get the parts ok its more the matter of getting the old one out. I guess the onlt option now is to take the head off to really get at it.

The bottom one (water pump) has a hex around the base - will unscrewing this get that one out?

fweddy,
Very sorry to hear that your bypass hose connection is shot! That's not a nice repair - Wille detailed some useful options, but if it was me, I'd exchange the head (they are easy to get hold of here).

The bottom one (water pump) has a hex around the base - will unscrewing this get that one out?

I've not seen that before - maybe it was repaired already with a screw in piece (non standard). Or maybe it was just a different waterpump casting style.

Old Quinten Hazel cast iron replacement water pumps have a separate screwed in by pass hose connection. Could be one of those.
Got one in my garage.

Some cast alli pump have screw in bottom pipe peices too.

Fweddy.. same as above, I have never seen a removable
pump pipe either but it is not nearly as bad a problem as
removing the head,which you obviously have to do to get
at your problem. if you find a way to remove the old by pass
pipe with the head in situ then patent it immediately!! You will
make a fortune. I agree with RAY ,your best bet unless you are
very lucky, will be to exchange the head. I bought a so called
totally rebuilt unleaded head only to find that the by pass pipe
was wafer thin so I refused to accept it. Whichever route you
end up taking then don't fit the concertina by pass hose. Fit
the thick straight sided rubber pipe which will last a very long
time.

Thanks for the tips - I'll see how I get on when I face the prob. Also will see how removable the pump pipe is! Is going to delay me getting on the road but that's no big deal.

Well tonight we attacked the problem. I had given the parts some CRC the other night. We whipped the head off and... well I'm not sure what makes it so hard (ok I can understand that it could be). I took a ¾ to the hex on the water pump and with a careful tweak the attachment screwed straight out. Then we tried the head side of things. (If it was going to mean a replacement head we might as well try) We put dad's big blue (big screwdriver with a square shaft) into the hole and tapped it in so it jammed in the hole, then as I tapped the end he used a crescent on the shaft and (after a couple of slips) it unscrewed and left the nice clean, undamaged thread. All I need now is to get a screw-in attachment for each end (and a head gasket) and put the whole thing back together.

Anything else I should do while all is going easy and I have the head off?

Make sure you use a copper head gasget some of the other types have been causing problems recently, and use the straight bypass hose and not the bellows type as they last far longer, as the bellows type are a replacent for when you dont wont to remove anything, dont forget to put it in place before putting either the head or the pump back.

*whistles*

Well, don;t forget to patent your dads big blue screwdriver you
jammy devil!!! If you do manage to g et a copper head gasket
then remember to retighten the head nuts after a couple of
hundred miles....they bed in.