Morris Minor Owners Club

Yes the valve clearances I did a week or so ago opting to set the exhaust valves @ the additional value .

Unlike yours Bill, my Minor can be difficult to start cold so needed looking at - I have had lots of super tips about this on other threads. The timing light has revolutionised the running of the car and the cold starting. I do have a sticking choke mechanism though to look at, it will not readily cancel on its own accord.

The (hopefully) final thing to sort out is the dwell angle. I reset the points again this morning and the dwell angle with my lovely singing and dancing strobe tells me it is only 48°. I understand it should be 60°. Thus does this mean readjusting the points? I assume so but in what direction? i.e more gap or less?

From memory its inverse so closing the points gap increases the dwell and increasing the points gap decreases the dwell.
Have you checked the points gap on all four lobes, so checking for wear or bent shaft.

Thanks again Bill - i will do that now and also check on all 4 lobes at the same time. I did check for wear with the bearing which seems to be ok.

Points gap set at 0,35mm which gives a dwell angle of 61° according to the strobe. Just come back from a 100km round trip with the engine performing admirably.!

Performing admirably I said? Not quite and here is a lesson learned.

The car would not start this morning - very strange. PErhaps it had run out of fuel I thought but even with 5litre poured in, no go.
Obviously an electical problem - checked the points first and found no gap! The fault lay with the holding screw which though not exactly loose was not tight enough and as a result had slipped. All adjusted and fine now.

Nickol wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2026 6:50 pm Performing admirably I said? Not quite and here is a lesson learned.

The car would not start this morning - very strange. PErhaps it had run out of fuel I thought but even with 5litre poured in, no go.
Obviously an electical problem - checked the points first and found no gap! The fault lay with the holding screw which though not exactly loose was not tight enough and as a result had slipped. All adjusted and fine now.

Good news and a simple solution, to a quickly diagnosed problem, you will always fully tighten that screw from now on

Hopefully, not famous last words. I will not have to touch it for a while as but it is running better than ever now! Interestingly I had to perform the points gap adjustment a few times until the dwell angle was correct. It stands now at 57°, which at the exteme of tolerance, will have to do. I live in a very hilly area ( the largest single fulkrum volcano in europe apparantly) and if the car is not running right , you will find out quickly on going uphill.