Morris Minor Owners Club

I've arrived a bit late, as usual. Bit of a strange debate all round. I think BMC makes a particularly valid point about sill strengtheners - you could only insert these prior to fitting the boxing plate, couldn't you? (I have a traveller, not a convertible, but believe they used the same strengtheners). So can any non convertible LBM owner whip off one of their sill covers and let us know if there's a strengthener there? Should settle that theory.......

Mark

It seems the LBM was introduced to allow Tourers to be converted
into 2drs - confirmed several cases on this.

2drs into Tourers, bit of a grey area there.

The "numbers" issue - too many Tourers assembled than built -
goes back further to 1948/9.

Will need "MM" details to research this - info like this is NOT available
via BMIHT nor MM Register - so I need the co-operation of "MM"
enthusiasts to furnish me with chassis,body codes & numbers.

Thanks

So - a LBM saloon should have the Tourer strengthening ? Or was that added later in production - after a roof had been welded on....?

Is this one on Ebay not a LBM?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1957-MORRIS-M ... 761wt_1190

Confused.... are you saying that all 2 door saloons produced between 1951 and 1957 have the LBM or only a select few??

Andy

Only the ones that were intended to be convertibles - and then had a roof welded on instead at the last minute.......
The whole thread seemed to be a 'puff' to help sell a car on ebay ..... and it didn't sell.......

So back to the subject....

Having owned my Morris for 32 years I am fairly au fait with the difference between models.....

I have said in an earlier post that I don't find the notion that tourers were made from chopped saloons or vv. plausible,

this...

864 BYX wrote:But there were still some Series 2 BODIES Lying around which HAD THE LBM, so they used these and modified them to look like Series 3 (larger windscreen/rear window) Eventually these bodies ran out around December 1957.

I find equally implausible!
the work involved in converting a split screen to a single screen is considerable. Where on earth has this idea come from???

Washer jets - were these not an optional extra??

Andy
owner of a 1957 LBM

Going off topic here, but....does anyone know the start date
of PKD Minor's?

All the info I want to know isn't in these books.

PKD ???

bmcecosse wrote:PKD ???

What does "abbv." mean?

PKD = Partially Knocked Down
CKD = Completely Knocked Down
EX = Export
A = Australia

Confused?

I had of course heard of CKD - but not PKD. Thanks for the concise explanation!

Well we haven't been told how the numbering system works, or indeed what the 'F' suffix denotes, so difficult to know the response. How about letting us know? Then those who are interested can note and those that are not can dismiss.

les wrote:Well we haven't been told how the numbering system works, or indeed what the 'F' suffix denotes, so difficult to know the response. How about letting us know? Then those who are interested can note and those that are not can dismiss.

......and publish the evidence to back up your assertions that tourers were made from chopped saloons etc.etc

At the moment you are not helping your cause!

Who first said that the GPO never adopted the 948cc engine?

Took a fair amount of flack for suggesting the above - going against
the grain is a compliment.

The LBM saga is NOT proven, I agree - remember we're ONLY talking
less than 1000 in 10 yrs - BUT, the salient point IS that body numbers
were applied BEFORE painting, chassis numbers AFTER, so which will
be the most accurate?

"A" = Australia - either stamped or on an alloy tag
"A" = ? (prefixed noted on a Tourer body number tag)

Problem(?) as I see it, that variation in body/engine/trim/colour/gearbox not always happening simultaneously on 'model' change over does give rise to some styles being made ( and surviving ) fewer in number. Yes , its interesting that there are differences, but why any (normal) Minor buyer should consider paying any premium over normal model values would have to coe either from some persuasive sales techniques, or an obsessive completest collector as purchaser. In the family we have some cars from limited production runs in a style and colour combination, its nice to know its 'rare' but makes us wary of significantly updating and maybe we have illogically spent more money on its restoration than we would have done on a more common variant. At the end of the day value is what the buyer is waving in his mitts at you.

864 BYX wrote:Yet (so far) only 3 LBM,s from October 1956 to December 1957, Series 3 two doors have been 100% verified, and NOT one of them is totally original.

What do you mean by totally original?

An earlier post indicated all 2 door saloons built between 1951 and 1958 were LBM. Surely there are plenty of 1956/57 Minors around??

LBM started on the Z12100 body code series MMs, 10/50?

Well, I've just joined this club and wonder what on earth I've got myself into. As the new owner of the LBM '57 converted saloon mentioned, I take exception to the statement made, after looking at a few photographs and without seeing the car in the flesh, that not a very good job has been done by cutting below the LBM. The conversion is an excellent one and it has been strengthened in all the correct places. To be honest, I don't think an LBM is going to contribute much to the structural integrity of the vehicle anyway - after all, it is a comparatively small section, hollow bead sitting in the wrong position to give any additional support to the modified panel.

An interesting subject but not one worth getting upset about!

What panels need to be welded in to convert a 2dr to a Tourer?

See enough "chop-top" 2drs about, so NOT an impossible task.

History is ON vehicles, cannot rely on archives and parts books to
provide ALL answers!

Elbert Hubbard

I've been filled in on the background to this thread, so I must apologise for my post - I'd better edit it then

George.