Morris Minor Owners Club

Just got my 1953 SII two door back after someone took a shine to it.

I've started to dissasemble it and have found more sill / wheelarch rust than I remembert (it had been stored a long time) so significant welding is requied.

The question is should I keep it original (803, 2 door saloon) or make it more useable and interesting (upgrade to 948, change to convertible).

Opinions gratefully received!

Surely it depends on what and how you intend to use the car, 803cc a little on the slow side. Convertible not so cold/wet weather friendly, and also how much money you want to spend or how much work you will do yourself, in a nutshell what is your ideal/dream Moggie.

803 is terribly slow, sometimes dangerous on a modern road, i would update to 1098 spec and add disks for safety sake. My SII is being updated to 1000 spec but with gas shocks and minilite 14" so it will look normal appart from the period alloys.....

It sounds like you're going to have to do some fairly major work...

You have some questions to answer:
Do you want a convertible, or are you happy with your saloon?
If you want to use your Morris every day, then you may be better off keeping it as a saloon - open-topped cars can be very cold and draughty in winter, I understand.

Will it be a show car, or every day workhorse?
This links with the last one, but an 803 car isn't going to be much fun to use every day. A change to 948 could make a nice car (I understand the engine has been variously applauded) although 1098 would be more useable still. What about a 1275 conversion...?

Have those to get on with.

Cheerio and ...

Any later engine would be an improvement on the 803!! A
948 with the matching gearbox ,or the original 803 box fitted
with the 948 gearing, would be a great improvement. The 1098
is much more usuable but not as smooth. I own a 1957 soft
top and it is NOT draughty in the winter and the heater just
about makes it usable during cold spells, an uprated heater
would be useful! The convertible is much noisier that the
saloon due to increased wind noise but,then again, I am having
a wonderful time riding along in this weather with the top down
.........priceless( if you are that way inclined). Just make sure,if
you convert it, that you fit ALL the extra strengtheners which
come with the kit(dashboard corners, B posts,and sill covers).

convertibles are such fun.... although if you do it, make sure you do it properly, the last thing you need is for the rust to get in on top of the door and body frame.

Points made above all very true. What do you want to use the car for. it is nice to have a fully original 803, if you only intend to use at the weekends and for shows. Seems a shame to spoil a truly original car. However, if you need to drive the car everyday then practicallity takes over.

As another reference point, we drive our convertible daily all year around. with a good hood, it is not really drafty at all. The drafts are from the doors, and now that we have sorted the heater, it is adequate to keep you warm all year around.