New user - motorway travel.

[toothache]

At the moment I find myself without a car, but I don’t expect this situation to last – and a Minor is definitely high on my short list of replacement vehicles. Reading around the boards, 65-70mph would not be an unreasonable cruising speed to expect from a 1098cc engine model. (The arguments over electronic ignition have also provided very interesting reading.)
However I live up in Glasgow. This means that now and again (especially in the summer) journeys ‘down South’ are done, typically involving 8 hours of continuous motorway travel down, and then a couple of days later another 8 hours of continuous motorway travel back up.
Under this sort of motorway use I would be curious to know peoples’ views on whether 65-70 is still considered a sensible cruising speed, and also thoughts on vehicle reliability.

[aupickup]

yes would be ok for your kind of use

they are reliable, tho some parts appear to be hard to get at the moment

[minor_hickup]

I've done a fair bit of motorway travel in 1098cc moggys and they've been fine. The only trouble I've had is using a car that wasn't up to the task in the first place (the radiator wouldn't cool sufficiently). However I still managed several hundred miles in it before the by pass hose split. A realistic cruising speed like 65-70 will be fine. Maybe a little sound proofing would make it more comfortable, I opted for a louder stereo! Also don't do what I did and expect it to cruise all day at 80mph+

[alex_holden]

I'd agree with that. Mine will cruise at 70 indicated just fine but if I'm not in a hurry it can be less stressful to just settle in behind a HGV.

BTW if you're doing 8-hour journeys, you may want to look into more comfortable front seats.

[Orkney]

I like 60 in mine, would cruise @ 70 but wouldn't be doing runs south without a 5 speed gearbox just to make it that oh so much bit more comfortable.

[chrisd87]

My advice would be to make sure the engine is in good condition (an oil pressure gauge would be a good idea) and well maintained.

I've done Cambridge - Exeter and back a fair few times in my 1098 Minor and the only drama I had was when the engine lost oil pressure due to being incredibly worn. I had been expecting it but as with all breakdowns they tend to happen at the most inconvenient time!

Apart from that, 65-70mph is fine. I find Minor seats very comfy but then I'm fairly short. Another thing you might notice is that the tank range isn't quite as good as most modern cars, but that isn't a problem as you should be taking breaks anyway.

[aupickup]

you can get larger capacity tanks any way

[simmitc]

Welcome.

I've done Essex to Inverness one week and back the next, plus Essex to Liverpool and back, Essex to Devon, etc; Essex to Birmingham and back on same day (several times) and used the car every day on major trunk roads. For the last 20 years a Minor is the only car I've ever owned. Plenty of folk do John O'Groats to Lnads End, and tour on the Continent. As long as you look after the car, it will be fine for what you describe. Good luck, and enjoy your Minoring.

PS, make sure that you join the MMOC itself and your local branch, then when you're looking at cars you can take a knowledgeable person along to guide you to the right car - don't necessarily buy the first that you see.

[dalebrignall]

i like 60 to 65 the car seems happy at that speed and you are not thrashing it.mine should be quieter having new gearbox on tuesday.you dont get there any faster doing 80 or 60 because you meet the people you overtake at the roadworks.just put yourself in the 60s drive the car at a speed both you and it are comftable at the car will tell you

[toothache]

Thanks for these replies (do keep them coming). For the last few years I have been driving around in a 2CV6, (602cc, 2 cyl, air cooled) – not the quietest car around when at 70! However allowing for the noise, a VERY nice motorway cruiser. (On the flat) would sit at 68-70 all day and all night, still leaving a little to spare if needed, and surprisingly comfortable for a ‘basic’ car. They are also pleasantly reliable. The only thing I would do at the start of a long journey was to check the oil and tyre pressures.
I suspect one reason for its reliability was a lack of a distributer. The contact breaker is straight off the end of the crank shaft, and feeds the coil which is directly connected to both cylinders – so no spark ‘distribution’.
Comments above about a ‘more comfortable front seat’ duly noted.
A couple of weeks ago did an on-line application to the MMOC and am waiting for this to get processed.

[bmcecosse]

Toothache - when I go south I use NON M/way roads - much quieter and you can stop any time you like - and not get stuck in a massive m/way jam!! The 'old' A74 to Carlisle is much more fun and much more relaxing than the horrid M74!!

[Kevin]

Welcome aboard and happy hunting.

[toothache]

Bmecosse, I know the road well (thanks to GPS).
For those who don’t know it, it was the A74, now the B7076 / B7078, and was the primary route N/S for Glasgow and the West of Scotland to the border (dual carriageway for much of its length). Now replaced by the M74 & A74(M).
There can’t be many dual carriageway roads that enable you to maintain motorway speeds yet where (especially at night) you can go for miles - and I mean *many* miles - without seeing another car! Thoroughly recommended route.

[jonathon]

I'm afraid to say that the large tanks are no more Dennis, they went with the company we use who have just shut down. I'm trying to arrange production again as these are the ones we use for our EFI conversions.

[bmcecosse]

Toothache - just watch out - because that road is (mostly) now not dual and therefore speed limit is 60 - and the Cops still sometimes sit in the usual places eating their sandwiches - and watching for hooligans in Minors roaring down the road at XXX speed !! Had a 'narrow escape' last year in my Traveller! Spotted them too late (they were tucked in after a bridge pier) - they started up and came after me - followed for a bit (no doubt running my Reg Plate) then pulled alongside and a severe finger wagging was issued! Followed by a wide grin, a blast on the siren - and then they accelerated off into the distance.

[dunketh]

Under this sort of motorway use I would be curious to know peoples’ views on whether 65-70 is still considered a sensible cruising speed, and also thoughts on vehicle reliability.

I'm going to buck the trend as say no, 65-70 is not a sensible motorway cruising speed no matter what the law may say on the subject.

I've driven mine on the motorway several times whilst it was still a 1098 and it did do a good job. The trouble is you're in-between speeds.

65-70 is just fast enough to sit in the slow lane - drop to 60 and you'll have a trucker or two tailgating you but unable to pass. Go up to 70-75 and you're going too fast and catch up the traffic in front but you're still too slow to move out of the slow lane.

Its a pain in the bottom. Even with my 1275 lump I still like to 'relax' at 70ish and this brings up all the problems above, the only advantage is theres more there if I need it to overtake/get out the way/etc...

Stick to large A roads and you'll be laughing, they're more fun to drive on anyway.
Another option might be to change diffs or fit a 5 speed - so you can cruise at higher speed with lower revs at the cost of some acceleration.

[toothache]

bmecosse - Oh how true your comments about the speed cops, especially where the B7078 follows the motorway between J11 and J12 (Happendon Services).
One slightly annoying thing about the route is that now it is a B class road, routine surface maintenance is a low priority. Pot holes at 60 mph are not good for the system!

[MoggyTech]

Dunketh hit the preverbial nail on the head. I seldom drive the Moggy on the motorway. A standard 1098 doing 4,000 RPM is only doing 60 MPH and with average motorway speeds of close to 80 MPH these days, you tend to get in the way of just about everything else. A 1275 with 5 speed gearbox is fine though.

On A and B roads it's a different story. I frequently find myself zooming past other cars, which for some reason I find is great fun

[Furrtiv]

I've never had a problem doing 60-65mph on the motorway. Maybe I've just been lucky, as I'm content to sit at those speeds in the slow lane and allow everything else to pass - and aren't trucks supposed to have limiters (British ones, at least)?

[bmcecosse]

Yes - they are limited to exactly 56 mph - so as long as you are doing more than that - no problem, you will be catching trucks. However many trucks can do that 56 uphill and downdale - and if you slow below 56 on the uphill sections they will not be happy bunnies!