Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi All,
I don't know if you can see from the photo but there is little over an inch gap between the rear bump stops and the underside of my '65 Tourer. The car is on a very slight slope and is unladen except for a full tank of fuel. With my 2 teenage daughters in the rear and a few bits in the boot it very often sits actually on the bump stops! This isn't right is it? Are the springs shot? Bearing in mind my girls are small adult size and come out with us quite often, would I be better fitting 7-leaf Traveller springs (is that possible?), or would it be 'over' sprung and harsh when unladen?
Thanks for you help,
Mick

Albert's back end is as-new and the gap between top of bumpstop and floor is a little under 2". Check out my comments under 'creaky rear end' too if you need any more encouragement to fix the problem.

Thanks Peetee,
I read you 'creaky rear' post and I'm pretty certain mine do need replacing. What about Traveller 7-leafs, will they fit, will they be of benefit?
Cheers,
Mick

If the car is sitting on its bump stops it is either over loaded or the springs are shot. After 30 plus years of use most of them have lost their oomph and sagged. A new set of springs will gain more clearance with the bump stops and improve the ride.

I wouldn't recomend putting 7 leaf springs on a saloon, they're considerably stiffer and can affect the ride. I'm sure you'll be suprised to how much stiffer new 5 leaf springs are compared with the tired old springs, they will be rather stiff until they've bedded in.

I can thoroughly recommend replacing the rear springs for new. Alberts ride was perfectly acceptable but with new springs it is a revelation.

You could just cut 1" off the top of the bump stops - there is plenty of extra travel in the dampers to allow this. New springs will obviously be better - and yes 7 leaf springs are a good idea if you are regularly carrying a load. Saloons used to have 7 leaf srings as standard anyway.

Ah yes, but I believe they were thinner!

Really ? So there were thick 7 leaves for Travellers, and thin 7 leaves for saloons ??

You could just cut 1" off the top of the bump stops - there is plenty of extra travel in the dampers to allow this

All very well if you are the only one in the car and drive on good roads. Not to be reccommended if you're four up on the back lanes though.
I very nearly took Albert (with old springs) to the Isle of Wight but having sampled the state of some of the roads on the south of the island I'm very glad I didn't.

My Midget pretty much sits on the bump stops at the rear - And is as little nervous on anything other than a perfect road as a result. The back end just skips and hops across the surface rather than gripping it, not good.

I would replace the springs, but it involves welding as some genius has welded a repair over one of the mounts. But on the Minor, I'd say get new springs on there! But then, I happen to have a pair of nearly new (one side never fitted, the other only used for 100 miles or so) saloon springs for sale.... ;)

Hi Packedup, you have a PM.

Hi All,
Thanks for all the input so far! I have another question this time regarding poly-bushes: What improvements and/or benefits do they give. What recommendations do you have, are some better than others? Any to Avoid?
Many Thanks,
Mick

Polybushes are supposed to last longer than rubber bushes. They are a bit firmer to start with and retain that firmness. Superflex have a good reputation.

If you can find the money, Superflex are the only ones to consider IMO. If you can't, then the no name ones are the ones to go for. I wouldn't touch rubber (unless I had to, in the case of the pickup), when fitting that new spring to my old 4 door one rubber bush tore going in, and all of them were chewed when coming out - I'd only done 100 or so miles, and *had* torqued up after allowing everything to settle!

I ruined a set of rubber top trunnion bushes in under 18 months, right through. Go for poly bushes and grease them with white grease before they go in. It may be worth taking an inch of the bump stops anyway if you regularly carry people in the back, more travel isn't a bad thing.

Poly bushes are almost essential for the top trunnion/damper connection on the front suspension. Elsewhere - they will last longer and will be slightly 'harsher' - and they do tend to transmit more road shock into the bodyshell, which may in time lead to stress cracking of the chassis local to the mounting point. It's your choice !

Very essential for eyebolts too!

Unfortunately they can increase the risk of cracking in the chassis legs when used in the eye-bolt. They do last longer than the rubber bushes - but... the risk is there.