Morris Minor Owners Club

Just doing some final checks before my trip and have some concerns about the clutch. All clutch components were brand new when the engine and box were re-assembled. As I did not have the right alignment tool I got a local Morris Minor firm to assemble the engine to the box and fit the clutch. I fitted the completed power unit to the car and connected up the clutch linkage etc.

I have far too much free play at the pedal, about two inches. This means the clutch is only fully disengaging when it is right down hard on the floor, meaning I am getting occasional gear clashes if I'm not careful.

Looking at the linkage adjustment the nut is screwed almost to the back of the rod (ie: towards the back of the car). There is well over an inch of thread showing at the front.

If I unscrew the nut towards the front of the car this will INCREASE the free travel at the pedal - is this correct? And tightening it will decrease the free play?

If so, considering clutch is new why do I have so much free play and so little adjustment left on the rod? Would appreciate any advice!

Clutch alignment just allows the gearbox to be fitted so that is OK.
When you say "all clutch components were brand new" are you including the pedal, the flat plates , the cross shaft, the threaded rod and all the pins that hold it together?
And the bushes on the gearbox and chassis that carry the cross shaft?

All of these are subject to wear which will come out of the adjustment.

You are right about the way to adjust the linkage.

Usually the are several inches of thread on the rod so plenty of scope for adjustment.
Take the return spring off and move the mechanism by hand from underneath to find the "lost motion".

Hey Marky no the linkage assembly is the original one, did not source new parts. Is it possible that the linkage itself is worn resulting in not enough adjustment at the rod? As I say, only about 3/4 inch between the nut and the back of the rod, but plenty of thread at the front of the rod and about 2" free play at pedal.

From what I've read if the fault was with the clutch plate itself I would have not enough free play, not too much...correct?

"Plenty of thread at the front of the rod"
That's what you need, that's the useful bit.

I can't remember which way things go as the plate wears but that shouldn't affect you.

I expect that even if everything was new there would still be some unused thread on the back end of the rod.

All the linkage is subject to wear as most of it just hangs out under the car getting sprayed with road dirt.

I believe you can get a "dry" lubricant for motor bike chains.
This would probably be ideal as any grease you put on it soon gets filthy.

Laying underneath and moving the whole lot by hand will reveal where there is play but it sounds like you have plenty of adjustment left.

It is worth looking closely at the rod for any cracks near the right angle bend as you are off on a long trip.
Take some cable ties with you

OK, so a little confused now

So a lot of adjustment at the front of the rod is good and means that the clutch itself has plenty of "meat" left on it? In which case how is it possible to have too much free play at the pedal? Am I to assume that it must be the result of the linkage system being worn?

As the clutch plate wears - the free movement decreases - and you have to move the nut along the threaded rod to achieve the necessary free movement. So in that respect you have plenty of adjustment to take up wear! Is this a normal smooth box on a 948 engine (or rib box on 1098 ) combo ? Also - was a new carbon thrust fitted ?

Hi BMC it's a Series II box. And yes a new thrust bearing was fitted as far as I recall.

So if I understand correctly if I move the nut all the way to the back of the rod and I STILL have excessive free play it must be the result of worn linkage?

Guess so! But excessive wear will be obvious. Just look hard at the hooked rod - it's not unknown for them to wear right through and then obviously you suddenly have no clutch. But I guess you will be doing many dead straight runs with little use of either steering or clutch!

If you have more than 1 inch of free movement at the top of the pedal movement then wind the adjuster nut clockwise. You should then be able to engage the gears without crunching unless the synchro is worn, in which case double-de clutch through the box.

I think the problem is that there is very little adjustment left!

You can always cut a bit more thread on the adjuster rod.

Interestingly I have been looking at the rod in the kit from ESM and it seems to have a lot more thread on it than mine does. I will have a good look at the linkage on mine tomorrow, adjust it up as hard as I can and then see what's what. At least I am reassured that the clutch itself is all good

Have wound the nut right back and this has decreased the free play. Still a little too much but I can live with it.

However, it has also resulted in the clutch pedal sitting up too high compared to the brake pedal. Is this due to the return spring on the linkage being too strong, or would it be the way the pedal is attached on the shaft under the floor. I can't recall when I re-assembled it but my memory is that there is only one position the pedal can sit on the shaft...?

Please tell me I don't have to undo all those gearbox cover screws again.....

That's just the way it sits - because you have wound the linkage so far - wind it back if you want it lower! I think the 'official' free play is 1.5" - and that should give more than enough dis-engagement on the clutch. If you set it much less you may be in danger of over-throwing the clutch mechanism.

That rod is prone to breaking, its worth plastering all the clutch linkage in grease.

The clutch and brake pedals sometimes sieze together under the floor, one sits on the shaft of the other. I forget which way round it is but it happened on my old traveller, a good dose of WD40 and oil freed it up.

If you are going to load the linkage up with grease I'd suggest covering the lot in cling film to keep the road dirt from mixing with the grease and turning it into grinding paste.

WD40 may be OK for freeing things up but it doesn't provide lasting lubrication.
Grease does so should be used as a follow up to freeing off.

Isn't there a flat plate on the pedal that stops the pedal going above a certain height?
There is on later Minors and it should have a rubber or foam pad on it to seal the hole in the floor when the pedal is up.
Having this in good condition makes quite a difference to how noisy it gets inside the car.

And the draught up your left leg!

The SII has a different clutch pedal to the Minor 1000
I resume the comments about the flat plate 'endstop' relate to Minor 1000

Bear in mind that the gearbox lever is different between SII, Minor 1000 early and 1000 late ( 948 vs 1098). Also clutch cover and thrust bearings are different.
A wrong combination can give a travel problem!

To see if you really have a problem, if the geabox lever (arm) is moved all the way, so that it reaches the end of the slotted hole in the bellhousing, and you STILL have some clutch drag, then this is not OK and part will need to be changed
If the problem you have is that you can't move the gearbox clutch lever far enough towards the end of the slot, then it's most likely a problem with the linkages / adjustment.
The linkages can wear LOTS so either replace or refurb if needed (build up the worn areas with weld and grind back to shape). Also the intermediate shaft bearings can add to the problem - these need to be fitted correctly. Sometimes the bush is missed out on the chassis leg mounting assembly, leaving the intermediate shaft sitting in just the rubber - this is not OK and will lead to rapid failure of the rubber, as well as too much slop in the mechanism

All good now Finally got a chan ce to have a good go at it and now have nice even pedals and 1 and a 1/4 inch clearance. Gears now select beautifully!

Friday morning I head off for my 1,000 mile round trip. Wish me luck!

Enjoy!