Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi all,

SHY has always had a leak from the manifold / belmouth, which I thought I'd cured.

After a couple of days, the leak is back and the exhaust at the manifold joint can wobble from side to side. Is there any way to cure this? Why does it do it and would a tubular manifold chopped down exhaust be a more reliable solution ? If so, who does tubular manifolds at a reasonable price / quality ?

My first Minor was the same.
As the exhaust wobbles, it wears the joint away at the 'loose' sides.
This makes it nearly impossible to correct.
You may need to change the manifold to get a better chance of putting it right

Make sure you're using the two-piece cast clamp - the one with two bolts. The others are, frankly, rubbish.

If that still doesn't work, then try putting a piece of copper wire around the exhaust pipe, to eliminate any chance of movement or free-play.

Also, make sure that your steady bar is doing its job and that there isn't any excessive engine rocking.

The manifold/downpipe join is notorious for a poor fit. I have found the problem can be cured with a bit of work with a electric drill and spherical grinding head on the downpipe flange. The manifold needs removing too to file away the casting imperfections and soot/exhaust paste. Make sure too that you use a NEW two bolt clamp. Old ones collect a fair bit of crud inside the deep crease and prevent the joint from tightening.
Refitting the whole lot can be a true three handed job but I found it helpfull to wedge a long piece of 2x1 timber through the bulkhead hole and maneuver the exhaust into a good position with my shoulder while I tightened the clamp with both hands

Make sure you have the correct diameter clamp, some also have the diameter one side larger than the other and can be fitted the wrong way round. It can help, when assembling, to hold the pipe carefully in place with a jack, as long as the system is not forced to line up. Imho most exhaust troubles are caused by the latter.

On my a35 there is a clamp fitted to a bellhousing bolt that clamps round the exhaust to keep it in line with the block,therefore eliminating the rocking motion between the two halves of the joint. I use the exhaust paste that has fibres in it ,if unavailable ,i use ordinary paste &mix a few f/glass fibres in it to make it bond well and bridge any small gaps . There are ,I think pros and cons for using the cast clamp .I prefer the pressed steel one ,because it is deeper ,&allows more surface area between the clamp and the pipe to get paste in .

On my a35 there is a clamp fitted to a bellhousing bolt that clamps round the exhaust to keep it in line with the block

Do you know if that is a standard item?
I found one of those secondhand and fitted it to my first Minor (you'll try anything after having 2 exhausts snap off at the manifold etc..)
If it's a standard item then maybe they can be bought from somewhere - I'd quite like to have one for peace of mind.

Eversince replacing my exhaust clamp (after the old one rusted through), The exhuast pipe (not the box - it's the pipe after the box that is hitting on the cross bar) knockes agaist the underside of the car whenever she 'fires up' (when you starts her). Is this okay?

The exaust knocking on the crossmember is rather annoying.
Firstly check you engine top steady is not broken / missing.
Then you can either wiggle the exhaust at the clamp to get more clearance, or just bend the exhaust by the crossmember to get a bit more clearance.

Ray,I'm told it is fitted to later than '61 vehicles . I t was standard on mine . I think midgets had them also. Its easy enough to make using a piece of 1"flat drilled to take b/housing bolt (quite close to one end) put in vice and twist it along its length 90 deg. determine the distance to centre of pipe, mark hole either side of dia of pipe use standard exhaust clamp u-bolt and nuts to clamp it up .

Always wondered why a35's, which have the same engine mounts configuration etc , don't have an engine steady bar on any of their models ?

I don't think midgets do......

pERHAPS IT WAS ENVISAGED THAT A35'S WERE GOING TO BE DRIVEN MORE SEDATELY ,AND NOT GIVEN LOADS OF WELLIE!!

Or that Morris didn't want a bad reputation of broken exhausts / torn engine mounts

Just a quick note to say you should seal the exhaust up as soon as poss, (as I wil with ours, exact same problem); running it with a blow burns the valves...

as gareth mentioned get a cast clamp, but also the correct length rubbers x2 in good condition. very important to support the exhaust and help take the strain of the clamp. when you fit a pipe place a piece of wood between the pipe and the floor where the pipe disappears from the engine bay. line it all up using wood as support with rear straps fitted. make sure its firm and seated well then fit manifold clamp with paste. dont forget throttle return spring fitting. its got to sit well before doing up.

Well I have a spare exhaust...... in rough & ready order. Do you think somewhere like kwik fit would sell me a clamp or will I have to order one from somewhere ?

I wouldn't think KWIK FIT etc would sell them, but you should be ale to get one nex day from 1 of the specilists

I would try an exhaust place first,should be the same as a mini??

But make sure you ask for the two-bolt cast clamp. It is likely not the same as the Mini - I had a conversation at my local place that the ones they fit to Minis (and Metros) are single-piece ones and the guy reckoned they were rubbish. He was impressed with the quality of the cast one I took along.