Morris Minor Owners Club

i want to remove both front engine mounting brackets to give a good clean and repaint as they let down the appearance of the engine bay. Would the sump be strong enough to carry the engine with a bit of plywood between the trolley jack and sump overnight to let me sand and paint the brackets

Quite strong enough. The engine, when out of the car, can easily be rested on the sump while it is worked on.

cheers , thanks

Just make sure that your wood extends to the edges of the sump rather than only a couple of square inches in the centre. It will be taking some of the weight of the gear box as well.