Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi all and merry Christmas to you all. Good old mo has been running odd lately, to cut a long story short my dash pot damper cap ( that's what ESM call them) is bent. I had a very unusual drive to the co-op this morning. A hour later I drove it home without it in situ and she behaved herself. I tried to straighten it best I can but it still made the damper "sticky" so I'm after a new one. I have seen one on ebay for £20. ESM do one for around a £10 but it is the plastic cap one not the brass.

On the photo you can see where it has been rubbing. Any ideas how this may of happened? Car has been running 95% ok with the random unusual running that I can only put down to the damper dash pot cap being bent.

If any of you have one I may buy from you please let me know too as morrisminormo is now off the road and she is my daily driver [frame][/frame]

i am waiting for bmc to comment on this one,but i am guessing maybe a backfire has caused this or someone with a heavy hand?

Back fire a possibility as before I converted my head to unleaded a few weeks ago she was running rough with a blown head gasket between 1 & 2

Since then she had been good most the time but still not quite 100%

When you say heavy Handed as in what? Lifting float pin up to harshly? I rebuilt the car early on in the year and all appeared good then. I am carful when removing to check oil etc.

The correct brass topped damper is available from Burlen http://sucarb.co.uk, Salisbury at £14.65 inc VAT + P&P.
You will need to speak to Burlen and quote the number off the tab attached to the float chamber to ensure that you get the correct one otherwise you will be supplied with the black plastic one.
If you want to straighten the one you have take the piston etc. off the bottom of the rod, roll the rod on a piece of glass and see where you need to straighten repeat process until straight, refit piston etc. to the bottom of the rod and fit to car. Jobs done after topping up with damper oil.

Good idea, I will try and straighten in like you said

The price is crazy - you can pick up a complete carb for much less...... It could never have happened in the carb - must have been some heavy/careless handling at some point in it's life. I would straighten it as Phil suggests.

just try and straighten it and top up with 3in 1 oil

Got a shiny new one! I did straighten the old one but I bent it putting the piston back on the end I heated it up too.
£20 genuine SU damper and 96 mile round trip [frame][/frame]

Good grief.......

Car started yesterday and thought it was fixed, a few hours later I went to drive her and she was acting horrid again missing violently!! Hardly keeping a tick over. So I checked for sparks at the plugs, nothing then a few, then nothing for a while then a few etc. so I put my original coil back on as I was told the new coils are very unreliable, original rotar, cap, and copper leads. Still got random sparks at the plugs. What can it be?? Only thing I haven't changed is the condenser. There are consistent sparks from the points when I turn it over. But when it does run it literally purrs like a kitten. But won't start at all now, I'm getting very disappointed with all my " hardwork" not paying off

I had to laugh though, while I was starting the car from the solenoid, I noticed the starter moving a little, on closer inspection it appears to be cracked around the mounting so looks like I will need a new starter soon too.....

If the starter mounting is cracked oh dear but it is easy to change the front cover providing you have a Bendix spring compression clamp. But before you do anything check the tightness of the two long screws that go through the starter they have a tendency to come loose over time. That may be all that is wrong with it.

It's NEVER the coil I doubt it is condenser if the sparks come and go -sounds more like a loose/bad connection. Check the little 'low volts' wire inside the dizzy -and of course, the general connections to the dizzy and coil.

Hi Phil

Unfortunately I can see the crack whilst the starter is under motion. Got my car running now, changed the condenser and she fired up.

bmcecosse wrote:It's NEVER the coil I doubt it is condenser

I have put the original coil back on and put my "new" one in the shed

I checked everything with all my original stuff and only had a few sparks and by the time I had finished messing got no sparks at all! So changed my condenser for a old original one and I had sparks instantly. At heady now she is running again!

Well done - you could refit the condenser to see if the problem returns - or perhaps it was a poor connection which has been sorted when you disturbed the wiring.....or you could just throw it in the bin! Now - put the old carb damper back on - is it ok??

A little late replying here, but, FWIW,

There are consistent sparks from the points when I turn it over

With a good condensor the sparks will be quite small, larger sparks generally indicate a faulty condensor.