Morris Minor Owners Club

Say hello to Felix my '67 2 door saloon. I never thought I'd buy another but here he is, 25 years after buying my first which I still own after 12 years of daily driving in all weathers, a 5 year rebuild and now 8 years of dry use.

Felix was bought last summer from an old lady near where I work with the intention of a running-ish rebuild. I had a look out of interest and then couldn't help myself! He came with 10 months MOT (more of later!), was complete but tired although generally a solid car (I'm not a welder).

Before I bought him, I knew he should never have passed an MOT. The forward rear spring mounts were rusted 3/4 of the way round and could be moved by hand - it was a nervous drive home! Since then, other MOT isses I've found include perished track rod end rubbers, rack gaiters not fitted at inboard end, almost dry dampers. I know which garage NOT to use now!

Work so far has been to strip the front suspension, clean & powder coat, gearbox out, inspect & paint, engine is partly dismantled, interior removed and stored.

More to follow....


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Sounds like a nice project, put some more photos in the restoration thread section of you work, ie suspension, engine etc

And a few more....

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very original and looks fairly solid.....

Hi Paul,

You've spotted the two reasons why I bought him! Other than the spring hangers, no other structural welding is needed. From what I can work out, he was rebuilt around 15 years ago to a good standard - chassis legs replaced with very good welding etc. He has been a bit neglected since then though...

More photos once the weather improves...

A bit of an update on progress - slow due to weather and work!

Most of the bits in the engine bay have now been removed, cleaned, painted etc and ready to refit when ready.

I'm taking the engine out bit by bit as I don't have a hoist. All that is left ot remove is the block and crank hopefully next weekend. The top end wasn't in a fantastic state. When I took the 'head off I found the rocker shaft was in 2 parts and the shaft and bushes in the rockers were badly worn. I've now fitted new bushes to the rockers and re-fitted to a nice new shaft - feels quite a bit better! I'll be fitting a 12G295 head when it goes back together so a rebuild of the original head can wait a while now...

Stripping the bottom end was better news. I'm the first person to undo the lock tabs on the big ends and mains. Taking the pistons out showed nice clean bores with no step at the top and almost unmarked big end bearings. Everything will still get measured up though. Once I get the block out I think it'll be a de-grease at work, coat of paint and back together. New oil pump, water pump and clutch are ready to fit.

I've also marked up my new wiring loom to make life easier when it gets fitted in the car. I know from experience that its easier to work out what goes where with the loom in a warm house rather than under a cold bonnet!

More to follow...

Fist corner is just about back on, hopefully should get the other finished by then end of the week. All powder coated, polybushed and shiny new bolts where possible. I've also added some negative camber with 5mm of spacers to the eye bolt and replaced the damper soil with something a bit thicker.

Engine and gearbox also ready to drop back in. Can't do that until I get the clutch pedal out and see what state the bushes are in (rusty!)[frame][/frame]