Morris Minor Owners Club

While Maisie is laid for the winter one of my jobs is to overhaul the rear suspension, quite a moan comes from her rear when going over a speed hump or the like.

So removed the dampers, cleaned them up and not much oil in one of them with lots of easy movement. Drained all the old stuff out, refilled with 40 grade expecting them to leak and all is well there, nice operation, damped and smooth with no free movement.

When I removed them one of the bolts is captive in the plate as the spring is in the way, what's the correct way round for these bolts to be fitted, heads on the damper or as I removed them from the car.

The springs are badly cut and need replacing, think that may be the graunch when going over bumps. Whats the secret with the small bolts holding the front mounting plate to the spring hanger on, in particular the front most one, no room to get a spanner inside to hold it as the piece of wood holding the body up is right in front of the hanger, and I could see no other way to it. As its all being replaced by way of the rear spring kit from ESM I resorted to the angle grinder, as the pin wasn't budging from it either.

Hopefully a nice quiet read this year.

Yes - I think most just cut them off.

Looking at illustration Fig. L.1 in the BMC workshop manual the heads of the bolts holding the damper should be the spring side of the damper mounting plate with the nuts/spring washer against the damper mounting flange.
If those small bolts holding the front mounting plate are rusty - the angle grinder is most likely the best way of dealing with the problem.
Smear copper grease on all the threads to assist in future dismantling.
Replace all the spring eye bushes with poly bushes. You can also fit poly spring pads.

Thanks BMC and Phil, thats what I saw in the manual but didnt want to bias an opinion. Thats the way they go back then.

The angle grinder makes a good universal spanner sometimes, think the other side will get the same treatment, the one I could get to came undone.

I use copper grease everywhere I can use it, and then a spray over with cavity way, works wonders. Time to make sure there is plenty of wax inside the spring hangers while they are out, perfect condition at the moment and thats how I want them to stay.

Where do you get poly spring pads from, the spring kit that ESM sell with poly bushes has rubber pads (i think). Do the poly bushes need a smear of anything on them when fitting ?.

Geoff

The pads can be obtained from ESM:-

http://morrisminorspares.co.uk/shop/pro ... 3eba94bd58

Whilst some do not advocate smearing grease on the poly bushes I do - I have never found that greasing the bushes to be detrimental to the bush or pin.
You can use either a smear of white water pump grease or red rubber grease, either will do.

Thanks, Phil, hard to see on the photo of their kit but they do look the same colour, and why would they not be poly when the rest is. I will ping them a quick mail.

A smear of red rubber grease it is, really can't see it doing any harm and it will stop anything squeaking.

The four blue spring pads (central above the springs) are the poly type as they are the same as the ones purchased by myself from ESM.

http://morrisminorspares.co.uk/shop/pro ... 3eba94bd58
http://morrisminorspares.co.uk/shop/pop ... 3eba94bd58

If you have not already worked out - the spring is fitted to the car with the two clamps fitted around the spring fitted forward of the axle. They are there to reduce the spring leaves opening up and inducing axle tramp. They also stop the spring leaves turning out of fore and aft alignment.

And if I had read the description completely it does say they are poly.

Thanks for the tip with the spring orientation, spent a couple of hours yesterday giving everything a clean up, damper bracket, end of the axle casing around the bracket and then a coat of paint, then some cavity wax over everything when rebuilt.

What thread should the pin be where the damper drop link attaches to the car, I would expect 3/8 BSF, the nut that came off it fits the U bolts perfectly, the nuts that were on the U bolts do not fit it.

The pins look fairly new as the car has had new rear rails I suspect, the nut was a castle nut that came off with no hole for a split pin in the stud. The thread is clean and fine, nothing has been forced on and I do not want to wreck it. May just go back with a spring washer under the castle nut.