Morris Minor Owners Club

What is the best way to increase the performance of this vehicle? would fitting a 1098 engine be a step forwards or would performance bolt ons be the answer? if a 1098 was fitted would performance be increased by keeping the original 948 box due to the differences in ratios. Please help as i need extra motorway performance.

To be honest, even the 1098 can struggle at 70+ mph for prolonged periods with it's gearbox and axle. They were simply not designed for it.

it all depends on your budget.

you could either change your diff to give you a taller gearing (which causes a reduction in power (torque)).

fit a sierra 5-speed gearbox (conversion kits can be a bit expensive).

if you want to increase your performance quite a bit then you really need to ditch the minor 'box as they tend to be the weak link.

to increase the performance of your 948 you will need to bin the standard exhaust and fit a free flowing system & manifold together with a free flowing air filter such as the K&N.

Then you could try fitting a performance cylinder head and carbs to suit.

then possibly a change in camshaft and a set of high lift rockers.

BUT, all this is assuming that you have a good base engine to start with.


It depends on budget, how original you wish to stay, and how reliable you want your engine.

If you want reliability and motorway crusing then a good rebuilt 1275cc marina/ital engine with a sierra 'box and 1098 minor axle can be a good combination.

Cam.

Sounds good, i'm only new to the minor scene, i have the latest copy of minor matters but it doesn't have any adverts in for the performance manifolds etc that you were on about. do you know anywhere that sells these products? What about wheels and tyres? i'm looking to keep the car looking pretty much standard from the outside all i really want to do is pep up the performance. Are there any standard looking larger wheels etc that can be fitted? I'm going down the disc conversion route, does anyone know if this is an easy job?

The Morris Minor Centre in Birmingham sells the 3-branch performance manifolds as well as stainless steel large bore exhausts to suit.

with regard to the other tuning components, not many Minor centres sell these, but they are the same as the Mini components (same engine) so any performance Mini place (minispares, MED, minisport, etc.).

I converted mine to disc brakes a while ago, I used the Sierra vented discs from The Morris Minor Centre in Birmingham. The kit was not perfect and needed a bit of filing to get it to fit. You also have to drill out the brake backplate mounting holes (4) to 10mm to get the caliper mounting bracket to fit.

JLH minors do a similar kit that is a lot better quality but is more expensive.

When you change the brakes over you will have a choice of hubs, either for the Minor wheel stud pattern or the Ford type.

It is worth getting the Ford type IF you are planning to change the rear axle to Ford to handle power exceeding 70BHP. If not, then stick to the minor type.

Wider steel wheels are difficult to get hold of for the minor stud pattern, but there are loads of ford types in the scrapyards.

I have got a ford rear axle and 185/60 14" tyres. Unfortunately I chose the minor front hubs and so have still got the 145 minor tyres on the front, looks a bit silly but, you live and learn.

Cam.

I'm not suggesting this is the answer to your query, as it seems rather extreme, but I wonder if anyone has ever fitted a 1300 block from a Midget/ Marina and then fitted the head and Turbo from a Metro Turbo ?

Lo Biff, as you have gathered 'CAM' is very experienced
in the up-grading of the Minor, but maybe his suggestions
are a bit too advanced for your needs. Basically,replacing
the 948 engine with the 1098 will make the car much more
suitable for every day driving. You must use the 1098
gearbox too(it is stronger than the 948) You could leave
the original differential ratio in place which will give effortless
acceleration at the expense of high revs, or fit the 4.22-1
diff from the 1098. If you fit the 1098 engine you would
need to fit the matching 8" front brake assemblies( the 948
has 7"" fronts). disc brake kits are available from several
suppliers. The 1098 is easily upgraded by fitting a single
larger SU carb,with manifold, from suitable MINI or similar
later "A" series type engines
Willie

Many Thanks Guys!!
It gives me a starting point. Have any of you done the mods you suggested, and if so what sort of differences did it make?

Ian: I have heard of a guy modifying the block of a Metro turbo to take an in-line crank and using that + head, turbo etc. But it is probably not worth the effort as I believe that the standard Metro turbo only kicks out about 90 ish BHP, whereas a tuned normally aspirated 1380 ital engine is capable of producing about 120 + BHP. But a MODIFIED metro turbo engine......... a few years ago a bloke named Stuart Gurr claimed to have produced 220 BHP from a seriously modified 1293 mini turbo....possible, I suppose but it must have been on the edge of destruction....!!!

Biff: If you are doing lots of motorway mileage then you need to drop your crusing revs down a bit and increase your torque. Unfortunately with the same engine if you reduce your revs (by higher gearing) you reduce your torque (generally). The only real way around this is to us an engine with a higher torque output and that is directly linked to engine capacity / airflow.

So, either install a 1275cc motor, or put a 1098 in and tune it.

With a good 1098, a decent 3-branch manifold, decent air filter and mini carb, you should be looking at a power output of about 55-58ish BHP, which coulpled with the gearbox and 4.22 diff from the 1098 minor 1000 should allow you to cruise along the motorway at 70mph relatively easily :D.

I personally would not bother with a mini manifold, as they do not tend to flow very well, and the exhaust coupling bore is a bit on the small side, and I am not sure but I think that the exhaust coupling may be at the wrong angle for an in-line engine, as it was designed for a transverse engine.

I started out with a standard 1098 which was a pain on the motorway but capable of 70 ish MPH.

then I put the decent 3-branch manifold, decent air filter and mini carb on which made it capable of 80 ish MPH.

Then I ditched the 1098 and put in a 1380cc tuned ital engine with a 5-speed sierra 'box, which made it capable of 90 ish MPH.

The standard minor axle was the limiting factor this time.

Then I ditched the standard minor axle and put an escort mk II axle on, which was capable of taking the full output of the engine, but with a 3.89 diff which gave me a theoretical top speed of 140MPH!!! Hardly attainable with wind resistance, so I upped the diff ratio to 4.44 which gives a theoretical top speed of 130MPH, which made the car capable of 110 + MPH.

But it is really not a good idea to go above 70MPH in a minor anyway, because apart from being illegal, it is very dangerious as there are no safety devices in the event of a crash!!!!

Cam.

Hi Biff,
Some good options already listed here.
If you have a 1098 that's well maintained (with matching box and diff), it should do 80 and cruise at 70 but that's pushing it very hard and you don't want to keep that up all day. They will happily do a long run at 60 to 65, but that's not a whole lot faster than your 948.
I ran a 1098 with a large valve head, bigger carbs and exhaust and it was great fun. Not ideal for long journeys, but was heaps of fun on rural roads.

To do a limited amount of work on the car, I'd go for a 1275. An unmodified 1275 form should be much happier at speed and also pull 70mph up hills, but don't forget to uprate the brakes. As far as I'm aware The moggy 1098 gearbox is very similar to the midget 1275 gearbox so it should be able to take it unless you start tuning the 1275. The top end will be faster and it'll be straining less at 70, but you still suffer from the gear ratios.
I ran a 1275 in my saloon for 3 months while I was reconditioning the 1098 and it felt just right. I was sorely tempted to leave it in but the 1275 was already very high mileage and was about to give up on me.

If you want to do a lot of driving at high speed then first think carefully about the rest of the car (brakes, suspension, shock absorbers) as it starts to make a lot of work.
If you really do need motorway performance, then the options of Ford 5 speed box and rear axle have already been mentioned.

Thanks again guys!
Now, is it easy to find a decent 1275/1300 motor at a reasonable price or am i better off boring out a 1098? how much can a 1098 be increased in volume by and still be fairly reliable? Again you say that the gearbox is the limiting factor, are any of the gearbox uprades mentioned above compatable with the minor shell as it stands, or do they all require reshaping the transmission tunnel? The option Iam currently looking at is a bored out 1098 with fast road cam, uprated unleaded cylinder head with bigger valves and a bigger carb. Which carb set up would be best? SU's or Weber or something else? As a matter of course i would also be upgrading the braking and suspension package. i am planning carrying out the work over the next 12 months so have plenty of time to source parts and carry out the work.

A 1098 motor can't be bored out to 1275 , they are different engines and the 1275 is stronger anyway. I would just put a standard 1275 in with a Marina manifold and carb and a set of high lift rockers and that should give you plenty of power with reliability.
There is a very good booklet available from Owen Burton at the Morris Centre at Bath detailing all the different options and the respective merits/drawback . They can also supply most of the parts to do the conversion and also the parts to uprate the brakes suspension etc.

Just a quick comment about Owen Burton stuff / info.

I have bought a lot of his stuff in the past, and it needs a bit of adapting and imagination to get it to fit. His diagrams leave a lot to be desired and some (like the front telescopic shocker kit) are just wrong.

I have his modification manual and bits of it are incorrect and very opinionated. Also, you cannot get hold of him anymore.

Apparently, after speaking to a few moggy companies, the story was that a few people sued him after their cars crashed due to his failed components, he then had a nervous breakdown and retired to the south of France!!

So, if you are buying any of his kits, beware!!!. They can be perfectly safe if you apply common sense, and don't follow his suggestions blindly.

A lot of moggy companies that I have spoken to are busy replacing his modification parts with better ones (their own). Speaks for itself I suppose.

I don't want to scaremonger, but be careful.

Cam.

hi
well thats interesting, i ahve just purchased that book, maybe i should think twice about his mods.
is the ford conversion brake kit the same as his, the one that is advertised almost every where.
thanks for the info.

Blue Van 727,

There are a number of different companies that produce the ford disc brake conversion kits.

JLH Minors of leamington-spa produce a VERY good kit that is totally over-engineered and machined to the highest specs, but they are a bit on the expensive side. I have seen them and you can tell the quality difference just by looking at them!

The Morris Minor centre in Birmingham do the Owen Burton conversion kits (that's where I bought mine from!!) and I believe that the place in Bath also do his kits.

The problems I faced were as follows:

1. The caliper bracket did not fit on the stub axle without some grinding.
2. BOTH discs were warped to the point of seriously vibrating the steering.
3. The disc backplate fouled the caliper bracket.
4. The centre of the hub was not large enough to centre on the wheel, so the studs were holding the wheel on and taking all the stress.
4a. The hub was made of aluminium which is not good when taking 4 into account.
5. Instead of making everything accurately, you are advised to 'space' the caliper from it's bracket using washers to centralise the caliper around the disc.
6. When finally fitted, the wheels would not turn because the caliper fouled the inside of the wheels, and so would require a bit of grinding to the caliper or to have spacer made up (not included or available).

Apart from this, everything went smoothly!!!!!

In the end, the wheel vibration was that bad that I ended up getting a proper set of discs from JLH which were expensive but perfectly machined with NO vibration.

Now I have got half a JLH setup and half an Owen Burton setup, and when I can afford I will be buying the other half from JLH.

Also, I bought the Owen Burton ford 5-speed conversion kit and I had to re-make the clutch throw arm pivot as the one supplied was just totally in the wrong place, MILES out from being centred. The cast bell housing was actually quite good though.

I'm not saying don't buy his stuff, but you need quite a bit of mechanical know how to make them fit, perform and be safe!!

His kits are cheaper than the others and there is a very good reason for that!!!

Cam.

HI Cam
I also bought one of his brake kits, but I had steel hubs in exchange and as I recall it all went together without any trouble , I think it depends on your luck with variable quality parts. Its always useful to hear of others experience with suppliers of kits to modify anything.