Morris Minor Owners Club

1970 1000 Traveller. There is a gasket-shaped steel spacer between the aluminium heater valve and the cylinder head. In the gasket set there is one paper gasket only. If the spacer is supposed to be there, I would have expected two gaskets. All advice greatly appreciated. Thanks!

IF that spacer is required, just make another gasket - they are easily made.

My favourite material, for smallish low temperature gaskets, is from the boxes often used for tomatoes, etc on supermarket shelves. Cereal packets are generally OK for larger sizes.

Yes the spacer is supposed to be there but I should imagine it is so often lost that only one gasket is supplied. Possibly, the spacer is a late addition that only later cars have. I would have to look this up. My 1969 car certainly has the spacer. You need to use a gasket either side. The spacer is there I think to make it easier to remove the rocker cover, otherwise it tends to get stuck against the heater valve. I always have a few spares as it is quite a common place for a leak.

Stephen

Thank you, much appreciated. I will keep it and make another gasket.

These sort of 'should it, shouldn't it' questions can usually be answered by reference to the manufacturer's Parts Books, which show applicability.

The heater system is a bit of a strange one as for some reason it appears in the Body Service Parts manual, not the Mechanical Service Parts (which itself is a misnamed book since it includes the 'electrical parts'....

I recommend looking for downloads of AKD 3541 and AKD 3542 and working out the different fitment applicability if you feel the need. Or just fit gaskets anyway.

There are several pages of heater parts. I started looking at them but gave up...
What I did notice was that one page illustrated a washer , another one didn't....

Yes there it is. Part 20 and 21 in Plate P5.

Stephen

svenedin wrote: ↑Sat Mar 01, 2025 11:50 am Yes there it is. Part 20 and 21 in Plate P5.

Stephen

Not quite, 20 on the latter cable operated valve is a 'packing piece'.
21 on the early valve is a 'washer'...

Where is page BP9 to identify #20 and the QTY of #21 shown on plate P7? The part number listing shown is for BP7 (plate P5).

Fitted one of ESM's off set cable operated valves today.
Two reasons: My existing valve never made heater cold even in off postion. Also to give additional clearance for fitting alloy rocker cover.
Hopefully heater will now provide cool air.

Seeing as this older thread popped up, here are some photos of the metal heater valve spacer.

Stephen

I assume the spacer just raises the valve a few mm. Probably helps with a standard valve cover. This would not have given me the required clearance, the off set valve means it moved rearward farther away from the valve cover. As the valve is no longer central to the hole in the cylinder head.

I assume the spacer just raises the valve a few mm. Probably helps with a standard valve cover. This would not have given me the required clearance, the off set valve means it moved rearward farther away from the valve cover. As the valve is no longer central to the hole in the cylinder head. Even with a standard cover and heater valve I had to cut away some of the cable bracket to aid fitting. I think with sintered instead of pressed rockers there is even less clearance when maneuvering the cover into position.