Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi all,

I recently replaced the clutch on my 948cc 1960 car - fine for a couple of weeks then started slipping! Either oil leak or clutch made of cheese as all adjustments ok. Either way new one needed.

I previously went with a new Borg & Beck type but understand (painfully in retrospect) these are poor quality.

I will need a new clutch anyway as it's either made of newspaper or will be covered in oil from a leak. I don't want to risk a bad clutch again of course.

So, in short, does anyone have suggestions on new good quality clutches for 948cc?

Go on 'e' bay and look for a NOS nine spring clutch cover and a NOS clutch centre plate.
The same clutch cover was also used on a Triumph Spitfire (Mk 2) and Reliant Kitten.
The nine spring clutch cover is much better than a six spring cover and will transmit more power. I found a NOS nine spring cover on 'e' bay to use on the 998cc engine I am building in very slow time.
Even a used 9 spring cover is better than a new 6 spring cover. The centre plate I intend to fit to the 998cc engine is a used item but has plenty of life left in it.
Here is a made in England 6.25" clutch centre plate
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/116035552884 ... R6q_joSSZw

But the OP needs to peer into the housing to check for that suspected oil leak.

mike1864 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 25, 2026 1:43 pm But the OP needs to peer into the housing to check for that suspected oil leak.

Not really. There is a weep hole in the bell housing where oil will, or should be, drained away.

Small amounts of oil from the engine will be thrown off the flywheel long before it contaminates the clutch on the other side of the flywheel.

ISTR that someone (Graham?) on MOT25 had to replace a worn clutch, only for it it to get promptly covered in oil from a naff seal on the front of the gearbox.

Yes there a a couple of points where one can pass equipment through to view what’s going on inside the bell housing.

mike1864 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 25, 2026 2:15 pm ISTR that someone (Graham?) on MOT25 had to replace a worn clutch, only for it it to get promptly covered in oil from a naff seal on the front of the gearbox.

Yes that’s right

Stephen

There is no lip seal on the front of the gear box unless the owner or previous owner has fitted an aftermarket oil seal conversion.

IIRC the MOT25er had fitted the aftermarket seal conversion, but somehow the implementation &/or components created a leak that wasn't there before .

The front cover of the Minor gearbox was manufactured by several companies which meant that the thickness of the metal around the reverse scroll does vary. If you use the original factory front cover you have to be very choosy as to what cover you use so as to leave sufficient metal after machining to hold the lip seal in place. The full aftermarket front cover with recess and back stop for the seal is much better in holding the seal in place and is less likely to facilitate a displaced lip seal.
Below is a factory Minor gearbox front cover with lip seal fitted which I machined to enable the lip seal to be fitted.
Unfortunately there is no back stop to the seal recess so extreme care has to be taken when fitting the seal and front cover to the gearbox. Special care also has to be taken when fitting the gearbox to the engine as movement of the first motion shaft can displace the seal.

So, as standard, is there no seal at all here?
If that's the case, is the absence of a leak just good luck?

There is no seal on or in the front cover of a standard ex works Morris Minor gearbox.
The oil is prevented from exiting the gearbox by a return scroll which screws any oil at or in the return scroll back into the gearbox.
Because there is no seal if the vehicle is parked facing down hill the gearbox oil can escape past the return scroll and show its self via the jiggle pin in the bottom of the gearbox bell housing.
Wear in the first motion shaft bearings both in the gearbox and in the rear of the crankshaft can lead to wear of the return scroll leading to the inability of the return scroll to work correctly which leads to oil leaks from the front gearbox cover.
So yes - no oil leaks from the front of the gearbox could be considered as good luck/fortune.

Another option is to buy a reconditioned clutch (original Borg and Beck, not Chinesium) from Precision Clutch Components Ltd in Somerset. They are excellent.

Stephen

Very late update to this, but exactly as Steven says, anyone reading this in future -- get a clutch from Precision Clutch Components. There was no oil leak in my vehicle. The clutch was simply made of cheddar. Save yourself the cost of getting the clutch done twice!! Maddeningly bad quality on the part I got from ESM. Just three months and it slipped under hardly any load. The mechanic retrieved it and sure enough it's all chewed up. The new-new one from Precision Clutches is great so far. Caveat emptor!