Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi all,

First post.

We bought our first moggy this week - a 1960 Minor 1000 Saloon. It's far from concours (and will remain that way!) but it is drive-able except for the brakes.

The brake pedal is at the top of its travel and barely moves when you press it. Pressing it feels like pressing a block of hard rubber. The brakes do work to a certain extent. If you stamp on them, or rather STAMP ON THEM, they do OK and sometimes will even briefly lock a wheel but they are clearly not working correctly. They also pull a little to the right.

I've removed the cover plate in the footwell and the connection to the master cylinder can be seen to move only a mm or two when the pedal is pressed. The pedal itself can be "rattled" a little so I think it is free enough. With the car on its wheels it can be pushed fairly easily by one person and the handbrake works and releases.

The car is now on axle stands. The front offside wheel can be pushed round with one finger but is rubbing a little. The other three wheels need two or more fingers to push them round and are rubbing more but they do turn. And that is as far as I have got. I ran out of time yesterday and it will be tomorrow when I get back on to it.

Reading many forum threads and other stuff seems to point to the wheel cylinders being seized/stuck, perhaps due to corrosion or lack of travel. I guess the other main suspect is the master cylinder itself. I'll be taking the wheels off anyway to inspect the brakes and everything else but what is the best way to narrow the problem down? If I crack open a bleed valve or a brake line union would you expect the pedal to move more even if one or more wheel cylinders are stuck/limited.

The other thing bubbling away in my head is that the vendor said that he had had the wheel bearings replaced, so the brakes must have been off fairly recently. Of course you don't know who did that work and quite how recently so there is a possibility that they have reassembled something wrongly or adjusted things badly.

I'm really hoping it's the wheel cylinders rather than the master cylinder because it looks to be a real faff to remove/refit (what a ridiculous place to put it!)


Ian

Welcome to the forum Ian. There’s a wealth of experience and help here.

Hopefully your problem is just the wheel cylinders, it’s very common for them to seize if not used regularly. I had to replace all of them on our pickup when we first got it. I encourage the owner to sit in the car and press the brake pedal at least once a week to keep them moving.
Easy to check by winding back the adjuster and taking the drum. You can watch the shoes move, or not.

I’d start on the left rear then the front. These being seized would explain a pull to the right. They may just need a good clean and adjustment though.

Good luck.

Congratulations on joining the world of Morris Minors.

As already said, seized wheel cylinders are very common on cars that are used infrequently. This is exacerbated by owners who do not change the brake fluid which becomes contaminated with water over time.

Yes, if you open a bleed nipple an assistant should be able to push the pedal to the floor easily. If they can't it is most likely to be something wrong with the master cylinder. Of course you can have master cylinder and wheel cylinder corrosion at the same time.

In the event that you have to do major work on the brakes (replacing cylinders, master cylinder, flexible hoses) it would be well worth considering switching to Silicone brake fluid. This is not hygroscopic, does not attack paintwork and your seizing issues will be over for good. I did this some years ago and have never looked back.

Stephen

Thanks for your replies. I now have more info.

Three of the four front cylinders are stuck/seized. Replacements are so cheap that I am inclined to replace all four rather than try to free up or service the existing ones.

There is also damage to the outer "flange" of one of the drums, which is almost certainly the result of a previous owner or mechanic smacking too hard with a hammer to get the drum off. There are a couple of half inch missing bits on that flange, you know, the one you "gently" tap on to loosen a stuck drum! I don't think it would affect the braking and would only make a teeny difference to the wheel balance but, once again, they are cheap enough so I'll replace both fronts.

The side with the one working cylinder has uneven wear on the shoes so a new set of front shoes is also on the shopping list. The rears all look OK so I will just reassemble them with the only new part being replacement retaining screws. Several of those screws were missing and some of the remainder had forgotten what a crosshead pattern looks like so I'll treat it to shiny new ones.

I just need a bit of reassurance on the front brake size.

This is a 1960 Minor 1000 so should have 7 inch drums on the front but I have just measured them at 8 inches. Is this a legitimate conversion? The backplate and shoes match so do I just buy the post-1962 8 inch drums and shoes? I think the cylinders remain the same and the springs look to fit OK and feel OK when I pull the shoes apart.

boingy wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2026 12:25 pm Thanks for your replies. I now have more info.

Three of the four front cylinders are stuck/seized. Replacements are so cheap that I am inclined to replace all four rather than try to free up or service the existing ones.

There is also damage to the outer "flange" of one of the drums, which is almost certainly the result of a previous owner or mechanic smacking too hard with a hammer to get the drum off. There are a couple of half inch missing bits on that flange, you know, the one you "gently" tap on to loosen a stuck drum! I don't think it would affect the braking and would only make a teeny difference to the wheel balance but, once again, they are cheap enough so I'll replace both fronts.

The side with the one working cylinder has uneven wear on the shoes so a new set of front shoes is also on the shopping list. The rears all look OK so I will just reassemble them with the only new part being replacement retaining screws. Several of those screws were missing and some of the remainder had forgotten what a crosshead pattern looks like so I'll treat it to shiny new ones.

I just need a bit of reassurance on the front brake size.

This is a 1960 Minor 1000 so should have 7 inch drums on the front but I have just measured them at 8 inches. Is this a legitimate conversion? The backplate and shoes match so do I just buy the post-1962 8 inch drums and shoes? I think the cylinders remain the same and the springs look to fit OK and feel OK when I pull the shoes apart.

Well done. You have obviously diagnosed the problem.

Upgrading to the later 8" front brakes is often done and definitely desirable. The later cars are 8" front and 7" rear rather than 7" all round.

I would suggest these cylinders which are serviceable and better quality than "pattern": https://www.morrisminorspares.com/brake ... i-p1238343

Likewise with the drums, buy the top quality ones and buy the branded shoes not generic shoes.

The Minor is hardly blessed by stunning brakes at the best of times so to me it makes no sense whatsoever to scrimp on parts.

Stephen

Thanks. Bits are ordered and should be here Monday.

I'm a bit of an inconsistent charlatan when it comes to pattern parts vs original. It sometimes depends on the price difference but also on what the part is and how easy it would be to replace again, and on how many miles the vehicle will be doing. So in this instance I've gone for the more expensive cylinders but the cheaper drums and shoes. It's a philosophy that has served me well and saved me more than a few quid over the years on a vintage tractor, an old pickup truck and numerous modern cars.

I'm optimistic that I won't have to get involved with the master cylinder and the brake fluid looks very clean so I won't be changing that just yet although I will pull a decent amount through when bleeding the new bits.

Is there a sticky thread on these forums listing decent online parts suppliers? ESM leaps out of every Google search and the car came with a Moss parts catalogue, which is brilliant for exploded diagrams but they don't seem to have much stuff in stock, at least the bits I was seeking yesterday. And are there any "over the counter" places in Gloucestershire or the surrounding counties? I know that is asking a lot but sometimes you just need that one last bit to finish the job.