Purchasing a Morris Minor

[iamglen]

Hi All,

My husband and I are looking to buy a Morris Minor. We're hoping to find a car that has a good chassis with minimum rust, a reliable engine and a few modern upgrades (such as an alternator, inertia seat belts, disc brakes, hazard lights, etc).

I'm wondering if anyone could let us know how much I'd be looking to spend on a car like this and if you can recommend any tips when looking for a Morris.

We're hoping to keep it for many many years and upgrade it slowly, so starting with the right car is very important to us.

We'd be greatly appreciative of any tips and hints.

Thanks so much,
Cheryl and Glen

[LouiseM]

Welcome

There are some useful tips in this thread with regards to buying here : http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=37815

Difficult to put a price on what you are looking for as prices tend to vary quite a bit. Are you looking for a saloon or a traveller, and an early or later model? It might take a while to find a car that matches exactly what you are looking for so you might find that the best option is to find one in the condition you are looking for and then add the upgrades yourself later. If you provide your location you never know, someone on here may have what you're looking for. Good luck with your search

[iamglen]

Hi, thanks for your reply and the link!

We are ideally looking for a four door saloon, 1962 or later. We have found a few over the past couple of months, but the prices are quite varied, ranging from £2000- 8000 just for a standard non modified Morris. We are currently based in London but would be happy to travel a couple of hours in any direction to find what we wanted.

It's a tricky ask as we also want to do a number of safety upgrades which will substantially add to the whatever the base price is. Having said this we don't want to be in a position where we buy something that is very cheap only to find out it will need lots of work to the chassis or internals to get it to a good state. We have been told we can expect to pay around £6000-7000 for a solid standard Morris that has been treated and restored but we have not seen very much in the market that reflect this. Any opinions on this are welcome

But in the meantime we are just playing the waiting game till we find a car that suits

Thanks again!

[moggiethouable]

My 65 2 door is probably valued at around 2.5 to 3k tops, it has new seat covers water pump radiator and I have replaced all the service bits since I got it.
There has been a little welding on the crossmember, bodywork is very good, but I suppose the point I am making here is, you should be able to get a perfectly acceptable 4 door for not much more in my opinion.
If you have a local club then that would be a very good place to start.
With all the extras mentioned, inertia reels hazards etc you can expect to pay more again perhaps,I dont have any of the extras mentioned except I fitted rear seat belts, non-inertia to keep it a little of the day as it were.
I would fit an alternator if extra electrics,heated rear screen etc were fitted.
4-5k should buy a very acceptable car.

[irmscher]

The best place is ebay and you can pick up a nice car for around £2,000 don't be fooled by inflated dealer prices .Try your local MMOC branch as they may have one in your area or there are some nice cars on the forum come up on a regular basis don't rush into buying the wrong one

[moggiethouable]

Take a look at "Morris minor betty" in the for sale column here, 4 door etc.

[bmcecosse]

Best place to look I suggest is on this forum! Be wary of ebay - there are some nasty cars on there, but you can of course get a bargain IF you know where to look when checking the cars to make sure you are not getting a 'ringer' or a scrapper. Dealers add a whopping amount to their cars - and sometimes we notice they are ex ebay cars - with just a quick polish !! Don't worry too much about your 'extras' - these can easily be added later for little cost - and unless going racing ...you really don't need disc brakes!
This one for example at £2000 (perhaps negotiable...) looks ideal! http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=52532

[POMMReg]

There HAS been "ringers" on e-bay.

Therefore ALWAYS check the identity numbers before you buy.

[iamglen]

Thanks for all your feedback, this is helping us immeasurably in our decision to find a Morris.
Please feel free to keep on adding any nuggets of information that might come to mind! Much appreciated.

[lambrettalad]

The most important thing is ROT or LACK OF IT

mechanics on a moggie are very simple,as are electrics but body work could break your heart !!

My Mrs said to me "Don't buy a green one "

My phone call home was a little difficult ,i explained how great it was,and put the colour last ,Almond Green

Buy on condition and take somebody who knows with you plus a jack and a magnet .Good luck

[irmscher]

There are some nice cheap genuine cars on Ebay and as anywhere else you have to be very cautious and don't rush into things .The main things to look for is chassis rot and also remove carpets back and front for floor rot and check spring hangers and in the boot !.

[Janna_142]

The most important thing is ROT or LACK OF IT

mechanics on a moggie are very simple,as are electrics but body work could break your heart !!

My Mrs said to me "Don't buy a green one "

My phone call home was a little difficult ,i explained how great it was,and put the colour last ,Almond Green

Buy on condition and take somebody who knows with you plus a jack and a magnet .Good luck

I agree.

[dalebrignall]

rust is the biggest thing to look for ,thats where the expensive costs can lie . all the engine ,gearbox and suspension parts are readilly availiable and not too bad money wise .get the most solid car you can afford and dont worry about a shiney car it might be rotten underneath .you can allways paint it at a later date when money allows .take someone with you who knows what to look for ,and dont buy the first one you see ,good luck in your saerch .

[iamglen]

Hi all! Thanks for all your helpful responses. We have been searching hi and lo we have come across what seems to be a good find as it has been completely restored with comprehensive restoration photos, logs and paperwork BUT it is 5hrs away, about 30 mins east of Edinburgh, so not something we can just drop by from London to check out.

We were wondering if anyone had any recommendations for anybody in the local area that might be able to give it a once over on our behalf.

Thanks and all the best

Glen and Cheryl

[LouiseM]

We have been searching hi and lo we have come across what seems to be a good find as it has been completely restored with comprehensive restoration photos, logs and paperwork BUT it is 5hrs away, about 30 mins east of Edinburgh

Is this the one? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Morris-MINOR- ... 232f3a15c7

[bmcecosse]

That's some price........ And very coy about what lies below - no pictures of the underside or of any work done on the chassis..... It would have to be seen in person. Can they supply any pictures /details of the work done? Were any of the mechanical parts overhauled or 'remanufactured' ??

[TvdWerf]

sometimes rust is not the biggest problem, mine was not rusted, but had a bad repair from a car accident.
the rh A-post was not in the right position, and the complete nose was turned 2 cm.
They tried to repair this with lots of filler, I removed all the filler, put the car on a bench, mounted a new chassis leg and A-post, but still have small measuring problems with parts.