Bonnet bracing bar, help please?

[Simon m]

Hello,

Apologies up front and feel free to roll your eyes and tut!

The bracing bar under the bonnet from left to right is creased & nearly snapped (where the hinged arm from the bulkhead is bolted to it) and barely hanging on to the inside edge of the bonnet. Although this bar is listed as a seperate part on the charles ware web site it has no price and I've emailed them to ask if can I buy one but they've not got back to me.

Ok so a couple of questions :-

Is the bracing bar actually a spare part that can be bought seperately or is it, in fact part of the Bonnet, and not a seperate part?

Would it work to just bolt a shaped bit of steel the length of the brace from left to right , but how would I fix it to the inner edge of the bonnet without welding it ( i don't own a welder)

Thanks all

Si

[philthehill]

This is what I would do.
Purchase a cheap Minor bonnet
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Morris-Minor ... SwINJfDccR
Remove the cross member and after removing the old damaged cross member carefully weld in the replacement cross member.
Then touch in the paint.
I am certain that you can find a local body shop to do the job as you do not have a welder. Try and negotiate with the body shop that you do all the prep work so as to reduce the costs.

[Simon m]

Thanks Phil much appreciated

[geoberni]

Just make sure the cross member is included. it's not in this one....
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MORRIS-MINOR ... 100623.m-1

[kevin s]

You could probably make a bar up that is held in by countersunk screws through the flanges on the sides.

[GavinL]

I would suggest you take the welded route - my bonnet brace has been repaired by bolting with countersunk screws, and the paint has failed around the bolt heads - with the stresses and flexing of the bonnet encountered in normal use any bolts used in this way are likely to move even slightly resulting in the paint cracking