Running on two.
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- Minor Friendly
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Running on two.
Hi,
We have just purchased our first minor and picked it up today, I had test driven the car around the houses and agreed a deal.
On the way home the car started missing and when back (about twenty miles) it was running on two cylinders.
I removed the leads one at a time to find cylinders one and two not firing although there was a good spark at the leads, this morning bought a new set of plugs but when fitted it was still the same,
Going through it tomorrow with points etc but it's a bit strange.
Any ideas?
We have just purchased our first minor and picked it up today, I had test driven the car around the houses and agreed a deal.
On the way home the car started missing and when back (about twenty miles) it was running on two cylinders.
I removed the leads one at a time to find cylinders one and two not firing although there was a good spark at the leads, this morning bought a new set of plugs but when fitted it was still the same,
Going through it tomorrow with points etc but it's a bit strange.
Any ideas?
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- Minor Addict
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Re: Running on two.
Head gasket between cylinder 2 and 3.
Do a compression test to find out.
Do a compression test to find out.
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- Minor Addict
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Re: Running on two.
I agree. It does sound like a head gasket.
It is best not to fiddle with anything else until you check compression, as suggested above.
Don
It is best not to fiddle with anything else until you check compression, as suggested above.
Don
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- Minor Legend
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Re: Running on two.
Between cylinders one and two surely if those are the 2 faulty ones
Agreed that head gasket is the most likely cause. Not the end of the world though. Nice simple job on a Minor.
Agreed that head gasket is the most likely cause. Not the end of the world though. Nice simple job on a Minor.
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Re: Running on two.
Doing a compression test tomorrow but the oil and water are very clean and no milky signs in either.
Re: Running on two.
If it's blown between two cylinders, you won't have oil and water mixing. Blown head gaskets are spoken about as the end of the world on a modern car but, as has been said, they're pretty routine and straightforward on a moggie. Good luck!
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Re: Running on two.
Easy, but not necessarily as simple as fitting a new gasket.ManyMinors wrote: ↑Sat Jun 11, 2022 10:50 pm Between cylinders one and two surely if those are the 2 faulty ones
Agreed that head gasket is the most likely cause. Not the end of the world though. Nice simple job on a Minor.
The job requires use of a straight edge for checking flatness, on both deck and head, along with remedial action if found necessary.
It can be a simple head gasket change, but if either, or both, faces are not flat (within service tolerances) the head gasket failure is likely to be repeated - possibly at ever decreasing intervals. Do the job properly or do it again and again.
I don’t know from where the myth, re blown gaskets, mentioned by James k, arises. Simply not true - although bent cylinder heads with overhead cam (s) fitted directly in the head) cannot be re-surfaced more than a small amount due to cam bearing alignment and may require a new cylinder head to be fitted, if that is all that is bent.
Re: Running on two.
Seconded on checking checking head for straightness, especially since it sounds like it's been driven some distance on a blown gasket.... if it is indeed blown!
I think it's mainly because mechanics charge the Earth for such a job so it's deemed 'beyond economic repair'. I changed one on a Vauxhall Zafira a few years ago and it was a far more complex job than on a Morris. You have to remove a million wires, the timing belt, injector rail, various sensors, two rather tricky manifolds and probably some stuff I've forgotten before you even get to the head! This was actually to replace a burnt exhaust valve and regrind the valves rather than a blown head gasket and I did it, in part, because of people saying "it's beyond repair"!oliver90owner wrote: ↑Sun Jun 12, 2022 8:00 am I don’t know from where the myth, re blown gaskets, mentioned by James k, arises. Simply not true - although bent cylinder heads with overhead cam (s) fitted directly in the head) cannot be re-surfaced more than a small amount due to cam bearing alignment and may require a new cylinder head to be fitted, if that is all that is bent.
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Re: Running on two.
Thanks all,
Head going in for a skim tomorrow.
Head going in for a skim tomorrow.
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Re: Running on two.
We bought the car for my wife to use fairly regular so while it's off the road I'm thinking of upgrading to a servo as I would like to improve the brakes for daily use, any hints or suggestions as which way to go?
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- Minor Legend
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Re: Running on two.
A perusal of this recent thread may provide a helpful start to your considerations:-
viewtopic.php?t=74976
viewtopic.php?t=74976
- geoberni
- Minor Legend
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Re: Running on two.
The subject of fitting a Servo is a bit of a Marmite topic.
You will find those that insist they are a waste of time with drum brakes, those that say they are required with Discs and not drums, but ....
Fact is, a Servo does not improve braking.
What it does do is reduce the effort to get that braking.
See this for just one example of a Servo discussion: viewtopic.php?t=70556
You will find those that insist they are a waste of time with drum brakes, those that say they are required with Discs and not drums, but ....
Fact is, a Servo does not improve braking.
What it does do is reduce the effort to get that braking.
See this for just one example of a Servo discussion: viewtopic.php?t=70556
Basil the 1955 series II
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Re: Running on two.
To be honest I was hoping it would make using the car easier for my wife who is going to be driving it.