Morris Minor Owners Club

i have always liked these ....
so i bought one
anyone else
its a project to keep me active
cant get to pick it up untill next week.
your thoughts on these cars
please

Good brakes and rear axle for a Minor...... An obvious upgrade will an MGB engine - the 1500 engine is hardly going to set the heather on fire because it is quite a heavy car. Better wheels and tyres - and heavier oil in the dampers would be my first steps with it.

bmcecosse wrote:Good brakes and rear axle for a Minor...... An obvious upgrade will an MGB engine - the 1500 engine is hardly going to set the heather on fire because it is quite a heavy car. Better wheels and tyres - and heavier oil in the dampers would be my first steps with it.

thanks roy...
its the twin carb version....
do you know what wheels will fit?
i see they use these car for classic racing

Very nice cars, the Mk3 I would consider the best of the breed.
The brakes are superb - had the Riley 1.5 front brakes fitted to my Minor at one time.
The cars Achilles heel is the gearbox. The synchro on 2nd gear is usually the first to go.
Availability of body panels is nowhere like that for the Minor but if you are handy all should be repairable.
Some mechanical and body parts are available from http://www.earlpart.co.uk and other specialist suppliers.
Some of suspension components are interchangeable with the Minor but not the steering swivels unless they have the two steering arm holes (one above the other).
Those that I have driven have been a pleasure to drive but as bmc says they are no flying machines but will give a reasonably spirited performance in the right hands.
If you want to stick with the Riley creed fit a Riley 4/72 engine for a more lively performance; and it will bolt straight in.

thanks for the info chaps...
keep it coming please

The wheels are exactly Minor wheels - so anything that fits a Minor - will fit the Riley. A set of alloys from JLH would be ideal...

bmcecosse wrote:The wheels are exactly Minor wheels - so anything that fits a Minor - will fit the Riley. A set of alloys from JLH would be ideal...

cheers roy
i have a set of 15" on my minor from JLH,,, nice wheels

Perfect for the Riley!

a couple of photos ...
what have i let myself in for [frame][/frame][frame][/frame]

it came with 3 spare dash panels
spare twin carbs
all the trim plus extra bits..
had it running today sounds sweet
no brakes and cant get it into gear...
oh happy days ahead

The clutch plate will likely be stuck to the flywheel.. Or has the hydraulic actuation failed?

I've had a fair run-in with their Wolseley sibilings, my dad has a couple of them. Just in the final throws of restoring his '63 1500, which has been fitted with a 1622 Cambridge engine, and recently treated to JLH discs.

Lots of awful rust traps on these, with the rear doors being part of the wheelarch they catch mud for fun and rot quickly. The sills are rather rust-prone too, having not much in the way of drainage. If they seem sound, I'd recommend you don't rest on your laurels, and actively incorporate some drain holes, and waxoyl everything in sight!

The wooden dash is a pain too, as any windscreen leaks soon get the wood rotting, but you say you've got 3 spares so you should be ok!

Spares aren't too bad. The Riley club do a lot, and in fact we've been using them for spares for the Wolseley!

Had a few Wollseley 1500s over the years. Very nice to drive. The diffs are quite high ratio so they can bowl along quite well. Lovely gearchange. Ive seen them with MGB 1800 engines and overdrive boxes fitted. The front panel looks good on that one, they are tricky to find.

Good luck with it.

the last owner changed the front panel its very solid.
worse bits are the dash. (got a spare)
its got so many extra dials
vacum gauge...
water temp gauge capillary
oil temp gauge capillary
oil pressure gauge
most of these will go. as it has its own gauges built in

have you got it on the road yet samuria?
what colour is it going to be?

sid wrote:have you got it on the road yet samuria?
what colour is it going to be?

had clutch relined today and pressure plate cleaned and painted.
dash is all varnished and ready to fit..
iam not going to fit the side trim, so drilled out all the clips.
need to weld the front chassis rail as the jack made a hole in it
as for colour not sure yet.was thinking top half off white
bottom burgandy type colour
found out it has new rear springs and front dampers
still lots to do

how she looks now
still lots to do though .
got hold of some alfa 156 leather front seats.
just got to make some bases to fit them
well it keeps me active

[frame][/frame][frame][/frame]

Looks great.I've restored a few RMs.You need a good set of woodworking tools to replace the sills on one of those!

tysonn wrote:Looks great.I've restored a few RMs.You need a good set of woodworking tools to replace the sills on one of those!

thanks mike...
never going to be a show winner but
saved from the crusher

It looks fantastic ! Well done indeed.

bmcecosse wrote:It looks fantastic ! Well done indeed.

thankyou roy.
still have lots to do..
new bushes to fit
interior to sort out.
exhaust wants fitting properly.
wanted to get some paint on her
before the weather changes.....
(no garage)