Hi i have just bought a 1966 Morris Minor. I have had it now just 2 weeks . when i bought it it had just passed its Mot the day before with flying colours.
I know its an old car , no servo and drum brakes but I have to use my gears to slow down even at 30mph. The pedal only starts to break low down and even on the floor it rolls to a stop. I know if i had to do an emergency stop it wouldnt.
Any advise please i have some one coming to have a look at it on thursday but dont want to get ripped off as im not to good with spanners as of yet.
Is it just bleeding??
New shoes??
New master cylinder???
Or should i blow my budget and get disk breaks fitted etc.
Help please dont feel safe in it and i carnt take my boys out in it as it is
So - how on earth did it pass the MOT! You really don't need disc brakes - for sane normal motoring. Neither should you need a servo with drums (but you likely will if you fit discs!). Your car is 1966 and should have the larger 8" front drums - and it should easily lock all 4 wheels at 20 mph on dry tarmac. First step is to adjust up each brake - at the drum - need to take the wheels off and then use a large flat screwdriver through the access hole to turn the adjusters clockwise until the shoes rub hard on the drum - then one click back. Two adjusters on each front drum - one on each rear drum. Do you have a Workshop Manual - or any other 'help' book ?
Many thanks for the info and advice.
I have a workshop manual so ill have a good look at that.
As I said its lack of tools and confidence at the moment regarding working on the car myself.
Thank you for taking the time to reply to my problem.
An MOT is no assurance of roadworthiness. I bought an MGB last year and the seller put it through an MOT the day before I collected it. I subsequently found 6 items that it should have failed on. Pay up and look big, you can't mess about with brakes.
Nice looking car, by the way!
Glad you like the pic. Ill add a few more for comments.
Your right money no object ( within reason) when it comes to brakes.
Hopefully they just need adjusting as its been off road and parked in a farm out building undercover after being totally restored in 2007. Even after the brakes are fixes it was still a lucky find.[frame][/frame][frame][/frame][frame][/frame]
For some reason - it's got an early inefficient (948) inlet manifold! And -it's using a Mini mechanical fuel pump on the block - so no spluttering in hot weather for you! But the brakes are easy to adjust - jack up,remove wheel, adjust with screwdriver. You don't need anything else at this stage!
As BMC writes, it's easy to adjust the brakes - jack-up, remove wheel and use scredriver to adjust (remember the rear brakes adjustment needs the handbrake OFF - so chock the wheels before you jack!).
Adjusting the brakes will also reduce the pedal movement (unlike modern disk brakes which self-adjust - usually!), so you should notice an immediate improvement.
If you can't adjust the brake shoes to lock the wheel, you'll probably need new shoes - they're also easy to fit and inexpensive. it took me about 40 minutes to fit new front shoes this year....)
Hi Alan just in case you go ahead yourself and no one has mentioned it, as its your first job with the new moggie please don't under any circumstances use the original jacking points its best to use a jack on the chassis and put it on axle stands before proceeding.
Nice looking car by the way
Cheers
Kevin
Lovejoy 1968 Smoke Grey Traveller (gone to a new home after13 years)
The first thing you need to do is to inspect the brake shoes and cylinders.
Having safely jacked the car up and put it on axle stands, remove one front wheel and brake drum at a time and check the shoes for wear and look for any signs of fluid leaks from the pistons. Then watch the pistons whilst someone gently pushes the brake pedal and make sure both pistons move. If the pistons and shoes are in good working order then replace the brake drum, using two wheel nuts to pull it on square, then the cross head screws which are for retaining the drum, and adjust the shoes before repeating with the other front brake.
Moving on to the back brakes repeat the proceedure and after adjusting, with both wheels off the ground pull on the handbrake until the wheels are just locking. Try turning each wheel and if one turns easier than the other then tighten the handbrake cable on that side until they are both equal.
Whilst the front wheels are off grease the front suspension and whilst the rear wheels are off grease the handbrake cables, the ends of the inner cables where they come out of the outer sleeve and check the rear damper levels
Don't forget to check the fluid level in the master cylinder.
An addendum to Mr Perrys excellent advice, have a large screw driver to hand to restrain which ever front cylinder moves first.
It is very rare to find two that work in complete harmony, so you need to mimic the drum being in position to make sure the other one isn't seized.
"Once you break something you will see how it was put together"
Thanks to everyone for there comments and advice. Ive had them cleaned checked and adjusted and they are a lot better. been advised to get some new rear brake shoes with in the next month or so as they are nearly ready for replacement.
One again many thanks and happy motoring.
Alan aka gammy
Fitting new brake shoes is another experience to look forward to
Roy, the cost of living must be a lot less in Scotland with all the cheap car parts you have access to
As a very poor pensioner - I have no choice! ebay is my (only!) friend......... But in any case - ANY Minor spare part is dirt cheap compared to the prices the Manufacturers ask for modern car stuff!
bmcecosse wrote:As a very poor pensioner - I have no choice! ebay is my (only!) friend.........
don't start roy you might make me
esm sell rear brake shoes for less than £15 hardly expensive and they do last for a long time
( sorry o should have said there other suppliers..blah blah blah..)
No need to mention 'other suppliers' etc - it's perfectly ok to mention a supplier as long as it's not anything 'negative' !
mike will be happy they are in berkshire so he could buy them and save on postage by collecting them in person
i know there is no need to mention other suppliers but i thought i would mention them just in case given what has happened to another supplier recently
Ahh - but Jon was accused of 'self advertising' his own business. Even though he just sometimes pointed out where a useful part could be obtained - when a questioner had asked for that part ........
You can advertise other people's business or product but not your own. If you are not in the trade then you can advertise (I think).
Which reminds me, I still have some Series MM sump and gearbox drain plugs in brass at £12.25 each and spark plugs at £6 a set.
The subsequent publicity does not seem to have done Jonathon any harm. His workshop is about full.
But in any case - ANY Minor spare part is dirt cheap compared to the prices the Manufacturers ask for modern car stuff!