Sticking brakes?

[Geocha2268]

So I've recently purchased a 1960 morris minor which I am very keen to get up and running properly so we can do a few family drives in it.

My 1st question is how to tell whether the head gasket has failed? The oil seems a bit watery to me but I'm unsure how to tell any other way

IMG_20200517_135259.jpg (744.05 KiB) Viewed 684 times

Also the brakes seem to be sticking, is that an easy fix? I believe they are drum brakes?

As you can tell I'm a real newbie at this so any help is great appreciated

EDIT by simmitc: This is now split to two topics. This thread is to respond to the brakes issue.

[simmitc]

Welcome to Minor ownership, I hope that you enjoy every minute of it.

People often talk about oil in water and water in oil, but in my experienc3e, the commonest head gasket failure is between two cylinders. The oil might just be thin, if it had lots of water in it then it would be milky and emulsified. Look in the radiator, again you would see milky deposits. With the engine running and warm, a failed HG would probably pressurise the radiator and you would see bubbles forming in the water - be careful of hot, scalding water. Failure between cylinders can be heard as a loud popping sound and the engine will run very roughly on only 2 or may be 3 cylinders.

One of the best tools that you can buy would be a compression tester. They are not terribly expensive and will aid diagnosis of a number of problems, including HG issues. If you buy one, then post back for more advice on how to use it and interpret the results.

Brakes are a safety critical issue, so you do need some skills before tackling them, but a sticking wheel cylinder is usually fairly simple to replace, but it depends on what else might need doing too - it could be a brake hose problem, poor return springs, badly assembled components etc.

Does the car pull up in a straight line? Raise each wheel in turn off the ground - observe correct jacking and safety procedures, and then spin the raised wheel. Note if any make an odd noise or feel stiffer to turn, or generally do not spin freely.

I might split this thread into two separate topics so that you can concentrate on each set of replies, but I'm going to have some dinner first

[Murrayminor]

The Morris Minor brakes are fairly straightforward to work on, but a word of warning, they are not the best of brakes if something is amiss, therefore if you believe you have an issue I would get someone who knows to have a look before you do any major road trips.

That's the Health and safety out of the way,

How do you know a brake is sticking?

Is the car pulling to one side under braking?

Does one wheel get hot to the touch when driven?

These are some of the signs a brake is sticking, but unfortunately some of the above can also mean one brake drum is not working so you need to investigate each drum as mentioned above.

Raise one wheel, with a jack and place an axle stand under the chassis in a suitable place, front chassis rails near the bolt that holds the torsion bar ( the round bar that runs from the front suspension to the Crossmember) is usually the strongest point, at the rear place an axle stand under the rear axle.

Once you have a wheel off the ground spin the wheel and check it turns freely, check there are no wet patches on the backplate suggesting a fluid leak, then find the adjuster hole and using a torch look into the hole, you should just make out an adjuster, using a flat blade screwdriver turn the adjuster until the wheel will not turn by hand, then slightly undo the adjuster until the wheel turns but with slight resistance.
Do this to all wheels checking if there are any wet patches on the brake backplates.

Whilst at the front check the condition of the rubber brake hoses, when you go to the rear there is only one hose located on top of the rear axle, you will need to check the condition of that hose as well.

Once you have checked and adjusted the drums all round, check the brake fluid level in the master cylinder which is located where your right heel would be when driving.
Lift the carpet and before opening the Master Cylinder blow away any dust or better still grab the household vacuum cleaner with a hose and clean the area of crud, it always builds up and you don't want the stuff getting into your braking system.

Once the area is clean, carefully undo the top of the master cylinder and check the brake fluid level, it should be just to the bottom of the thread for the cap which you have just undone.

If the level needs topping up make sure you don't spill any on the paint as some brake fluids are great paint strippers.

Once all the above have been done and assuming there are no damp backplates I would take the car slowly on a test drive to check your brakes, try to use them to get some heat into them, such a many stop starts in an empty car park or the like then if you are happy the car is stopping try going a bit further running the car on a quiet road.

Once you have driven a mile or so stop and check each wheel and see if any are considerably warmer than the others (a sign a brake is sticking on) if you identify a overly warm wheel then that's your starting point.

Carefully drive home and come back on here and let us know someone will talk you through the procedure or know someone who can assist.

This is all p[art of owning a classic car, so rather than think of it a hard work, think of it as part of the pleasure and enjoy what you are doing, spending time keeping yet another Morris Minor on the road, above all have fun and enjoy the experience.

Where in the country are you based? maybe there could be someone to assist (once lockdown is over)

Regards

Dermot.

[simmitc]

If adjusting the brakes as Dermot suggests, be aware that you have to remove each road wheel to see the hole in the brake drum where you can access the adjuster. Also, there is one adjuster for each rear wheel and two on each front wheel.

How much car maintenance have you done in the past? If we know that, then it will affect how much detail we go into about each step.

[Geocha2268]

Thankyou, it's a massive help....I've had a bit of experience with cars that are about 20 years old, I can seem to identify a problem but lack the confidence to be able to sort it out myself.

Seeing as we have a long weekend coming up I'm going to try all of the above and see how we go

[Murrayminor]

where are you based?

[Geocha2268]

This is all p[art of owning a classic car, so rather than think of it a hard work, think of it as part of the pleasure and enjoy what you are doing, spending time keeping yet another Morris Minor on the road, above all have fun and enjoy the experience.

Thankyou for all of the advice, I'm very much looking forward to turning this into a project with my 8 year old son as we both love classic cars. Luckily we live on a private road so we can have a test drive without getting in anyone elses way to much I'm hoping to try all of the above over the weekend, I will let you know how I get on.

We live in west Sussex so have plenty of picturesque drive to go on once we are safe and road worthy.

Here's a picture of the old gal

[Geocha2268]

where are you based?

We are on the Surrey/West Sussex border...near Crawley

[Murrayminor]

Ah right many miles away from me.

Try the above if you feel comfortable with it and see how you get on, failing that ask a nearby member to pop along and assist, I'm sure someone would accept the challenge.

Just ask any questions on here, lots of advice available.

[Geocha2268]

So far today I have located the cap for the brake fluid, this may sound a bit of a silly question, but.....do I need a specific brake fluid if it needs topping up?

[simmitc]

It depends on what is already in there. As standard, it will probably be a yellowish colour DOT4 specification. It could have been upgraded to Silicone based fluid which is usually mauve in colour.

DOT4 absorbs moisture, needs changing every two years, and is an excellent paint stripper, but less pricey. Silicone is fit and forget, won't ruin paint, but is more costly.

You cannot mix the two types, and if you want to change over then you MUST flush the system completely, possibly even changing all hoses and seals.

[Geocha2268]

Thankyou so much, I will have a look tomorrow and see what's in there