I would be interested in everyone’s approach to these. Without Minors and Populars / Anglias in the Uk there would be not Hot Rod scene here . I have owned a number of both. This is my current effort owned nearly 12 years. Very non standard despite appearances. Disc brakes and servo, telescopics, anti roll bar, polybushed, 8cwt van wheels, Mercedes CLK seats, Ford T9 gearbox, two speed wipers. Sprite / Midget engine soon to be added!
I have an old rough convertible. I gathered the parts to make it electric powered. I removed the top frame and side windows and pillars. It gave it a late 40s early 50s tub look. Its gonna be pretty basic, dune buggy seats, no back seat ,( I'm 6'8"), chopped windshield, patina paint. The PO had cut down a 59 Galaxie grille, I'm hoping when it's done it will cost under $1500. So far I've invested $450. I don't have current pics, but this was it when got it.
Great that is an early car indeed. It has the early gold painted dashboard. Look forward to seeing more.
A friend has this Morris Traveler for sale. It is really a little ride. https://www.facebook.com/share/MNCA8D3cYPv1fbSm/?mibextid=kL3p88
Morris 1300 is the same engine 1275cc In NZ the Datsun 1200 engine [A12] was a popular swap . The engine is based on the BMC engine, and is almost a bolt in. Nissan was a licensee to Austin/Morris We also got the Nissan C20 van here which had a 1400cc version of the same engine [A14] and the C22 Vanette had a 1500cc version [A15] The Nissan Sunny [120Y] had a 1:1 5th 5 speed transmission that was usually installed as a complete package in the swap. You couldn't kill these engines
Yes, I have read about that conversion down under. Those engines are practically extinct in the UK sadly. A 120Y is much rarer than a Morris 1000 here . A lot of people are going down the Ford Zetec route. Is it true that Nissan built the A40 Devon / Dorset under licence for the SE Asian market.
Early, large-arch rear wings too. That would be close to the low-light era, though of course those were never exported to the USA. I believe Sid Goble's front wing restyle was prompted by the need to meet US headlight standards. I had a Minor project for many years, a 948cc 4-door. It served as my only car for a few years, before a long-distance relocation resulted in it being laid up in storage for a very long time thereafter. I had done the front discs and front dampers, but not the rears, at the time of the move. Unfortunately I had to sell the property where I eventually kept it two years ago due to a financial crisis, so I had to let the car go too. I'd extensively researched swapping in a Subaru EJ. It seemed a natural (the engine is shaped almost exactly like the Minor's engine bay) but it was fraught with all kinds of issues.
My first car was a '66 Minor 2 door followed by a '69 Pickup. At the time they were under 10 years old but were rusty ****ers! I had to learn a lot very quickly to keep them on the road and did many, many miles in them. Still have a soft spot for them. Chris
The Minor seems to attract a certain kind of wilful ignorance. When I had mine I often got, "Does it still have the two-stroke?" Minors were never two-stroke, air-cooled, or front-wheel-drive. I did see a two-stroke Minor at a cl***ic car show, once. It had a DKW triple, complete with thermo-siphon radiator mounted where the Minor's battery usually is. I could not ascertain what gearbox was used. One which has come to annoy me particularly is when people call a Series II an 850. The only Morris 850 was a pre-1968 variant of the Mini. The Series II had an 803cc BMC A-series engine, and at no time did the factory fit the 848cc version from the Mini. It has become so common that when I pointed this out to someone who was advertising a "Morris Minor 850" for sale, hoping to determine if it had the original 803 or an 848 from a Mini, the seller tried to refute my observation by referring me to another ad which contained the same error!
I had a Minor in Australia in 1970. I don't remember the year. Last one with a flat head engine. I liked that little fellow. Ben
I’ve got a ‘57 Traveler with a 215 Buick and a TH350 waiting for me to paint and re***emble it. I updated (backdated?) the dash with S-W gauges. It runs and drives just fine.
I had a '58. The smallest, scariest brakes I've ever seen on any car. I think my '60 Simplex MkII go kart had the same size brakes.
Always had a soft spot for them, but knew the pitfalls of Brit car ownership and what was in my price range would have been a bit more masochistic than I was willing to endure. @rockable your friend's car is almost perfect! A set of Minilites would really set it off.
I bought one from a used car dealers back lot in Batley England in 1977 when I was 14. I paid 50 quid for it and drove it two miles back to my Uncle's Auto shop ... He was not pleased as the driving age in England is 18. I took the head off and went to My Uncle's s**** yard and got a head off a twin carb BMC engine complete with intake and exhuast. I learned a lot from that little car but in the end ran it into a wall when the brakes failed
Hey E93a ... We have a 58 Morrie in a****st our cars. My wife in particular just loves them. Like yours it is about to become very non standard. Since owning it we have found that almost every second person we meet has a Morrie story about someone in the family having one as they grew up or learning how to drive on one. I think it stands to reason that because there were so many produced, for so long, there is bound to be many that were trashed and or pushed into paddocks. Then younger family members got a hold of them and revived them. This is the case for us as we are about to inherit my mother-in-laws Morrie Utility. It will undergo a restoration and it certainly will get a fistful of good modifications to make it drive and perform better than it did when it was running. Ours is in the middle of getting a heart transplant of an MG Sprite 1275 with a five speed box. There is plenty of work just in trying to marry up the engine and box. So that's a few of my thoughts... hope that is what you were after. You can check out the Morrie Album in my signature 'Aussie cars here'... In the meantime a couple of pics...
The Jalopy Journal
