Random notes on the restauration of Morgans, MGBs and Minis
The first part of the title is quite literal as I spent a significant amount of spare time last week with development. A first peek (actually a prototype) is currently on my website - but this is just a small part of what I am working on and already not up-to-date anymore. 30 years ago... Continue Reading →
The next step after the teardown was measuring and a visit at KS Motortechnik. Even though the camshaft has no pitting or bluing the conclusion after measuring was to replace it. The workshop manual says that lift height should be 6.35mm ( 6.45 to 6.60 the default). The lobs had between 34.05-34.14mm. Subtracting 27.60 mm for... Continue Reading →
Amazon delivered the Draper Verto Clutch puller in the late afternoon and I immediately took off for the garage. After unpacking the tool I was a bit unsure about the quality. The supplied bolts were 8.8 grade ones. My previous tool was second hand and came with really solid 12.9 bolts. But the three metric... Continue Reading →
As you might notice by the title of today's post an older Depeche Mode song was on my playlist this week while removing Miffi's suspension parts. Stripping the subframe and engine were on my list - but a number of other things popped up as well. Since my first Mini restoration in 2019 quite a... Continue Reading →
After receiving a new head gasket on Saturday I started preparing the assembly of the Mini engine. Back during the restoration in 2019 I tried to keep the Mini as original as possible. This included sticking to the cast iron exhaust manifold and exhaust system. In 2023 the rear rusty and broken silencers got replaced with... Continue Reading →
Removing all ancillaries from Miffi last weekend left me undecided if I am going to just try a headgasket and cylinder-head exchange right now or do a full engine overhaul. Either way the head needs to come off. And as a small fridge for cold drinks and a reclining garden chair were recent garage upgrades... Continue Reading →
Last winter I started to notice that Miffi is not running as good as she usually did. Ever since the restoration back in 2019 the engine fired up right away when the ignition key was turned. As if the car said: " If waited so long - let's burn some rubber and go". But this... Continue Reading →
It is the time of the year that is not the best for classic cars. While I try to avoid driving on salty roads as much as possible - the Mini is my primary car and (almost) daily-driver. And considering it got much less TLC compared to my other cars, it is very reliable with very... Continue Reading →
Due to many customer cars that showed up over the last few weeks at the bodyshop - progress on Mildred slowed down a little bit. This week work on the right side of the car started. The inner front wing had a lot of holes. After removing the bad metal a custom panel was made... Continue Reading →
After weeks away from the garage it was about time to prepare for the season. With nice weather forecasted - I wanted to get the Morgan ready. It got a complete check just before I parked it last November. Even though I disconnected the battery and charged it twice since - it was dead now... Continue Reading →
Fixing C6622 