19) Little loose ends
- Chris Stanley
- Nov 11, 2019
- 2 min read
Putting the interior back together.
October 31st 2019
Thanks to a very helpful member of the Morris Minor Owners Club, I have managed to purchase a replacement glove box emblem. I'm very pleased with this as it was cheaper than some I've seen on eBay and also in much better condition. There were a few minor scratches on the plastic surface but a rub down with a little cutting compound has brought it back to a lovely shiny condition.
The emblem was very quick and easy to fit, requiring only one nut to secure it to the backplate. It's very satisfying to be able to plug up that hole in the glovebox lid!
Once that job was done it was time to remove the back seat to examine the condition of the floorpan underneath. I knew there was only superficial rust there so nothing to worry about but it makes sense to treat it now to stop it from getting any worse. I started by removing the large plug from the floor and then wire-brushing and vacuuming all the old rust out.
Once the rust converter had dried fully, it was finally time to reinstall the carpet and seats. At some point I will need to think about fitting a new carpet as the old one is looking very tired and threadbare but it will do for now.
While installing the interior I noticed the inside of the passenger-side B-pillar is badly dented. This seems like a very strange place for damage as there is nothing visible on the outside!
Recently I had noticed some coolant leakage to the inside of the engine bay and assumed I hadn't tightened one of the hoses properly since refitting the radiator. Well it turned out that the problem was the old radiator cap. It wasn't sealing properly and when the pressure built up it was allowing coolant past the seal and into the overflow tube. A nice new radiator cap seems to have fixed the problem.
Thank you Alan, very nice of you to say so. Please feel free to rant away as I completely agree with you on that score! It's very annoying having to navigate poorly written text when reading any kind of guide.
Anyway, I'm pleased you like my blog. As you've probably guessed, it isn't really a how-to guide. It's more a document of my experiences in the hope of encouraging others to 'have a go'. There's little more satisfying than driving a car which you have put back on the road through your own hard work.
Sorry to hear about your bad back but I'm glad you've found a car that doesn't need any serious work. Long may you enjoy your…
I too have stumbled across this blog via the MMOC forum (very helpful and supportive group of people) and endorse what has already been said about the quality of the photos and overall quality of the accompanying text.
Not wishing, in any way, to sound sycophantic but it does make a really refreshing change to read something from someone who can string a readable, coherant sentence together and not have it littered with primary school spelling mistakes and grammatical errors! Grrrrrr!
Rant over, promise!!
My moggy (a '62 4 door) was basically all 'done' by the previous owner during his 35 year tenure as its custodian but there is always something to tinker with, replace or improve.......and if all els…
Thanks for the kind comment Lee, I'm glad you like the blog. I'm mainly doing this in the hope it inspires other people and shows that anyone with a bit of basic knowledge and a few tools can easily work on these cars. Even someone as inexperienced as me! This is my first Minor and overall I've been very lucky to find a Series 2 in such solid condition, albeit a bit neglected. I'll continue to add posts every couple of weeks or so which I hope you will find interesting. Best of luck with your Minor 1000 and I hope to see you at a future MMOC event! All the best, Chris.
Hi Chris. Just found your blog link on MMOC forum and joined up. I like the way you write up things in a simple, friendly and useful way, and add very good images. I've just bought a very original but a bit tired and neglected 62 4door, so different engine and a few other features, but I found your posts very informative and interesting. Like you, I'm also gradually tidying up things that haven't been done properly in the last few years, though prior to this the car was fairly well looked after. This is my 4th Minor 1000, but it's been about 25 years since the last one, so I'm relearning some basic skills, including how to dr…