Tim Rigney's 1957 Morris Minor restoration (Elsie)
A Minor Matter of Patience
Photo: A Minor Matter of PatienceTim Rigney's 30-year ground-up restoration of a 1957 Morris Minor
Tim Rigney and his family spent decades, and intensively the final three years, bringing a 1957 Morris Minor named Elsie back from 38 years off the road. The blog covers the final mechanical sorting, interior and hood fitting, and the eventual successful registration. It is worth reading for the honest troubleshooting detail, from valve seal mishaps to glass that would not quite fit.
Parts used
Parts named as used in the original write-up, grouped the way the Parts page groups them. Where one of the shops we index lists the same thing for this car, it is shown underneath with a link to the shop.
Engine 2
- Cup-type valve stem seals (set of 8)
Replaced perished original seals after multiple fitting attempts to stop engine smoking
In the shops
Valve Stem Seal ↗
Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $0.65 USD - Replacement sump with bottom seal kit
Fitted after original sump developed a pinhole leak; spare sump panel-beaten and repainted before fitting
Fuel & Ignition 2
- Carburettor jet and seal kit
Fitted after original jet was found spinning instead of adjusting mixture, fixing fuel spitting from exhaust
In the shops
Carburettor Jet Seal ↗James Paddock Ltd· £1.25 GBP
Carburettor Jet Seal Washer ↗
Carburettor Jet Seal Washer ↗ - Oil bath air cleaner (original type)
Attempted refit in place of pancake filter to improve carburettor mixture, abandoned as it fouled the bonnet brace
In the shops
Oil Bath Air Cleaner-Original N.O.S, ↗MGbits4U· £300.00 GBP
Oil Bath Air Cleaner ↗Oil Bath Air Cleaner ↗
Wheels & Tyres 1
- Wheel rims
Sandblasted and repainted as part of final restoration work
Body & Trim 2
- Front and rear window rubbers
New rubbers ordered and fitted along with glass by a professional installer
In the shops
Body Rubber Kit (Heated Rear Window) ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $988.87 USD
Body Rubber Kit (with heated rear window) ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $1,051.99 USD
Body Rubber Kit (without heated rear window) ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $946.79 USD - Windscreen and rear glass
Original glasses selected for least scratches; rear glass required swapping to a slightly different pane to fit properly
In the shopsWindscreen Glass, Coupe, Clear ↗
MGOC Spares· £180.20
Interior 2
- Hood lining
New lining ordered from England and fitted with bows and front timber panel transplanted from the old one
- Front and rear seat webbing
Replaced on the front seats after tuning sessions showed it was worn
Electrical 1
- Second-hand speedometer uniteBay
Bought to replace unit with missing odometer drive tooth, then repaired and re-magnetised to read correctly
Tools & Workshop 3
- Home-made valve spring compressor tool
Made from an old tool used on a Lancer, used to remove valve springs, less effective for refitting
In the shops
Sykes Pickavant Valve Spring Compressor Tool ↗
Mini Sport· £46.78 GBP
Tapered Piston Ring Compressor Tool ↗
MazSpec MX-5 Spares & Accessories· £84.99 GBP - Commercial valve spring compressor toollocal independent tool store
Bought from a local tool shop to successfully refit valve springs after home-made tool struggled
In the shopsSykes Pickavant Valve Spring Compressor Tool ↗Mini Sport· £46.78 GBPTapered Piston Ring Compressor Tool ↗MazSpec MX-5 Spares & Accessories· £84.99 GBP - Home-made cylinder pressurising adaptor
Connected cylinders to an air compressor to keep valves from dropping while seals were removed
In the shops
Front & Rear Wheel Cylinder Adaptor ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $28.99 USD
Photos
40 pictures collected from the write-up, in the order they were posted, shown from A Minor Matter of Patience. A picture opens larger here, with the way through to the page it is on.
How it was done
Back on the road after 38 years
Elsie passed her roadworthy inspection and was registered again, 38 years after last being on the road and 32 years after the owner began working on her. The owner thanks family and friends, estimates the cost at over $20,000 and more than 2000 man hours, and says the real value was the time spent with his parents and brother learning about Morris Minors together.
Early teething troubles
After returning to the road, Elsie proved a little temperamental, with occasional oil leaks and electrical niggles, though the owner says these have all been fairly easy to fix as the car settles in.
Carburettor and air cleaner fettling
An attempt to refit the original oil bath air cleaner failed because it fouled the bonnet brace, so the paper air cleaner was kept. Stripping the carburettor found a spinning jet; a new seal kit was fitted and reassembled, which cured raw fuel spitting from the exhaust, though smoking continued.
Valve stem seal saga
Suspecting worn valve stem seals after 25 years of storage, the owner fitted eight new cup-type seals using a home-made spring compressor and air-pressurised cylinders to hold valves up. Seals failed twice, first from leftover oil shrouds, then from seals not pushed fully past the guide notch, before a third attempt succeeded cleanly in just over an hour.
Sump failure and repair
During final tuning a pinhole was found leaking oil from the bottom of the sump. A spare sump was sourced, panel-beaten, repainted and fitted with a new bottom seal kit. The bottom end was inspected while open and found to be in good condition despite the long lay-up.
Speedometer repair
The speedometer read low and the odometer would not turn due to a missing drive tooth. A second-hand unit bought on eBay was stripped, cleaned, and had its weak magnet re-magnetised at home using wire wound around it and a car battery, before being reassembled and roughly calibrated.
Interior and hood lining completion
Interior trim, sound deadening, carpets, seats, door cards and pillar trims were fitted, essentially completing the cabin. A replacement hood lining ordered from England was fitted successfully after earlier problems, transplanting the bows and front timber panel from the old lining.
Glass fitting and final prep
A professional installer fitted the front and rear glass. The front went in with effort over the chrome locking strip, but the rear glass would not seat until a second pane of supposedly identical glass was tried and found to fit, revealing manufacturing variation. Wheels were then sandblasted as work continued.
A summary in our own words. The full account, with all its detail, is in the original write-up: read it at A Minor Matter of Patience ↗
Worth knowing
- New cup-type valve stem seals require leaving out the old oil shrouds used with earlier seal types.
- Valve stem seals must be pushed fully past the guide notch or the spring top can pop off under compression.
- Nominally identical replacement glass can differ by several millimetres, so compare spares before fitting.
- Leave window glass installation to a professional, it is not a practical do-it-yourself job.
- A long-stored engine can still have sound bottom-end condition, worth inspecting before assuming the worst.
- A weak speedometer magnet can sometimes be revived at home by re-energising it with wire and a car battery.