My first Morry - "Dorris" (image heavy)

[Emily]

I'm thrilled to announce the arrival of my Morris, named "Dorris" by her previous owner! Dorris is a 1962 4 door saloon (English Grey).

Long story short, I noticed her for sale, and really liked the look of her...but she was in SA. After contacting the Morris Car Club of SA, two of their members generously checked her out for us, and upon their thumbs up and much careful consideration, we bought her! A week later, she was shipped to Sydney, where my uncle kindly picked her up and had a hairy drive home in peak hour traffic.

We had a couple of little things fixed at Morris Minor World before my uncle (again, very kindly) decided he would drive Dorris up as he was visiting us anyway. After an uneventful 800km trip, she arrived just before dusk yesterday. My mum insisted on taking her for a spin, and we soon discovered Dorris' thrilling brakes.

By the time I got a turn (!) it was dark, so I just pottered over to the neighbour's place and back.

This morning I had a bit of a drive, and was quite surprised by how nippy she is! Though it takes a little while to gain momentum, she pulls up hills quite easily in top. Apparently this is because she has a ribbed gearbox or something. I don't like to go too fast however, because stopping isn't quite as easy!

Anyway, apologies about the essay length, but I'm ecstatic to have my first Morry - I hope to bring her to the Nationals and have a good look around.








Note to self: Save up for disc brakes![/img]

[graham]

G'day Emily

Looks like a nice clean, straight car you have there, it will make a good base for you to turn into your vision of what a Morry should be in the 21st century.
Disk brakes are good, driving a Morry is far more enjoyable when you do not have to worry about stopping.

Good luck with your car.

Cheers
Graham

[Nancy]

Hi Emily

You must be absolutely thrilled with Doris. She is gorgeous, so neat and tidy. I like the way the indicators on the front have been placed in the grille and underneath the rear bumper. She's a little gem and you will have a great time driving her.

Looking forward to hearing about your many travels in Dorris.

[Emily]

Thanks Graham and Nancy for your comments! She is a nice tidy little thing, apart from some surface rust here and there, some flaking chrome and faded patches of paint on her roof, bonnet and boot. I can't wait to get stuck into getting her into tip-top shape!

The man at Morris Minor World quoted us around $1300 for repairs to pass rego, and her cosmetic stuff will be quite a bit, I imagine, if I eventually had her resprayed. I'll just have to chip away at my list, with part-time job money. We also live on a terrible potholey country road, so I have to be really careful and slow, or she'll be clapped out in no time.

The only problem with the indicator's placement Nancy is when you have a truck on your tail, they're so low that they're essentially invisible. They usually had circular indicators above (or below?) the brake lights, didn't they? Perhaps I'll have to get them. Another addition to the fix-it list!

We went for a bit of a spin this morning, let's just say I'm really looking forward to getting disc brakes. It's going to be terrific once I can chortle along without keeping too keen an eye out for hazards half a kilometre away! Nevertheless, I'm enjoying her already.

[John Ballard]

Hi Emily
Love the car almost the same colour as mine and with red interior too.
About the Rear indicators ( Morris Minor did not have any at all here in Australia all were all fitted later by owners) mine are in this spot and are very Bright have a look at the Rally.

[Emily]

Thanks John, will do! I'm looking forward to seeing your car.

[DON58VAN]

Congratulations Emily.

Dorris looks really nice.

Here are a couple of things to discuss with people at the Nationals.

1) If you have a ribbed gearbox, it is just possible that you also have a bigger motor than the usual 948cc (perhaps a 1098cc or 1275cc). The experts will able to tell you with a quick glance. If it is the standard 948cc--no problem--it is a great little motor. Just to explain, the ribbed gearbox was fitted to later Minors and Sprites with the bigger motors. It is possible though, that the ribbed gearbox was fitted without changing the motor. If you do have a ribbed gearbox, that is great. It is a better design than the earlier (smooth-case) one.

2) There is a good alternative to disk brakes for Minors. Yes, good disk brakes are probably the best, but if you can get Morris Major front brakes (drums, not disks), they are far more powerful than the standard brakes. The advantages are that they bolt straight on without any modifications and you won't have to also buy and fit a brake booster. The all-up cost should also be a lot less than the disks. The only downside I know of is that you have to be careful after going through deep water, because drum brakes briefly lose efficiency when they are wet. This can be overcome by dabbing the brakes (while moving) a couple of times after exiting the deep water.

Just my suggestions. Others will have different views. You will be getting plenty of more advice from all directions from now on.

I hope you have many years of happy Morrying!
Don

[libbor]

Another plus for the major brakes is that there is no compliance issues, ie, no engineering certificate needed.

Another worthwhile safety modification if you do a lot of night driving is the fitment of quartz halogen headlamps. At least then you will be able to see

[Kelly Taylor]

Hi Emily,

She looks like a beauty!

I recently purchased one similar, but she's in the car hospital getting some TLC.

Yes, the brakes are very scary......... My husband nearly had a heart attack driving it home from the depot!

Hope you have lots of fum in your little car.

Kelly

[Nancy]

Hi Kelly Would love to see a post on your new purchase. Emily's little one is just terrific isn't she.

Best Regards Nancy

[John Ballard]

Hi Emily
IT was really to meet up and see your car ,I was very busy and could not spare a lot of time but I did notice it was a 1098cc motor with a rib cage gearbox.
Congratulations on a great car.

[Emily]

Thanks everyone for your advice and well-wishes! I love coming onto this forum and checking the latest posts on each board (after homework of course...).

My mum and I drove Dorris down to Port Macquarie for the Nationals, where we had a good gander at the lovely cars and met lots of great people! Dorris behaved beautifully on the long drive, and didn't miss a beat. I'll upload some photos soon. Mum is inspired to get my great-grandfather's Morry (sitting in our shed) restored, so we can have a pair!

[Nancy]

Hi Emily

What year is your great grandfathers Morry? A pic of it would be great when you have time.

Best Regards
Nancy

[Emily]

Haha!

Hi Nancy, we think it's a '57, and I will post a pic soon, it's a two door in Patonga Ivory.

[frosty]

Hi Emily,
what have you been upto with Dorris?

and also how's your Mum's ute

[Emily]

My mum's ute? She doesn't have one, she (reckons) she has my great grandfather's two-door, sitting in our shed, waiting for some restoration. Oh, how we'd love a ute though!

Sadly I haven't been up to much with Dorris as she needs some bits before she will pass rego. However, things are looking up - we're ordering her new parts next week! I've driven her around home a little bit just to keep her "alive" until we take her to the mechanic. For now she's sitting in the shed, lovely and washed with a cover over her (which makes it hard to admire her daily!)

C:

[Emily]

Hi everyone! It's been a few years since I've been on the forum (good grief!). Dorris served me well back in 2011, but early the next year she conked out (I can't remember for the life of me what it was) and I wasn't in a position to have her fixed and rego'd. Last year I moved to QLD for uni and had to purchase a daily driver, so sadly Dorris has been sitting in the shed for a couple of years (very forlorn, I imagine). I still dream of doing her up one day and having her as my everyday car, when I have the money to put into her. It will probably be a while!