Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Plus 4 Service - November 2014

Today I made a start on the service. It's already part-way done, having changed the rear springs in the summer, and having just put the front suspension back together. So I know that the nuts and bolts are nice and tight.

Todays jobs were to check the rear brakes, and bleed the brakes and the clutch.

So first I lifted the rear and removed the drums. They came off quite easily. Sometimes you have to wiggle the handbrake cable, just to get complete release. It was reassuring to find Coppaslip on the bolt threads, which shows a certain level of thought applied at the last service which you can't take for granted everywhere. (Well done BHM!).

This looks remarkably clean - but I've done nothing to it - this is after quite a lot of bad weather through the year, especially in Scotland. The small bolts hold the drums in place. The slotted setscrews can be left in place, they can be removed if you need more wiggle space, but its not necessary.


The inside was reasonably clean, but I cleaned off the dust and tidied it up. The cylinder is dry, as is the cylinder on the other side.


Once that was out of the way it was time to assemble the bleeding gear. A selection of containers and a selection of bleed tubes, plus my fluid transfer tool, which is invaluable.



First job was to remove most of the old fluid from the master cylinder using the transfer tool. This means that I can fill the master cylinder with fresh fluid from the start, and don't have to pump all the old fluid through. Done carefully, no air gets admitted at this end. That fluid looks pretty good actually. Basic precuations are essential. Plenty of rags which get thrown away at the end, and never carry anything containing brake fluid over the paintwork - if it drips, it may damage the paint.



In this photo, the master cylinder cap is tucked away at the top so it can't drip. I use a small aerosol plastic top to pour new fluid into the master cylinder. Space is tight and this works a treat.



The bleed nipples are 5/16"AF, and I started furthest away from the Master Cylinder. What came out of the rear nearside was badly discoloured.
It took 30 strokes before it ran clear.



Fluid should be changed at two years. Many owners don't bother, but this shows clearly why you should - it's only two and a half years old. The offside took twenty strokes before it ran clear. Less than the nearside because the front to rear pipe had been replenished earlier, so there was less old fluid to purge.



With the rear of the car back on the floor, I lifted the front, and diverted into bleeding the clutch. Using the same approach - first, removing the old fluid from the master cylinder.



The clutch fluid came out in pretty good shape. The bleed nipple is 5/16"AF. Up to this point I had used 500ml of new fluid. The whole job took around 750ml.



At this point is was convenient to remove and replace the oil filter, even though it was not on my list for today. It was tight and needed a chain wrench to start off.



The filter on the car was a FIL ZP507A - not a brand I'm familiar with, and hard to track down on the internet for a cross reference. To cut a long story short I obtained a K&N PS1002, which I have fitted this time. But I also paid a visit to my local Ford Dealer to find out what the standard Ford filter is. It's always a lot of fun doing this, because the parts counter works on Reg numbers, but not when you have a Morgan, and the engine number is no use. They have also stopped using the EFL numbers which old blokes like me know about.
So here are all three, in a row for your information, and you can see the Ford part number.



The handbook lists one option as synthetic 5W 40 and the oil cap suggests Castrol, so..........
I always fill the filter before refitting so as to minimise the delay in building oil pressure.



I didn't take a photo of the front brakes being bled, but this photo shows the location of one bleed nipple. There is another one on the inside edge of the caliper, and an external brake pipe links the two halves of the caliper along the bottom edge.
The caliper nipples are 7/16" AF



First I did the nearside, starting with the outer nipple, so as to purge the external brake pipe. The fluid was very clean in comparison to the rears. Fifteen strokes to the outer nipple and ten to the inner, with regular master cylinder top ups. And the same procedure on the offside, before refilling the master cylinder to level and refitting the cap.

Finally I decided to replace the engine oil today. The plug is 13mm.


It came out black............................


Finally, use a funnel to avoid spillage and recheck the level after running the engine up to temp. The yellow funnel is a coincidence, honest.



I keep myself entertained during these days in the garage with lashings of tea, an occasional square of dark chocolate, and state of the art (or is that ark) sound system, tuned in to Radio Hallam - a Sheffield commercial station.



All that remains to do now is the gearbox and axle oils...........

As ever, that's really great Dave. Seriously, there's a great future ahead for your retirement with Morgan owner workshops on servicing and maintenance!

+1 great as always

Out of curiosity Dave: how do you dispose of the old oil? In my youth I used to pour it on the fence posts in the belief that it kept the white ants (Ozzies know what they are) off. I don't have fence posts or white ants these days and I am sure that practice is frowned upon.

I generally don't do my own oil changes now but if I have some oil to dispose of I take it to a friendly workshop that has oil collection.

Great Topic as ever Dave. Thanks for sharing.

Peter - we have a disposal site only a couple of miles away, so once I've done the gearbox and axle I'll take it all over. They have a large tank which is pumped out occasionally and then recycled 'somewhere'.
I daresay I could take it to my local village garage but I never have because they have to pay to get rid of it.

In the past I've used it on wooden fences!

A very thorough post as usual, Dave. I use a Gunson Eezi-Bleed for my brakes, I must confess I've not done the clutch yet as I can't find the slave cylinder! (help required- 1800 Zetec) As for disposing of used oil, here in UK our local recycling centres (read- town dump) will usually have a dedicated tank. Gerry.

Dave I like your "nipple" caps.
Whilst I have seen some for sale I haven't a clue what size you need for the brakes & suspension lube nipples.
Any pointers where to get them & what size to order ?
Bob

I'm a bit of an over service freak when it comes to Brakes - I flush the whole system on my cars once a year, it always makes me laugh when garages say your fluid is okay by measuring the moisture content in the reservoir! and ignore the cooked sludge at the business end.

Your Yellow paint work looks lovely and shiney Dave!

The nipple caps are available on internet, however the prices seem rather high for what they are. Have a look at "Nipple Shop", these are the people who supplied Robbie's remote greasing kit. They are selling them for only 22p plus VAT.
Other suggestion would be a motor cycle shop or if you are going to the Classic Motor Show at the NEC, 14th - 16th November, I would expect that one of the stalls would have them for sale.