1966 Morris Cooper S

[mmalleck]

I thought I had a thread on this forum, but shows zero posts.

Guess I'll skip 6 years of history and jump to this section of the car.

If you want older pictures, you can browse here: https://mmalleck.smugmug.com/Cars/1966- ... &k=M5f8mqw






























A wheel - wow, 6 years later and a wheel is mounted!!!





Exhaust sucked up tight and snug. This was a lot of work.















Now you see it...


Now you don't...


Added a threaded hook to hold the battery strap


Not much change on the interior


Boot badges








Australian Cop car in front, VTEC Mini in the back, and my BRG Mini

[mmalleck]

Some cell phone pics...

[mmalleck]

I know it's just an old brake booster, but the restoration turned out great!

Before...


After...




South Coast Brake Resleeving performed the restoration.

[mmalleck]

Booster is in, and no fluid leaks! Now I just need to track down the line separator clamp.

[mmalleck]

New pictures...

[mmalleck]

All four wheels! Need original hubcaps, which I don't have...



Boot board finally has the clip to keep it in place. Ready for a rear end collision to crumple the seat back now.




Stuck with this configuration for the battery hold down.


Heater plumbed...


Heater plumbing and separator clip for brake lines cleaned up and back in place. Yeah, I know the hose clamps aren't original - I'll change those out later.


Getting crowded in here...


The following are cell phone pics.
After 6 years in the air - it's back on the round!!


Hydrolastic fluid will be added tomorrow - man I hope there are no leaks!

[mmalleck]

So, I ordered original oil cooler hoses off ebay years ago - can't find them. The ones on the car were mismatched and a bit worn. So, I ordered some repros from Minispares - well, they didn't fit. Long hose was too short, plus the front diagonal brace was in the way. The short hose was too long, and kinked. So, $250 USD later (ouch!) - I have custom oil pipes to my oil cooler and they look so good I had to post pictures.





It looks like it's touching in the photo, but it's not. That engine coupler piece will get cleaned up and painted.

[mmalleck]

Front and rear glass is in...not much else to update.

[mmalleck]

I finally pumped up the new hydrolastic suspension. I am thrilled to have no leaks!

I only had a Liquid Levers pump without vacuum, so I had to rig up a vacuum system. Black is vacuum, clear is the high pressure line.

While in vacuum mode, I closed the T-valve to the Liquid Levers pump. While pumping up the system, I closed off the vacuum T-valve, and opened the high pressure T-valve.









This stuff is great for sealing any leaks.


Off the bump stops!


Back side of instrument pod.


Oil pressure gauge line.

[mmalleck]

The engine start up and run-in went fairly well. We had a few things to correct.

1) the engine makes a loud bang when the distributor driving spindle is 180 degrees off!
2) engine runs better then you actually hook up the SU fuel pump
3) the oil pressure was pegged at 100 psi - so we had to find a weaker oil relief valve spring, and snip a few coils off

I'm not a video editor, and I left the battery for my nice camera at my house still in the wall charger. Cell phone video below...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI-Dsdn ... e=youtu.be

[970s]

Wonderful Super Restoration!!
THe best Aussie S ever saw!

WEll done!


Al

[arnichon]

Super restoration !!! Good job.

[mmalleck]

Thank you very much!

Everything about this car has been a challenge. The Australian doors were especially challenging.






Some metal work highlights....






This door step was custom made. I could not find any new panels to match.


Front panel fit...



Most of the original floors were preserved to maintain proper panel stamping



I'll update this thread as time allows.

Cheers!

[rich@minispares.com]

that's fantastic

the green is beautiful, ive often wondered why a dark BRG colour wasn't offered on the UK models as it certainly had the heritage

[mmalleck]

Paint was a tough decision. I think I sprayed 6 or 7 colors, then had them in the house, on the deck looking at them in various lighting. Some of the BRG colors look too blue, while other look slightly yellow. It's hard to find the perfect blend. I ended up with connaught green, which was very close to the color under the dash and doors. The VIN tag shows "New BRG" as the original color.

[Craig]

Gunnar !!

Long time no see ........

What a FANTASTIC JOB you have done !!!!!!!

WIll the car be at any local shows ?? Portland ???

Would love to see it in person .

Craig

[mk1coopers]

Great looking car and nice to see metal going in so neatly, we often see TV programmes on this side of the pond that dont reflect the 'proper' work that goes on in the USA / Canada, far to much body filler being put on rather than sorting out what's beneath it (and waiting to come back as soon as it gets a chance) plus who paints cars then gets a wire wheel out for the engine bay that's not been done, and don't get me started on cutting the transmission tunnels after painting the body as no one has checked to see if it all fits first

[mmalleck]

Hey Craig,

I'm not Gunnar, but he has done all of the work for me. I have been the researcher, bill payer, and parts finder for this project. You should give him a call and pass along your compliments!

Gunnar and I are both super picky, but the bad part is that we are picky in different areas - so that's how you end up with a car like this.

Gunner did fit the subframes and a Cooper S engine block and remote shifter prior to blasting.




No plans for any shows. I'm not much of a car show person.

Thanks

Mark

[wantafaster1]

Your paint is awesome.

[Bertam]

I consider Gunnar a friend. He's a real 'artist' when it comes to metal and paint work. Very high skill set as well as standards..