morris minor specialist uk

Piece by Piece – The 1969 Morris Minor Convertible Coming Back Together

The restoration and reassembly of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible by the Bridge Classic Cars team has been progressing.

The team are working on getting all the various parts, trims and panels back onto the classic Morris. Scott has carefully and methodically reinstalled the either new or refurbished parts onto the car whilst also hooking up the various electrical and cable systems as he goes.

Bit by Bit – Reassembly on the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The 1969 Morris Minor Convertible, which has recently finished up in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop, has been moved into the restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ to begin reassembly.

Our technician Scott has been put in charge of beginning the reassembly of the classic Morris Minor. He begun by getting some of the rear trims in place such as the rear lights with the rubber seals before moving on to getting the glovebox in place for later.

Scott also got the doors built up on the car with the new handles and mechanisms along with the window regulators to then build up the frames and put the glass securely in place. After that, it was time to move to the interior where the wiring would begin.

The speedometer has been wired up after a few key wiring repairs were done, then he could begin to trace the wiring through the firewall and up to the various key systems in the engine bay.

This Just In – 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The Bridge Classic Cars team have welcomed this wonderful 1969 Morris Minor Convertible to our Suffolk HQ for the team to have a look at.

The owner has reported a slight running issue as well as an exhaust problem which our workshop will be looking into and sorting out. Along with that, it will be inspected and looked at by our paint and body team for some bits and pieces.

Also while the car is with us, the teams will carry out a full inspection of the car to check everything over.

Polished – 1969 Morris Minor Convertible Paintwork Polished

After the paint and body team at Bridge Classic Cars let the underseal and seam seal cure it was time to flatten back and polish the paintwork on the body.

Our painter Alan, masked off the edges of the panels before using finer and finer grade abrasives combined with special compounds to bring the Snowberry White paint to a mirror-like finish.

Panel Work – Panels of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible in High Build Primer

The 1969 Morris Minor Convertible has been in the Bridge Classic Cars in-house paint booth to have the last few of its panels finished in high-build primer.

Before laying down the primer, the team have carefully cleaned down each piece of the classic convertible before being put onto the painting jigs and masked up and cleaned down once more to remove any contaminants.

Then, several layers of the high-build primer were laid down and left to cure in the booth.

This Just In – 1961 Morris Minor Convertible

Just arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ is this wonderful 1962 Morris Minor Convertible.

The classic Morris droptop has come in for our interior trim team to work on.

Keep a look out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more updates very soon on the 1962 Morris Minor Convertible.

In Colour – Engine Bay of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible Finished in Snowberry White

The 1969 Morris Minor Convertible has had its engine bay finished in the correct Snowberry White as part of its restoration by Bridge Classic Cars.

After having its high build primer laid down and left to cure, the team masked off the engine bay of the classic Morris to lay down several coats of Snowberry White onto the car. This will be left to cure and harden before moving onto the rest of the bodywork.

Final Pieces – Final Metal Repairs on the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The fabrication shop at Bridge Classic Cars have been finishing off the final metal repairs to the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible before it is handed over to our paint and body team.

The team have finished up the repairs needed to the driver’s side rear quarter panel frame and sill before welding in the new patch panel into the body of the classic Morris. Once completed, the team could move on to getting the doors of the car repaired.

The door of the car required several new pieces to be welded in to remove any corrosion. The bottoms of the doors required a new piece from front to rear which was welded in to seal up the door ready for the body team to work on.

Next, the front valance and wings were then worked on with some small repairs done to fix a few areas in the valance and the replacement wings were trimmed and refined in order to get the best fit possible for the restoration of the classic Morris Minor Convertible.

Now, the car will be transferred from the fabrication shop over to our in-house paint and body department to be worked on.

In Place – Finishing the Metal Repairs to the Rear Quarter Panel of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The Bridge Classic Cars fabrication shop have been working towards completing all the crucial metal repairs to the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible in for restoration.

The team have worked on securing and repairing the substructures beneath the rear quarter panels which were heavily corroded and needed to be carefully cut out and replaced with new pieces and then methodically welded into place to add the much-needed structure beneath the classic Morris.

With the substructures repaired and covered in rust-proofing treatment, the team could begin work on fitting the closing panel which will be blended into the existing body work by our paint and body team later in the car’s restoration journey.

Perfect Fit – Retrimming the Rear Seat of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The Bridge Classic Cars interior trim team have worked on refurbishing the rear seat of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible.

The team stripped the original seat base all the way back to its metal springs in order to rebuild it from the ground up. The team have made brand new foam sections which were glued to the underlays and wrapped around the spring bases.

Then, it was ready to be refinished in glorious bright red.

Out Back – Trimming the Rear Floor Boards and Fixing the Dash Shelf of the 1968 Morris Minor Van

The Bridge Classic Cars trim team have been working on the interior of the 1968 Morris Minor Van at our Suffolk HQ.

The team began by removing the shelf underneath the dashboard of the classic Morris in order to carry out some much needed repairs and revisions. The team retrimmed and reformed certain areas of the shelf to make it as good as new for the beautiful classic van and then revised the brackets and fixings so it held into place perfectly.

After that, the team turned their attention to the back of the car. The rear compartment has hardwood boards which make up the floors in the van. These were removed by the team and taken up to our in-house trim shop to be refinished in matching black coverings.

Dazzling – New Brightwork on the 1968 Austin Morris Minor Van

This beautiful 1968 Morris Minor Van has been in the Bridge Classic Cars body shop to have its new brightwork kit fitted to get it looking even better!

The Morris Minor Van’s original chrome had begun to pit and tarnish, so the team sourced a new replacement kit for the front end of the classic Van. Carefully, each of the pieces was removed from the fascia of the Morris in order to remove the front grille from the car.

The front grille pieces were taken to the bench and also cleaned up and certain pieces of panel work straightened to get the car in the best shape possible. Then, each section of brightwork was refitted to the car in a specific order until the front of the classic Morris Minor Van looked near enough brand new.

The finishing touch was the new bright, shiny hubcaps.

One-Piece – Repairing the Rear Quarter Panel and Rear Arch on the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The fabrication team in the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop have been working their way through the body repairs on the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible.

This time, the fabricators have turned their attention to the passenger side rear of the classic Morris. The rear quarter panel was showing some heavy signs of corrosion which ran deep into not just the body but several parts of the substructure which needed to be repaired. Along with that, was a corroded inner arch on the care that had to be addressed in order to keep the rigidity of the wing and tying into the rails that sit beneath.

So, after the corroded areas had been cut out of the car, the team could begin to fabricate and weld in the replacement pieces to add back the strength to the necessary areas of the car.

To The Core – Repairing the Arch and Sills of the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The fabrication team at Bridge Classic Cars have been continuing their work on getting the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible back into the best shape possible.

Our fabricators have begun working on removing the heavily corroded pieces from the inner wheel arch that have caused corrosion to flow into the sill. For this, our team carefully and sympathetically removed the root causes of the corrosion to ensure it cannot spread. After that, the team began the world of remaking the crucial part of the sill which ties the pieces together.

Prepped and Ready – Engine and Parts from the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible Ready for Paint

The restoration technicians in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been preparing and getting the engine and parts ready to be taken into our in-house paint shop.

Rob has worked on sealing up any openings in the classic 4-cylinder for our painter Chris to start work on. Each part has been steam cleaned and then hand finished in order to remove any grease or dirt which can affect the finish on the parts. Then, each individual piece is thoroughly cleaned down with spirits to get any form of grease or oil off and taken into our paint booth.

Teardown – Stripping and Inspecting the 1969 Morris Minor Convertible

The 1969 Morris Minor 1000 Convertible has been taken into the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication shop to begin its teardown and inspection.

The fabrication and restoration teams have been working alongside one another to get the classic Morris Minor taken apart to evaluate the overall condition of the car.

From what can be seen on the initial inspection, there are some areas of heavy corrosion. These will be further assessed by the team to come up with a plan to move forward with the car.

This Just In – 1969 Morris Minor 1000 Convertible

This beautiful 1969 Morris Minor 1000 Convertible has recently arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ to be assessed by the teams.

The restoration teams will each inspect and assess the car directly related to their areas of speciality. Once this is done, the technicians will report back with their findings on the car.

Keep an eye out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more updates on the 1969 Morris Minor 1000 Convertible very soon.

Behind the Scenes – Photoshoot with the 1970 Morris Minor 1000

The Morris Minor is a beautiful link to a bygone day of motoring. A simplistic, utilitarian piece of British motoring history, but an icon taken on by driving culture as a source of happiness and easy-going driving joy.

This particular 1970 Morris Minor is possibly one of the nicest Minor 1000s to have ever passed through our workshops. As with all of our competition cars, the Minor has gone through our restoration departments before being cleared for filming and this one passed with flying colours. So, with that, it was taken over to our secure storage facility to have its photoshoot done.

The team at Bridge Classic Cars Competitions pulled the 52-year-old Almond Green Morris out of The Hangar. With a single turn of the key, the 4 cylinder engine cracked into life without the slightest hint of a stutter. Happily, the little 4 cylinder idled outside The Hangar as it warmed up ahead of filming.

Hayley got into the car and straight away began beaming. Her exact words ”This is such a happy little car!” and it certainly is. Everyone who has ever driven a Morris Minor will know that feeling of happily driving around with the world instantly being a better place. The Morris pulled away from The Hangar perfectly, cleanly pulling away in each gear towards our filming location. As we rounded the corner into the filming area, the Bridge Classic Cars Competitions team also couldn’t help but join in with the infectious smile of the dark green Morris.

Going through the process of filming and photoing the car, the Morris was faultless. It happily zoomed off with a rumbling, buzzy exhaust note and when it came time to brake for a corner there wasn’t the slightest hint of any movement in the car. Perfectly balanced.

Lap after lap, the car went perfectly. No matter the speed, no matter the weather, it just kept going happily along. As it bimbled along past the ferns and under the winter sun, it felt like we could have gone back in time. But either way, it was the perfect time with this beautiful Morris Minor.

Now, Bridge Classic Cars Competitions wants you to experience this feeling. This 1970 Morris Minor 1000 could be yours!

Strip and Clean – Rebuilding the Brakes on the 1958 Morris Minor 1000

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been working on servicing and refurbishing the front and rear drum brakes on the 1958 Morris Minor 1000 currently in with ourselves for some work.

Our technicians have taken apart the drums all the way back to the carriers and hubs to be able to fully inspect and assess each part of the drum. The shoes and wheel cylinders needed to be changed as the customer had noted the brakes were very poor even after a recent master cylinder was fitted. After every piece was cleaned and prepared, Rob began to put the whole system back together before testing.

After testing and adjusting, all 4 drums on the Minor 1000 were working perfectly and when the time comes, ready for the road ahead.