ALL ABOUT MORRIS MINOR

The appeal of the Morris Minor is so strong that for many people just the mention of the name evokes nostalgic memories. The Morris Minor was, and still is, regarded as part of the family, viewed as a friend and even given pet names. Such affection for a mere car, while not unique to the Morris Minor, is indicative of the esteem in which this true British classic is held. - Ray Newell May 1993.

Begining of Morris

Morris was started in 1913 when bicycle manufacturer William Morris (1877-1963) turned his attention to car manufacturing. A factory was opened in Oxford and the company's first car the "Bullnose" Oxford was introduced.

1927 Morris Cowley

During the 1920s Morris established a reputation for producing high quality cars. In 1924 Morris overtook Ford to become Britain's biggest car manufacturer, holding a 51% share of the home market. Also in 1924 the head of the Morris sales agency in Oxford, Cecil Kimber, started building sporting versions of
Morris cars called MG after the agency Morris Garages. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s the company produced mainly simple but reliable family cars.

1928 Morris Minor Saloon

The most famous Morris car was the Morris Minor introduced in 1948 reusing a name from 1928. The Morris Oxford of 1948 was the basis for the design of India's famous state-produced Ambassador automobile.

1946 Morris Ten Series M

In the early 1950s Morris merged with its old rival Austin to form the British Motor Corporation. In 1968, the Morris brand became part of British Leyland.

History of Morris Minor

The Minor was built by William Morris (Lord Nuffield) of the Nuffield Organisation. This sprawling business included (amongst many, many other firms), Wolseley, the SU carburettor company and Morris Garages, or MG.

The long story of the Morris Minor began in May 1940, when Miles Thomas the new Vice Chairman and Managing Director saw the need for Morris to develop a new small 4 seater car to be introduced after the end of World War II. This project was placed entirely in the hands of Alec Issigonis by the far-sighted chief engineer, Vic Oak.

"Mosquito" was Issigonis prototype's name, who together with Jack Daniels and Reg Job, set out to create a completely new and innovative car. The features of this prototype included:
� monocoque design (as opposed to the traditional chassis / body)
� rack and pinion steering
� independent front suspension utilising torsion bars
� smaller fourteen inch wheels
� striking styling lines

Here is 'Mosquito' image:

All the prototypes were 57 inches wide, but Issigonis felt that this was too narrow, and ordered one of the eight prototypes to be cut down the middle. The change obviously had serious design implications for the design team, who had to recalculate hundreds of dimensions. Issigonis' monumentous eleventh-hour decision to widen the car by four inches gave the car extra width .

The archives still contain the original drawings.

The extra width gave the car improved stability and road holding. A reminder of this historic decision can be seen on all Morris Minors, by the flat strip that runs down the centre of the bonnet.

The front grille drawings

The first Morris Minor came off the assembly line on the 20th September 1948 just in time for the Earls Court Motor Show in October 1948. The first Minors had the tried and tested 918cc side valve from the Series E Morris Eight. However, Issigonis had originally intended the Minor to have a 800cc and 1100cc flat four (horizontally opposed), water cooled engine. This is why there is so much space in the engine bay, making the Minor an easy car to maintain.

1953 Morris Minor Series 2

Morris Motors unquestionably had the finest small car in the world with the Minor, it was one of the first cars in its field to handle well. However, there is little to suggest that the Nuffield Organisation appreciated the quality of the car. The export market was never fully exploited, particularly with regard to promoting the car and fitting a more suitable engine.

The 1948 engine

On 22nd December 1960, the millionth Minor rolled off the production line -the first British vehicle to achieve this distinction.

Evolution of Morris Minor

The Morris Minor (1948-1971) came, basically, in four guises, all of them pretty much the same shape, but each with subtle, yet significant differences. There were three main model periods spanning nearly 25 years.

The Series MM, produced between 1948 and 1952, was powered by the same sidevalve engine as seen in the pre-war Morris Eight.

The Series II gained the overhead valve engine of the Austin A30 in 1953 after the merger with Morris creating the British Motor Corporation, but still retained the flat-glass split windscreen of the previous model.

The Minor came of age in with the 1000 when the new 948cc was fitted and eventually ending up with the 1098cc engine in 1962. This was the last significant upgrade to the Minor until it ceased production in 1972 (although in some countries it continued to be made until 1974 to use up stocks of parts)

At first glance, all Minors look much the same, the main differences being the position of the headlamps which were originally fitted low down in the radiator grille in the earliest 'low light' models. To comply with US regulations, headlamps were fitted in the guards from 1950 onwards (1949 for cars exported to USA). A curved one-piece windscreen replaced the two-piece flat version with the introduction of the 1000 in 1956, the rear edge of the bonnet changed as a result. At about this time, the mesh-type grille was replaced by a slatted type, the rear window was made larger and the instrument panel was redesigned.

The passenger models were two- and four-door saloons, a convertible and an estate called the Traveller, often referred to affectionately as the 'Woody'. Commercials included 5cwt vans (popular with the British GPO) and utility versions, as well as many specially bodied vehicles built by after-market body builders.

The first Minors were powered by a side valve 918cc engine form the Morris eight. The very earliest of these cars featured headlamps that were set very low on the car alongside the radiator grill, but these had to be moved up onto the wing to comply with American lighting regulations - export sales of course were of great value. In 1950 a four door saloon joined the range, but in 1952, after the merger with Austin to form BMC, the Minor was fitted with a more powerful overhead valve engine from the Austin A30 - the now well known BMC A series engine. This car was known as the series II. 1953 saw the arrival of a Morris Minor Van, pick-up and most famously the Traveller estate car with its exterior wood framework.

The next update to the Minor range was in October 1954 when styling changes were made which included the moving of the sidelights to the front wing, a new front grill and a redesigned interior featuring a new dashboard with a centrally mounted speedometer.

In 1956 The Morris Minor 1000 was launched and this was fitted with the larger 948cc A series engine, which along with a new gearbox immediately transformed the performance of the car. Styling changes were again made which were most notably the fitting of a one-piece front windscreen and a larger wrap around rear window. During the next few years production of the Minor soared, and the one Millionth edition of the Minor rolled off the production line in 1960 and 349 lilac 2 door saloons were produced to mark the occasion.

The last major change to the Minor came in 1962 when it was fitted with the 1098cc version of the A series engine, with only small changes being made to the car during its last few years of production. The last convertible Minor was produced in 1969 with saloons ending their production in 1970.

The Minor ceased production in 1971 after nearly 1.7 million Minors had been sold.

Morris Minor in the galaxy of vehicles