New Season Checks

Only a few fool-hardy Morganisters have braved the full driving year, some of these checks will apply to you, but most will apply to the man that stored his Morgan, wrapped up in the shed, waiting for the winter storms to abate and the spring blossoms to bloom.

The first thing that you should check is your battery condition, even if it has been on a cycling charger over the winter. Depending on the position of your battery, whether it is behind the passenger seat, in front of the rear axle or behind the rear axle in front of the fuel tank as some 4-seater owners can testify. But if you are really lucky it is on top of the bulkhead under the bonnet.

  1. Check battery fluid levels, if applicable.
    1. Top up as required.
  2. Check battery terminals for corrosion and fuzz.
    1. Remove the connections from battery posts.
    2. With a soft wire brush, clean the posts.
    3. Clean the terminals.
    4. Reconnect the connectors and cover with white lithium grease.
  3. Find your Morgan’s earth straps, remove, clean the mounting points and reattach.
  4. When the battery is disconnected, check your starter motor main feed is in good condition.

While we are on electrics, as we all know LUCAS is the acronym for Loose Unsoldered Connections And Splices.

  1. Check your lights work, if necessary change the bulb and check the connectors;
    1. Brake lights.
    2. Indicators.
    3. Side lights.
    4. Headlights.
    5. Rear lights.

Note. At this point, it is probably worth removing your indicators, brake, fog lights etc so that you can clean the bulb terminals and checking for corrosions.

Fluid time
  1. Top up washer bottle.
  2. Check coolant hoses for cracks and hardening, replace if necessary.
  3. Top up coolant to the correct level.
  4. Check engine oil level (also check the floor for any indication of leaks) and top up to correct level.
Now for the brakes and wheels
  1. One wheel at a time, hold the wheel and the top and bottom then pull and push in opposite directions. If there is any movement this indicates that your wheel bearings are worn (see your mechanic)
  2. Remove wheels and check the following;
    1. Remove brake pads from front callipers, check for wear and/or grease contamination, replace if necessary.
    2. Remove rear brake drums, check your slave cylinder for leaks and if they are seized.
    3. Bleed the brakes, front and rear as moisture will have collected in the fluid over winter.
  3. Go over each tyre when they are off the Morgan, if you have any concerns after you have checked the following points, get new tyres. Remember tyres are the only bit actually in contact with the road, even if your brakes, engine etc work it means nothing if the tyres fail.
    1. Check the hardness of the rubber.
    2. Check for cracking, tears, cuts, punctures i.e. nails etc.
    3. Check the wear indicators.
    4. Check for lumps and bumps in the rubber, this will off balance the wheels.
    5. Check the age of the tyre anything older that 10 years should be replaced (gov.uk) the manufacture date of the tyres are a 4-digit code e.g. 1715 (this means 17th week in 2015)

After all of that, you should have a Morgan fit for the open road and you should be having a nice cup of tea and cake!