GREASING MORGAN FRONT SUSPENSIONS (cars from 2002 to 2006)  (updated
by Lorne Goldman, with help from Gary Kneisley and Peter Mulberry

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE PICKED THE RIGHT GREASING ARTICLE FOR YOUR MODEL YEAR ! YOUR CHOICES CAN BE FOUND HERE UNDER "FRONT SUSPENSION GREASING".  Be careful, Morgan does not indicate their transition periods so it is often impossible to be sure what you have until you have dissassembled.
  

In 2002 and until sometime in 2006, the Works moved from the earlier bronze bushes (1909-2002) to a new compound bush materiel called DEVOL made by a Scottish based company spcialising in advanced thermoplastic engineering and materiels. Devol has a number of properties that  enhanced longevity, easy installation and lighter maintainence. The test car performed wonderfully. However, the advance failed in production.

ADVANCE

Few comment on the oddity of the procedure of re-doing the front suspension. After all, many modern applications require sacrifical bushes. Only Morgan requires one to shape the bushes AFTER their installation in the axle.  

The reason is not a mystery and it silly. When the kingpin tube is welded to the stub axle it distorted by the heat. The distortion is not predictable, so each stub axle tube will be different. Rather than merely correcting the stub axle tube and standarizing it, the bushes, always made of a softer sacrifical material, are used to correct these anomalies, sort of like using a glob of plaster to correct a marble statue. It is a second-class solution that likely saved a few bob in 1909. The soft bushes are easier to cut than the steel. So the bushes are shaped in situ to both provide the correct clearance and patch the alignment of the warped passage of the stub axle tube. The end result is they simply provided a steady revenue source for dealers as the process must be repeated every time the bushes, a wear part, are replaced.

Bill Beck, the last fully trained Morgan developer and credible designer at the MMC, tried to resolve this just before he left the employ of the company in 2002. His goal was to have the front end to last longer lasting and be easy to rebuild. Firstly, he reamed the stub axles tubes to remove the anomalies and align the tubes to a standard. With standardized tubes, he was able to use "resultant fit" bushes. These are made so that, after installation, they automatically conform to a perfect fit for the kingpins. No reaming or precision alignment required and they can be pressed in by an amateur owner without special equipment. He then chose an advanced material for the bushes, DEVOL, though any bush material can be used. DEVOL bush cars not only lasted much longer than bronze bush cars, they cut the expertise and the time required for a rebuild a fraction of the bronze bushed cars.

Sadly, Bill Beck left in the early DEVOL days and, without him around, the idea failed in production. 

1. The Factory was still using mild steel kingpins at the outset of this period and, unlike the constantly used test car, owner cars went through long periods of idle storage. The kingpin surface would quickly  rust and grind away like a rasp at the DEVOL..at an even faster rate than they did so with bronze. Front end lifetime's of 3000 miles resulted When the MMC noticed this, they switched to stainless steel kingpins, though when consulted, GoMoG advised them that graded harchrome kingpins were made for this type of application and had been community tested for decades. As it happened, the cheaper stainless grade they chose for the kingpins wore faster than the plastic bushes!

2. The Factory would also produce the bushes from the DEVOL material inhouse. When eMog examined many sets, we found the bushes would vary significantly in both ID and OD. The MMC method to make the bushes was imprecise. They had never been required to make bushes to a common standard and they before as they older system left the precision part to owners and dealers. 

The result was that some/many DEVOL front ends would quickly seize. Some are seized to this day!  In 2006, the MMC abandonned DEVOL bushes nd returned to the earlier bronze, thus shortening the rebuild interval and making the rebuild complex once more. They no longer supply DEVOL bushes, though the material is readily available and successful in ALL other application. Instead Morgan returned to the warped stub axle tubes. Oversize bronze bushes, large enough to compensate for the larger ID of the DEVOL stub axle tubes, are available from the trade..notably Peter Mulberry at Mulfab for the 2500 Devol cars. 

In my case, I have one of the very first DEVOL Morgans (2002) and I have been using the bushes without an issue for 16 years.

GREASING DEVOL CARS

The main difference between greasing these cars and Morgans from 2000-2002 is in the interval period between greasing. In this case the Morgan Manual recommends 5000 miles and here they are right. The Devol cars require less greasing than the bronze bushed cars. Being a concientous sort, I recommend intervals of 3000 miles. In any event, when the bushes require grease, they announce that to you with squealing noises and groans. When you hear that, you know you are not greasing enough or properly and the lack of grease is starting to harm your bushes.

Greasing can be done with the car on the ground or on jack stands. A one hand "pistol" greaser can be used. (When I am home, I use a powerful electric grease gun equipped with a flex hose. The device effectively creates an extra hand which makes the job easier.) The grease nipple angle can make it hard to properly center the grease gun but the angle of the grease nipple can be changed to suit you. or alternatively, buy an angled nose for your grease gun. A slight angle will do.

1. Turn the steering wheel until you have the best angle at the nipple,

2. Pump until the grease flows out under the damper plate (which sits on the stub axle shelf.). (That takes a lot of pumps!) 

 3.  Turn the steering wheel and do the other side.

4. Clean away any excess with a rag and, if necessary, brake cleaning spray. If any grease gets on your adjacent brake rotors, the effect on braking and steering is dangerous. 

WATCHPOINT I Grease Nipples I have received many lately on the difficulties owners are having pumping grease into the stub axles in front. At first I thought it was the grease gun they chose, but I soon found the problem was even more basic. Many owners change the stub axle grease nipple for angled ones which allow an easier time fitting their grease gun onto it. Sadly, they do not notice that the threaded portion of the Morgan grease nipple is short..shorter than most available. When they fit the new nipples they often thread them until they are forced into the kingpin. This blocks the flow of grease despite the use of eye-popping pressure. The front gets little of its needed grease feed and the kingpin can be damaged. 

WATCHPOINT II Seized Kingpins Morgan kingpins can seize. This happens more often with;
1.  DEVOL cars
2.  Those left in long storage and little usage
3.  Those with improper front end installation..poorly aligned bushes or an improper clearance between bushes and kingpin.

When Morgans seize in the front, the suspension is effectively eliminated, severely prejudicing the comfort and handling of the car.  The front end should be tested for seizure each time it is greased. This is a simple procedure.  Place a trolley jack under the middle of the crossmember. Jack up the car while watching each stub axle assembly in turn. Do to springs compress? Or does the car simply rise without the springs compressing?

WATCHPOINT III Removing Seized Kingpins  HIGH RISK!!!
Basically, there is no easy answer. You have to revert to brutal tactics. Use the draw bar method. You can try dropping the bottom plate. The stub axle is seized on the pin, so now assuming it cannot fly apart, take off the bottom kingpin nut, that is the 1/2" unf in the middle, 3/4 socket size, then slacken off those draw bar nuts to release the rebound spring. Remove the rebound spring. Gives a bit of working space.
Strip all else out of the way, hub, brakes etc all off. Protect the wing above the assembly with stuff blankets and towels.

Use and all aspects of health and safety. Self preservation is your priority

Try to pry the two bottom plates apart with long screwdrivers.

You can try turning the kingpin from the top bolt to loosen it. Then try to pry the two bottom plates apart again.

If you still have no success, you can use a disc cutter and cut the bottom off the king pin just below the stub axle tube. Wrap a large sacrificial towel or such around the stub axle several times to catch it as it flies off. Then undo the top oiler bolt. That bolt is threaded in two inches. Understand that the kingpin is scrap and the old oiler or holding bolts are scrap. When the oiler bolt is wound out the stub axle will drop down with a bit of a loud clang. Hence wrapping well to catch it. Sounds worse than it is. Have not found any alternative method.

As you have the steering bearing kit with new springs, I would not advise cutting the existing main spring to take away the pre load, as that will jam, then break the cutting disc and throw the power tool across the workshop. I know that the hard way.