1975 mg b gt

[Highway_Star]

Bit of a long story this, but I've been given a 1975 MG B GT

Usually such 'gifts' turn out to be anything but a present, so I went along to look at this old car, fully expecting to do the bloke a favor by trailering it away to be weighed in.

No one was more surprised than me when the bone dry heated garage (the central heating boiler is in there) was opened, and the fitted breathable cover was pulled back, to reveal;

First thing I did was whack the sills. CLUNK! Same with the front wings, inner wings and bulkhead/windscreen surround. Turns out they were all repaired or replaced in 2002. The car was then driven up to Fife from Gloucester. The cylinder head let go on that trip, so a new uprated one was fitted, along with a stainless exhaust and a new radiator. Shortly after that the clutch slave cylinder let go, and the 76 year old owner parked it up in his nice garage and never got round to doing any more.
It comes with loads of paperwork and history, boxes and boxes of parts, actually I reckon everything necessary to put it back on the road. The interior has seen better days, but it's all sortable

I'm going to stash it in my mum's garage for the time being, ours has a leaking roof and the Range Rover in it. Mum's is bone dry and full of junk. She can't get her car in it anyway.

The MG B is not a car I knew a lot about, other than they rot, and have Lucarse electrics. It came with a load of books and manuals, so I'm learning steadily.

You'd think with our first baby due in February, the garage needing re roofed and the house in need of some all round TLC I'd have said no the the MG.... No chance!

 

[Angusdog]

You'd think with our first baby due in February, the garage needing re roofed and the house in need of some all round TLC I'd have said no the the MG.... No chance!

Ha ha - been there, still doing that. Annabelle's twelve next year... Actually my project's only been in the workshop for a year or so. It's when you have three kids that it impacts your workshop time, especially sport on Saturdays. So you have a couple of years up your sleeve.

But I still hate you for being given a great project like this. Keep updates coming in.

 

[ouchmyfinger]

I Hope you do the chrome bumber conversion, much nicer,
lovely shed to be given though.

 

[Highway_Star]

Extracted from the PO's nice dry garage, and trailered to another nice dry garage today. It used to live up a narrow cul-de-sac, so my trailer reversing skills were tested somewhat!

It's got no service brakes working due to the PO getting part way through replacing the pipes, thankfully the trailer has a hand winch.

 

[ajlelectronics]

Look at the valuable reference material you can get from that wonderful new Channel 5 program for it! You will learn how a sunroof can vanish and re-appear like magic, as well as a whole new interior in the blink of an eye. However, a word of warning... Don't jack it up, because it seems that the back axle is likely to fall off, sans prop, handbrake cables and suspension, although it can soon be welded back on. See how much I have learned? ;-)

 

[stuvy]

defo get the chrome bumpers for it, and a v8 for the engine bay you jammy sod

 

[Highway_Star]

I saw that Ch5 program, utter crepe!

Thankfully the only work carried out on this old girl previously was done by an MG enthusiast in Cheltenham. There's a pile of photographs in the folder of history the PO gave me with it.

I'll be taking stock of exactly what needs doing, what bits have come with it and what needs buying. At a first glance brake plumbing needs finished + brakes serviced. Clutch slave cylinder and plumbing need finishing. 4 tyres as it's been sat on these flat for a few years, carbs stripped and cleaned, fuel tank flushed to get the stale fuel out and a good service should see it MOTed.

The underside is solid, there's a few bits want cleaning and treating before rust gets a hold, I'll inject cavity wax into every box section I can find. The paint needs a good cut and polish, some areas need repainted, specifically the wing seams at the rear and bizzarely one patch about 3" wide onthe front of the NS sill.

The interior as not as bad as we though, couple of bits of stitching need sorting on the seat piping, and beyond that a good steam clean should see it OK. In the fullness of time it needs retrimmed.

The rubber bumpers are actually growing on me I agree the chrome ones are pretties, however the rubbers that are on it are in good nick and fit well. Plus they are as much a part of the car's history as the dealers sticker on the rear window. It's very very original throughout. Even a tool rool in the boot. Hence I've pretty well shelved a V8. Although I do happen to have a spare V8.

I plan to do a few modernisation mods, electronic ignition & telescopic dampers are first on the list. Would love disc brakes all round & parabolic springs on the back.

Quite fancy a fly off handbrake, having driven a Mini with one.

But before all that, there's baby #1 due in February, and to be driving an MG I need to start growing a full beard, as well as wearing a flat cap, cords and a sports jacket with leather elbow patches.

 

[Highway_Star]

Right, baby now 10 weeks old and one very chilled little guy

The weather is warmer, it's above 5ºC

So me, the wife and small fry hoofed it up to my mums for the afternoon. Wife and offspring sat and watched TV, played with noisy toys and generally relaxed. I ventured into the garage to have a better look at the MG B GT.

Plugs out, some oil left soaking down the pots (hasn't been run in 11 years!). Oil level check, I put a charged battery on and got a series of clunks from the solenoid However after a few clunks I was able to turn it over on the starter until the oil pressure gauge lifted to 60psi. Did that a few times and put the plugs back in. It won't turn over with the plugs in Although I think it's more to do with the starter/solenoid than anything else. It doesn't sound in the best of health.

So I turned my attention to the other bits. The PO had begun replacing the hydraulics, but had left the clutch pipe sitting in the footwell. The master cyclinders have been spewing DOT4 all over the pedail box and bulkhead, so at first glance i thought the paint was a mess. It was, but predictably it was hiding a problem







The bulkhead/pedal box is holed, so there's no chance of a quick and easy MOT.

So fellow forumeers, has anyone every repaired this area on a MG B?

It would appear at first glance that this area is available as a repair section, so maybe not too bad. However naturally the car is in my mums tight single garage, and all my gear is in my more spacious garage. It's got no brakes, clutch, MOT or tax so this will be logistically challenging....

 

[super noob]

pictures in the first few posts have gone ?

 

[Highway_Star]

 

[Springerdinger]

hi Highway
repair panels are available for this
area the tricky bit
is access
it will be worth checking the engine bay bulk head around the trumpets and splash panel
there's a good chance of corrosion there as well if it's gone around the pedals.
it sounds scary but if the splash panel and trumpet are replaced while they are off access to the pedal area is easier.
it does mean the wing would have to come off. it just depends on how much needs doing and how far you want to dig.
there are loads of pictures out there off the pedal area and splash panels etc.
I'm in the middle of doing mine so if you need any info just ask. IfI can answer them I will.
hope this helps.
that's a great looking car best of luck with it

 

[Highway_Star]

yeah, if the rest of it wasn't so good I wouldn't bother!


The sills and front wings were done by the PO, also the trumpets too. I really think the bulkhead being sprayed with DOT4 and left for 10 years is the culprit here mainly. I,all have a root around your photos too. Ta!