THE MARQUE OF FRIENDSHIP
March 2019 Volume 63 Number 03 £3.95
THE
CAR
CLUB
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ABINGDON-ON-THAMES FO U N D E D 193 0
MG’S BEST KEPT SECRET? ● HEBRIDEAN HOPSCOTCH ● TRACING THE ROOTS
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JULY 2016 SAFETY FAST! 3
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MARCH 2019 SAFETYFAST! 3
Inside this issue 7 8 12 14 61 62
63
Club Matters and Kimber House News News Products Postbag Race Torque MGs on Track
69 80 91 98
MGCC Speed Championship Centre Updates Register Updates Classifieds Looking Back
Features 16
MGLive! 2019 Final Call for Super Early Bird Tickets!!
21
MG’s Best Kept Secret? All you need to know and a buying guide to the MG6
28
Hebridean Hopscotch MG friends travel the length of the Outer Hebrides from Lewis in the north to Barra in the South
35
Tracing the Roots Jack Schneider traces the history of his J2 around England
40
Event Reports The Welsh Rallye and MG and Triumph Spares Day at Stoneleigh
65
Overseas News Report from the MGCC Toronto Road Warriors
28
Newsletters 44
SVW Newsletter SA Tickford EXX 100, Smiths Products on SVWs, Running Pins and King Boards and more
49
MGA Newsletter Lucas TPS1 Turn indicator switch and In period – what price the MGA?
55
MGF Newsletter Stoneleigh Past and Present, Chairman’s Charity Weekend and Speeding
55
The MG Car Club, Kimber House, 12 Cemetery Road, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 1AS Tel: 01235 555552 Fax: 01235 533755 E-mail: mgcc@mgcc.co.uk www.mgcc.co.uk. If visiting The MG Car Club using Sat Nav please use OX14 1AS
Membership Type
Direct Debit Rate
Standard Rate Online
Standard Rate Post
Single
£50
£55
£55
Joint
£54
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£59
Young Members 16-20
£15
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Young Members 21-24
£30
£30
£30
Published by: Hine Marketing, Hill Farm Studios, Wainlodes Lane, Bishops Norton Glos, GL2 9LN. Tel: 01452 730770
4 SAFETYFAST! MARCH 2019
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Welcome
MG6 1.8 turbo Magnette photographed at Shute Railway Station, Devon. Photo: Adam Sloman
65
@mgcarclub
FO U N D E D 193 0
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The official publication of The MG Car Club Incorporating ‘The M.G. Magazine’, ‘The Sports Car’ and ‘Brooklands Track and Air’, Safety Fast! Copyright MG Car Club 2019
With spring fast approaching, it’s time to finish off those winter jobs and get the MG ready for a great summer of motoring. This month the main Club stand will be at the Practical Classics Classic Car and Restoration Show at the NEC on March 22-24. It’s a show I really enjoy, that’s growing in popularity every year. As a member of the MGCC you can get Club discounted rates on the tickets by quoting C3623RS19 on the booking website www.necrestorationshow.com Whilst you’re in a ticket-booking mood, don’t forget that you can get early bird prices on the MGLive! tickets by using the booking form enclosed with this magazine, or by visiting www.mglive.co.uk There’s a substantial saving to be made, so it’s worth booking early. Don’t forget that our race calendar also kicks off in March, as the championships head to Silverstone to take on the National Circuit on March 31. You’ll be able to see everything from an MGA to our Trophy ZRs on the Circuit. More information and tickets are available from www. silverstone.co.uk/events/mg-car-club/ In this issue we’ve got a buyer guide to the MG6 – MG’s best-kept secret? Launched in 2011 there are some great reasonably priced MG6s to be had now. This guide will give you the lowdown on the history, spec, what to look out for and the traders available to help. We’ve also got a very active MG 635 Register to look after you if you decide to purchase one www.mgcc.co.uk/mg635-register/ It’s all looking very positive for MG as a global brand at the moment, with MG Motor India announcing that its headquarters will be in Gurugram, and house a flagship showroom along with various departments all ready for the launch of its first MG SUV, the MG Hector. In China the new MG6 New Energy seems to have been well received, as does the flagship SUV, the HS, with lots of photos of happy owners and good reviews spread around the Chinese press and social media sites. And in the UK there’s been lots of talk about the electric ZS being launched over here sometime during 2019. Until next month, drive safely. Andy Knott
MARCH 2019 SAFETYFAST! 5
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CHAIRMANS NOTES BY DAVE T YNAN
As I write this month’s chairman’s notes, I am very much in the middle of preparations for the first of our twiceyearly Council Meetings. The first one this year takes place at the MINI Plant at Cowley on Saturday March 16. MGCC Council are the governing body of the Club, they provide advice and support to the Board and members and vote on issues affecting all aspects of the Club’s administration. Each of the CRBs have the opportunity to send up to two delegates to the meeting (including the AGM) so if you have any issues you would like raised please contact your local Centre, Register (covering the vehicle you own) or Branch and find out who your representatives will be. Our great Club is run by Members for Members, so with that in mind I would like to remind all Centres, Registers and Branches of the membership drive we are running
this year, with each CRB competing to see who can sign up the most new members during the year. To help this along, the Douglas Mickel Fund have donated £251 to the CRB that wins! I have great pleasure in announcing that we have recruited two new members to the MG Car Club Board, bringing us up to nine Directors. The first is Keith Williams. Keith is a former chairman of the MGF Register, a post he held for five years, and has been a member since 2001. He was also a race Marshal working in both the pit lane and assembly area. Keith is also the driving force behind the MGF Register stand that you’ll see at a lot of events around the country. When he is not doing that he runs the regalia for the Register as well! Keith is now retired, after 41 years working as a Materials Engineer for an aerospace company, developing and supporting the manufacture of aircraft brakes.
The second is Paul Money. Paul is heavily involved with the MG ZR/ZS/ZT Register, holding both the Events and Registrar committee positions. Paul currently compiles and sends out their newsletter and is currently involved with the “Save Our Zeds” campaign with Jade at Kimber House and the rest of the Zed Register committee. I’m sure you join me in welcoming them both to the Board and I know they both are looking forward to meeting and chatting to as many of you as possible during the year. We have a thriving merchandise shop known as “Kimber Stores”. All the stock is available online, https:// shop.mgcc.co.uk, at Kimber House and at various events around the UK throughout the year. This is run by our Merchandise Co-ordinator, Ineke Sherman. Ineke is currently looking for a retail expert who may be able to assist (in her own words) with taking the shop to the “Next Level”. Are you able to help? If so please get in contact with either Ineke ineke@ mgcc.co.uk or our General Manager, Adam Sloman adam@mgcc.co.uk Until next month, Dave.
KIMBER HOUSE NEWS Wanderers visit Kimber House We were delighted have 30 members of the Wanderers group visit Kimber House on Wednesday March 20th. The Wanderers was set up by Gill Martin, of the Abingdon Works Centre, six years ago to cater for members who wanted to attend a mid-week event. Held on the third Wednesday of each month they visit places of interest followed by lunch at a local pub. A talk was given by Patrick Baddeley who had walked from the south of India to the north for charity. The walk was in memory of his daughter and the chosen charity is called Future Hope. Based in
www.mgcc.co.uk
Calcutta, it caters for the welfare of street children. The talk was followed by lunch at the Boundary House in Abingdon, the former residence of Cecil Kimber, founder of MG. If you are holding an event and would like to use Kimber House as a
venue please give the Club a call to arrange a date. The talk raised £155 towards the Future Hope charity.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 7
NEWS
David Heasman Sadly, Dave passed away on February 1, which was a huge shock to all the racing community that knew him. Dave has been a huge part of the MG Metro Cup and for the last few years in the MG Trophy Championship, he not only raced but was always around to help in the paddock. Pete Macwaters, Chairman MG Trophy Championship, said: “I have known Dave since he joined us in the MG Trophy Championship in 2016, having stepped up from the Metros. Dave was a great
Richard and his son Patrick
Richard Dick (1924-2019) Richard Dick, a long-time lover of automobiles in general and MGs in particular, sadly died on Thursday January 31 at the age of 94, just four months after his wife, Nicole, predeceased him. Richard was a pilot during the 2nd World War and his thoughts on that topic alone could fill a book. Although he had a passion for fast sports cars and saloons and especially for MGs, it was the Y Series of saloons and tourers that he had a soft spot for. In his own words he was “devoted” to the Y ever since he purchased new his first one, PKJ 570, in 1952. He used the car not only for business purposes but also pleasure through extensive rallying. Following retirement Richard decided to see if he could find his original YB (PKJ 570) but this proved to be a fruitless search. He eventually came across his current YB. Registered
8 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
supporter of class C and came 5th in that class in his first season. He was always one to speak up if he felt his classmates weren’t getting the recognition he thought they deserved, and was a prime mover in getting the class C awards a higher profile. He didn’t always have the best of luck with his racing but he never gave up trying. This culminated in him achieving his best-ever results in 2018 with a 3rd in class overall. On behalf of all of his Trophy colleagues our condolences go to his family and friends.”
USV 420 (originally LED 51) it was purchased in 1987 and was discovered after having been in storage for over 30 years; the car had been on the road for little more than four years. It was very original, with the interior untouched and having only 30,000 miles on the clock when Richard bought it. He then had it resprayed and rechromed. The final thoughts on Y ownership are captured in Richard’s words, which I am sure will resonate with many of those fortunate enough to have driven or owned such a model. This was in 2011. “USV 420 has been my pride and joy for the last 24 years and at the age of 87 pottering around our local lanes with the present (April) beautiful weather is the perfect way to enjoy fully my Y Type.” I am fortunate enough to have known Richard for over 25 years, a friendship that was forged when I, too, acquired a Y Type in 1992. Richard invited me to come with him to Abingdon and drive the YB. Richard’s YB is now safely looked after by his son Patrick who lives in Australia. Richard had a broad range of interests. These covered not only classic cars but also his involvement with the Vulcan Project, work at Coventry Air Museum and the Wellesbourne Flying Club. He had a great thrill in flying model aircraft, including indoor flying in his local village hall. Occasionally these flights came to grief and Colette, his daughter, recalled the rebuilding process that arose as a result! Like many of us, I will miss Richard and extend our sympathies to his four children Robert, Patrick, Colette and Annick and their families. Jerry Birkbeck
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NEWS
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Drive your MG to Base Camp, Mt Everest, in 2020 By way of introduction, Ross Letten and I and our wives have driven our classic MGs around the world – literally – and now wish to conquer Base Camp Mt Everest. Previous trips include Beijing to London, Cape to Cairo, Pan-American Highway and Trans-Canada. All have been self-organised to keep costs to sensible levels without stinting on the best accommodation available. Experience has shown us that the optimum size for such a group is between four and six classic MGs. Further, it is useful if the cars are sufficiently similar so that they share spare parts and can be prepared to be rugged. In other words, we are looking for between two and four MGA or MGB owners to join us. Could you be one of them? At this stage, we believe we will be the “First MGs to Conquer Mt Everest Base Camp”. The trip will start in Bangkok, Thailand, in April 2020 and will visit attractions, many being UNESCO World Heritage sites, in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, en route to meeting our personal guide in southern China. In China and Tibet, we will visit such sites as Dali (Chongcheng pagodas and Erhai Lake), Lijiang (UNESCO World Heritage site), Tiger Leaping Gorge (third deepest gorge on earth), Zuogong (pass of the 72 curves to Ranwu Lake at 4,000 metres), Nyintri (Switzerland of the East), Lhasa (Capital of Tibet), Tsedang (first palace built in Tibet) and then Everest Base Camp! For obvious reasons, it’s important to realise that this offer is open to MG Adventurers who can work on their own cars and who don’t mind chipping in to assist where needed. Affable types with well-prepared cars would be most welcome! Please get in touch with me by email or phone with your questions so that you can make an informed decision – this will definitely rank as “A Trip of a Lifetime!” Long may we shock the classic car world as to what these little MGs can do when prepared well and driven sensibly! Dave and Laurel murphgod@hotmail.com Phone +61 412 029 277
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MGC Register AGM Date: Friday May 3 2019. Venue: The Rose & Crown, Salisbury, SP2 8JQ. Time: 4.30pm Agenda 1. Apologies for absence 2. Approve 2018 Minutes 3. Matters arising from 2018 Minutes 4. Report from Chairman
Yorkshire Centre Facebook page Hello, my name is Josh Langstaff, I’m 19 and I drive a 2014 MG3. When I joined the MG Car Club in 2018 I went about joining as many Facebook groups to do with the Club as possible. Sadly, I couldn’t find a page or group to do with the Yorkshire Centre! So I thought, why not go to a committee meeting and pitch for one. On January 14 2019 I received permission to create a Facebook page and a Facebook group for the Yorkshire Centre. The Facebook page will be used as a place on social media to promote the MG Car Club and our Centre, whereas the Group will be for members only, to socialise, share photos, etc. As a younger member of the Club, I really hope that this can get more younger members involved and older members, too, for that matter. Both our Facebook page and group can be found by searching “MG Car Club Yorkshire Centre”, or by using this link: https://www.facebook.com/ MGCarClubYorkshireCentre/
Caledonian Centre AGM Venue: The Royal Hotel, Bridge of Allan, FK9 4HG Date: Tuesday April 2 2019. Time: Starting 7.30pm Tea/ Coffee and home baking will be available from 7.00pm Agenda 1. Apologies for absence 2. Approval of the 2018 AGM Minutes 3. Matters arising from previous AGM 4. Chairman’s Report 5. Secretary’s Report
6. Treasurer’s Report 7. Election of Office Bearers and Committee Members 8. Events for 2019 9. Motions for debate 10. Any other Competent Business 11. Date of next Annual General Meeting Nominations for Office Bearers, Committee Members and Motions for debate should be forwarded to the Secretary no later than Monday March 18 2019
MGF Register AGM Venue: Wroxall Abbey Hotel and Estate, Birmingham Road, Wroxall, CV35 7NN Date: Saturday, March 30 2019 Time: AGM 1.00pm Agenda 1. Apologies for absence. 2. Approval of minutes of the last AGM. 3. Matters arising from previous AGM minutes. 3. Chairman’s report. 4. Treasurer’s report and adoption of accounts. 5. Regalia. 6. Membership.
10 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
5. Report from Treasurer 6. Approval of Accounts 7. Report from Secretary 8. Election of Officials – Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Committee 9. Any Other Business For more information contact the Secretary Mike Haughton on mgc_mike@btinternet.com
7. Registrar. 8. Events. 9. International Events. 10. Archive. 11. Election of Committee, Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer. 12. Any other business. Nominations for election to the Committee and AOB Agenda Topics should be submitted to the Secretary by March 10 2019. All communications to Jane Parry, Secretary MGF Register. Email: secretary@ mgfregister.org Tel: 07841 648428
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PRODUCTS IF YOU HAVE A NEW PRODUCT THAT WOULD BE OF INTEREST TO OUR MEMBERS, AND WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT IN SAFET Y FAST! WHY NOT CONTACT COLIN GRANT AT COLINGRANT@MGCC.CO.UK
HAZARD WARING LIGHT KIT FROM 4 SIGHT VISIONARY LIGHTING
Few older cars had hazard warning lights fitted, but modern motoring conditions make them vital, as anyone who has had to make an unplanned stop on a busy road will know. The expression “sphincter tightening experience” comes to mind. Often the need for extra equipment on these cars is held back by the desire to keep the car looking original. Now we have a new kit which will work on any 12v car with either conventional or LED flasher bulbs. The discreet push button to activate the kit can be neatly integrated into most dashboards or centre consoles and, as it illuminates when the ignition is turned on, it is always easy and quick to locate in an emergency. For those who cannot bear the thought of making a hole in the dash, an under-dash mounting panel and alternative switch types are available. Contact Gil Keane on 0121 773 7000. Email: enquiries@bettercarlighting.co.uk Web: www.bettercarlighting.co.uk
NEW BODY KIT FROM RPS
RPS has developed a new body kit specifically for the MGF. Taking its inspiration from the MGF Super Sports, the new kit consists of a front bumper, side skirts, side vents and a rear diffuser. Each panel can be purchased separately or as a full kit. Prices are £190 for the front bumper, £135 for the pair of side skirts, £42 for the pair of side vents and £32 for the rear centre diffuser, which will include a template for the outer diffuser plates. For more information email enquiries@rps-ltd.info or call on 07900 431244.
MGZS SUV ARM REST WITH INTERGRATED USB PORTS FROM MG AND AMC PARTS
Our latest product for the MGZS SUV is the Centre Arm Rest with unique features: Forward and rear sliding mechanism to optimise individual positioning. Top of Arm Rest will rise for ultimate position comfort. USB ports in front and rear of arm rest. USB cable and dual connector supplied. Three internal lights operate when compartment lid is opened (AAA batteries supplied). Fold-away spring-loaded cup holder to avoid spillage. Small fold-away ashtray/ hidden compartment. Finished in quality black faux leather, with red stitch piping. Extremely easy fitting, including full fitting kit and Instructions. Price £79.95 with p&p £3.98. Contact MG and AMC Spares at The Smithy, High Street, Southwick, Hampshire, PO17 6EB. Tel: 02392 220222, email: enquiries@mgandamcparts.com
12 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
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MOTORSPORT EVENTS
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POSTBAG
February Looking Back Regarding the photo of myself and John Dignan on p98 of the February Safety Fast! here’s a little background. It was taken at Prescott in 1998, I believe, during a round of the then Moss International Speed Championship (MISC) run by Jim Garvey on behalf of NW Centre. The Abingdon Trophy (AT) was set up in 1997, I believe, and allowed for roadgoing MGFs to compete on the track and also in MISC Sprints and Hillclimbs so there were quite a few MGFs running at this event, but I was solely a MISC driver, not having entered the AT. Incidentally, Peter Browning used a shot of my F taken at MISC Wiscombe in 1997 as launch publicity for AT and I was told that at one time there was a poster Marque of Friendship version on the wall at Kimber House. My F was the Gloucester MG dealer’s (Wicliffe Motors) 1995 demonstrator that I acquired in early 1996. I persuaded
them to cover my entry fee for Prescott in return for providing advertising space. I’m not sure they got the publicity they were after – see the picture of the car on the back of a low-loader after a fault in the door lock security circuit prevented it from starting. The car was sadly later written off when rear ended by a white van – picture below. All the best, and as Harry Crutchley used to say – Happy MotorinG. John Thomas
MGB Race History?
Save our Zeds – Wanted ZR 160 I’d like to acquire a ZR 160, preferably to save one from being broken up for no good reason! I’m already in the process of doing the same with my B GT and the recent article stating how few ZRs are left made me consider getting one. So I’d like to rehome a ZR! Any condition considered, although I’d prefer one that’s relatively original externally, but have no problem with head gasket issues, minor rust, suspension needing work, MOT failures or general untidiness. The car will be repaired and returned to the road for me to use, not to be sold on or broken up. Please contact Maddy.tomkins@ hotmail.com
I am trying to get some information about the early history of an MG I own and would like to know if any of our members have any knowledge of it. The car is a 1969 MGB roadster in Snowberry, registration number TTC 353H and it was supplied new by Joseph Cockshoot Ltd, Manchester. It was extensively restored in 1986 by MG Engineering Services Ltd in Birkenhead. The photographic record file of the rebuild also shows a white MGB on a race track somewhere. I can only assume that the car was used for racing at some point prior to its restoration in 1986. I would much appreciate hearing from anyone who has any knowledge of this car prior to 1986, either as a road car or when racing. Mike Dowey mikedowey@talktalk.net
MG Postcard I thought you would like to see a postcard (another hobby of mine....) of Mill Hill, Apex Corner and an MG with the registration MG 1457. Checking online I can see the register plate is on a red 1272cc MG, registered in 1932. If the owner is with us, it would be interesting to hear the history of the vehicle and where it is now. Ron Kemp
Madeleine Tomkins
14 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
www.mgcc.co.uk
PUMP UP THE
TRUMPS HERE IS HOW TO PLAY MG CAR CLUB TOP TRUMPS:
MARCH OFFER 3 FOR 2 (£10) PLUS P&P
Since our successful launch in 2016 this game is still one of the Clubs bestsellers. The limited edition pack features 30 models of MG from throughout the ages. From the pre-war K3 Magnette, Sir Stirling Moss’ record breaking EX 181, and the idyllic MGB Roadster right the way through to the MG GS. With the extra Old number one.
Each card has one of the 30 best and most famous cars in MG’s history, with statistics such as: Engine size Brake horsepower 0-60 time Top speed Year of production There is also a little biography on each car in the corner of every card
Up to 30 people from the age of 3, can play. Shuffle and deal all the cards face down. Each player holds their cards, face up, in the palm of their hand. Players can only look at their top card. The player to the dealer’s left starts by reading out an item from their top card (e.g. BHP: 175). The other players then read out the same item. The one with the best or highest value wins and places all the top cards, including their own, to the bottom of the pile. It is then their turn again to choose an item from the next card. If two or more cards share the top value or no data is available for that particular subject, then all the cards are placed in the middle and the same player chooses again from the next card. The winner of the hand takes the cards in the middle as well. The person with all the cards at the end is the winner.
STOCK UP FOR BIRTHDAYS AND CHRISTMAS NOW! The Top Trumps packs are available from https://shop.mgcc.co.uk/ as well as from Kimber House in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 01235 849737
MG LIVE!
MGLIVE! UPDATE FINAL CALL FOR SUPER EARLY BIRD TICKETS!! This is your final chance to take advantage of our Super Early Bird ticket offer – just £16 Day or £27 Weekend ticket, representing up to £18 off buying a ticket on the gate! The Super Early Bird ticket offer will be available until 10.00am on Monday March 4, then prices will increase up to the Early Bird rates. Head over to www.mglive.co.uk to get your tickets at the best price!
ENTERTAINMENT GALORE AT THE VILL AGE GREEN
Saturday night’s After Hours Party will be headlined by The Guitar Legends! The Guitar Legends will provide the perfect Saturday night soundtrack with pop and rock hits through the decades. The popular Glo Car competition will also be back with Pro-Glo category for cars with permanent lights and Impro-Glo for cars decorated and illuminated on the day. The competition is open to all, and you can pop over to the Village Green on Saturday night to enter. MGLive! favourites, The Candy Girls, will also be back on Saturday and Sunday, bringing their vintage flavour to the event.
MGCC CALIFORNIA CUP AND AUTOSOLO COMPETITIONS The free-to-enter California Cup Autotest is being held in the heart of MG Live! on the Saturday, organised
16 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
by our Tyne-Tees Centre, with support from Hartlepool & District Motor Club. This is a Forward and Reverse Autotest, and Noel Lindford has once again designed a series of flowing tests, suitable for all MGs from 1924-current models; not too onerous for the car’s mechanicals, but a serious challenge for driver skill and pace, to navigate the tests and aim for a fast “clean” time. It is also suitable for first-time Autotesters…just get a team together!
www.mgcc.co.uk
THE MG CAR CLUB PRESENTS
15-16 JUNE 2019 SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT
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EARLY BIRD TICKETS ON SALE NOW! •CELEBRATING 95 YEARS OF MG WITH OVER 3000 MGs FROM THROUGH THE ERAS ON DISPLAY •ACTION-PACKED MG RACING ON TRACK INCLUDING GUEST RACES FROM PORSCHE CLUB GB, SUPER 2000 AND MINI! •OPEN PADDOCK & PITS - SEE THE CARS UP CLOSE •LIFESTYLE MARQUEE
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EARLY BIRD OFFER ENDS AT 10:00 TUESDAY 7TH MAY! * SAVING REFERS TO BUYING AN EARLY BIRD MEMBER WEEKEND TICKET AT £28 VERSUS BUYING A TICKET ON THE WEEKEND OF THE EVENT AT £45 ON THE GATE.
GET YOUR TICKETS AT WWW.MGLIVE.CO.UK
MG LIVE!
The California Cup Inter-Centre Challenge Trophy is awarded to the fastest team of three MGs representing their geographical Centre, with other awards and trophies for teams of three MGs from various MGCC Registers, so a chance to compete fairly against similar age-related cars. Also awards for fastest overall driver (FTD), fastest lady driver and fastest MGB. The free-to-enter AutoSOLO, held on the Sunday in the same arena, comprises a number of All-Forward test layouts, offering maximum driver engagement and FUN, with the option to have a navigator on board. This is not a team event so ideal for the individual to compete for awards, in a test of car control and pace to complete the courses in the quickest “clean” times. We hope to attract a good number of Triple-M cars, and it is open to all MGs and marque-related cars, so anything from a Mini to an MG3!
LIFEST YLE MARQUEE EXHIBITORS – IN THE SPOTLIGHT The Lifestyle Marquee is going to be full with a variety of different local artisan exhibitors selling everything
18 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
from jewellery to photography! Here are a few more of the fantastic exhibitors you can expect to see at MGLive!.
MOTORSPORT IN FOCUS The ever-popular photography company will be back once again to sell photos taken at the event – including those captured when the cars arrive at Silverstone. It’s a fantastic opportunity for you to get a professional picture of you and your MG! The Motorsport in Focus stand will be inside the Lifestyle Marquee – pop along to check out their selection of photos and purchase there and then on the day! Alternatively, if you miss them over the weekend, all photos can be purchased from their website after the event. www.motorsportinfocus.co.uk
FUDGE TO YOU
HECTOR & QUEEN Award-winning handmade furniture, organic sleepwear and animal felt slippers for children who love to play, sleep, play, repeat! Based in the heart of the Cotswolds, Hector & Queen specialise in the design and production of awardwinning products including children’s bedroom furniture, felted slippers, felted animals and sisal baskets. Other products sourced are unique to the market place, eco-friendly and, where possible, British made. www.hectorandqueen.co.uk
Lovely handmade pick and mix fudge. Samples of different flavours will be available throughout the day, including: Baileys, Cherry Bakewell, Banoffee, Chocolate Orange, Oreo and Cream Egg to name but a few!
www.mgcc.co.uk
Experience one of the World’s Great Road Journeys
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OTHER IRISH TOURS INCLUDE
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The cars are the stars …at the Classic
www.silverstoneclassic.com Our club’s exclusive Car Club Display Package code is:
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FEATURE
MG’s BEST KEPT SECRET? By Adam Sloman
The MG6 caused a stir when it arrived in the UK back in 2011 – praised for its impressive chassis dynamics, space and levels of kit, here’s your guide to picking up a second-hand MG6.
www.mgcc.co.uk
What is it? The MG6 arrived in the UK in 2011, becoming the first all-new car from MG since the marque became part of SAIC. Based heavily on the Chinese market Roewe 550 saloon, the 6 was designed by Anthony WilliamsKenny and engineered by the team in Birmingham and would be built at MG’s plant in Lingang, near Shanghai, with final assembly, initially, at Longbridge.
Available as a 5-door hatchback at launch, the 6 was offered in three variants, the base-spec ‘S’ costing £15,495, with the top-of-the-range TSE priced at £18,995. ‘S’ and ‘SE’ models were equipped with 17” “Twist” alloy wheels, with the TSE being fitted with 18” five-spoke wheels. MG would look to its history when the four-door saloon arrived in summer 2011. Christened the MG6 Magnette, the saloon offered extras not available on the hatch, such as an exclusive ‘Champagne Gold’ paint and a sunroof. Pitched as
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 21
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www.mgcc.co.uk
FEATURE
a sports saloon, a 6 Magnette with all the options ticked, would command a £1,000 premium over the five-door, costing £19,995. To differentiate it from the saloon, the fastback 6 would be dubbed the MG6 GT. Some Magnette models received a tailgate badge showing the name, though no GT would ever be badged as that from the factory. Both models would initially be restricted to a single powertrain option in the shape of a 1.8 turbo – essentially a revised K-series – developing 158bhp and 159ft lb of torque. An automatic ‘box would never arrive on the UK market, but an additional engine, in the form of a 1.9 turbo diesel, would arrive at the end of 2012. Mated to a six-speed ‘box, the MG6 DTi would offer 148bhp and 258ft lbs of torque. Inside, the MG6 GT and Magnette are largely identical. Top-spec models
www.mgcc.co.uk
Model Specs MG6 Petrol 1796cc, 4 cylinder. 157bhp, 159ft lb torque 0-60 8.4 seconds 37mpg MG6 Diesel 1849cc, 4 cylinder 148bhp, 258ft lb torque 0-60 8.9 seconds 57mpg feature a seven-inch screen that displays the radio station or track info as well as the satnav and reversing camera. ‘S’ models feature a simpler dot-matrix display showing radio station and track information. Leather trim was available on the TSE model, with heated seats standard SE and TSE models also enjoy dual-zone climate control. The cabin of the 6 is quite a dark place to be, with a lot of black and grey plastic.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 23
The most infamous item is the 6’s handbrake. It does not feature a traditional button release and has developed a reputation over the years for eating thumbs – once you’re accustomed to it (or you’ve lost your thumb!) it is easy to use. The diesel would start at £16,995, topping out at a fiver under £20,000 for the hatchback TSE. A revised 6 would make it to the UK in 2015, bidding farewell to its petrol engine, ending the evolution of the K-series engine after almost 28 years. Improvements included new front and rear bumpers, head and tail lamps and a greatly revised interior that now featured an electronic parking brake and DAB radio with Bluetooth phone and media streaming. The choice of exterior colours was greatly simplified with the Mk2 as Burnt Orange, Union Blue and Platinum Silver were all dropped,
24 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
while the Magnette saloon was withdrawn completely. Both 17” and 18” wheel options would be deleted, with a new 16” item becoming standard across all models. The rear wiper was also deleted from the car. The 6 would also mark MG’s return to the top-flight of British motorsport, as MG Motor partnered with 888 Race Engineering to launch a works-backed team in 2012. Driven by drivers such as Jason Plato, Ash Sutton, Andrew Jordan, Josh Cook and former MG Trophy racer Jack Goff, the MG6 would scoop the Constructor’s Championship in 2014, with Jason Plato coming closest to winning the Championship, finishing third in 2012 and 2013. Two special edition MG6s would be sold during the car’s lifetime, the MG6 90th in 2014, and the MG6 BTCC Edition in 2012. Both are considered incredibly rare, with a handful of each thought to have been sold.
The 6 won the What Car? 2012 Security Award, while in 2014 it won the Auto Express Driver Power Survey’s Best Handling Award, and came sixth overall in the ‘Best Car to Own’ category. Two years later it collected three further awards, the MG6 won two more Auto Express Drive Power awards, Best Family Car Bronze Winner, and Road Handling: Silver Winner. It would also be recognised by The Caravan Club at its ‘Tow Car of the Year’, taking a class win in the under £17,500 category. MG Motor would withdraw the MG6 from sale in the UK in early 2016. Buying One Perhaps the biggest barrier to MG6 ownership is finding one. During its five-year lifespan, it’s fair to say it did not live up to MG’s expectations, suffering from poor marketing and a lack of exposure to the public. A search of Auto Trader’s website shows less
www.mgcc.co.uk
than 40 available, with 22 of those being petrol. Those low sales figures meant that the 6 was hit hard by depreciation, which for second-hand buyers means the car represents a terrific used car proposition. Prices for early cars start as low as £2,500, while a last-of-the-line 2016 MG6 diesel tends to retail for up to £89,000, for sub-30,000 mile cars. Look out for… Overall, MG6s tend to wear the mileage well, with one or two exceptions. Paint is particularly thin, however, so expect a decent selection of stone chips across the car’s nose. Interior plastics on early cars can wear, particularly on high-mileage examples, and the leather trim can look tired on older cars.
www.mgcc.co.uk
Early 6s can suffer from a selection of electrical gremlins – gremlins that will throw up error warning lights, such as “Traction Control Fail” or “Stability Control Fail” – these are usually traceable to a faulty earth and can normally be resolved. CD players on early cars are renowned for failing to read discs – a problem largely negated if you opt for the Mk2 model with its ability to stream music via Bluetooth. Worries about head gasket failure are all but a thing of the past with the 6 – the revised engine having benefited from significant re-engineering to cure the one blight to the otherwiseexcellent K Series engine. The petrol 6 is fitted with a coolant warning sensor and these can sometimes stick, giving a false low-coolant warning. Cambelts on the petrol should be changed every five years, or 75,000 miles, whichever comes first. If it’s a diesel you’re viewing, listen for a rattle from cold – this could indicate a faulty timing chain tensioner, something MG will tackle under warranty. Mechanical parts availability for the petrol 6 is good, thanks to
its similarity to the K Series, while some parts for the diesel are more challenging to source, down to the limited production run of the vehicle. Other items such as brake discs and pads share an ancestry with the MG ZT and Rover 75, so supply is plentiful. Most panels are available through MG, or independent specialists such as College Motors, or Martin Smith. Owning one If you put your cash down on a 6, you’re joining something of an exclusive club. Less than 2,000 are currently registered in the UK, so it’s rare to see another ‘in the wild’ – that said, the MG 635 Register do a fantastic job supporting the car, and you’ll be warmly welcomed by the Register. It stands out in the crowd, but be prepared to explain to non-MG fans exactly what your car is! Despite being a relatively recent MG, the 6 is decidedly old-school on the road – UK models had the chassis dynamics expertly tuned by the engineers at Longbridge, meaning
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 25
FEATURE
it’s a genuinely engaging car to drive and will not fail to bring a smile to your face down a winding B-road. The gearshift is good, while the steering is responsive and accurate, but the star of the show is the chassis. It’s firm, but never to the point of
being jarring. Anyone with fond memories of the original ZS or ZT will be immediately at home behind the wheel of a 6. It also does an excellent job as a motorway car, with most models boasting cruise control. The additional
fuel consumption benefits of the diesel are underlined further here. Find a stretch of motorway free of average speed cameras, roadworks or congestion and the 6 will do an admirable job of hustling you from A to B in quick, quiet comfort.
MEMBER’S VIEW
I had been very impressed on the Devon lanes on the test drive, with the handling being as precise as I had expected. The chassis designers and MG Enthusiasts at SMTC had really done a great job in making sure that this latest MG was true to the heritage. With a change in job, I was doing more mileage, which tied in with the MG6 DTi being launched. I placed an order with the Sales centre in Longbridge for one of the last MG6s off the production line there. The diesel certainly didn’t disappoint, in fact I do prefer it to the petrol model. It has very good lowdown torque and pulls like a train. The handling characteristics, despite being a heavier vehicle, are just as good and the steering, albeit a little lighter than the petrol model, is very precise. It is an extremely comfortable cruiser on the motorway as well as good fun in the twisty A and B roads. It returns much the same in MPG as my old diesel ZT-T, about 45. If you’re really careful 50-plus is possible,
but to be honest I rather enjoy the sporty saloon car mode too much. The MG6 really is an unsung hero and went very much under the radar from launch to completion of production. I’m proud to drive one and can honestly say it’s a truly great valuefor-money package.
Steve Haines – Chair of the 635 Register and MG6 Owner I have owned an MG6 since 2011 when I purchased a petrol TSE GT model from my local dealer at the time, Seddons in Budleigh Salterton. I was an MG ZT-T diesel owner at the time and liked the look of the new MG6 and given that my ZT-T was getting a bit old, it was time to go for a new GT model. I was drawn to some really attractive elements of the MG6 package, namely the very competitive price, its sporty handling characteristics, excellent high levels of trim, a plethora of gadgets including reversing camera, heated seats, cruise control and leather. Register Info 635 Register www.mgcc.co.uk / mg635-register www.facebook.com/ groups/MG635Register
26 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
www.mgcc.co.uk
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FEATURE
O
n some long-haul MG trips one does little more than kick the tyres and check the fluids before the start and then hardly unwrap the toolkit from start to finish. And then there is the other sort, and this trip definitely fell into the latter category! I had long planned to drive the length of the Outer Hebrides from Lewis in the north to Barra in the south and, to my slight surprise, the first four MGA owners that I invited to accompany me in mine all jumped
at the chance. Unfortunately, one of the expected MGAs proved less than enthusiastic so, in the event, it was four MGAs and an MGF that actually rendezvoused in Yorkshire on our way to Scotland. Could anything else go wrong? Well, quite a lot actually. We hadn’t even reached Scotland when one of the MGAs started misfiring at speed. It was one of those nasty problems to diagnose when the car is fine most of the time, especially when stationary and being examined. As the car had recently been serviced
by a well-known MG specialist, we started by progressively swapping non-service items on a trial basis, all the way to Stirling. The distributor cap and HT leads, coil and fuel pump were successively changed by the roadside to no avail. We also fitted a new set of sparking plugs as those in the car were clearly past their best and one had almost no gap at all. However, despite the new fuel pump being fitted, there was still hardly a gush of fuel at the carburettors and the only thing between the new pump and the carbs apart from the fuel line was a
HEBRIDEAN HOPSCOTCH By Roger Martin
MGAs at Bayble Bay
28 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
www.mgcc.co.uk
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FEATURE
MGA Crews at Oban finish
disposable fuel filter. Yes, the fuel filter obviously hadn’t been changed recently and was choked with sediment, so simply bypassing it at last put the car to rights. Next stop Ullapool and the ferry to Stornoway and hopefully a troublefree rest of trip. Wrong. Having disembarked the ferry at Stornoway we first drove the Eye Peninsula and the north-east coast to Tolsta Head to see ‘the road and bridge to nowhere’ but whilst returning to our hotel my MGA gave a good impression of being steampowered, slightly misfiring all the way. Yes, the head gasket had gone. Luckily I had taken a spare so, with the aid of a torque wrench purchased locally, we changed it in the hotel car park the following morning and also replaced a squeaking fan-belt on another of the MGAs for good measure. Normally I would attempt a fairly short road test after such a job but our planned itinerary for the day included the Butt of Lewis which I was determined not to miss, so it was a do-or-die c.60 mile baptism of fire for the new head gasket. Fortunately all went well, so job almost done. Almost, because of course the cylinder head would need to be retorqued. This we did at our next hotel in Tarbert after the following day’s sightseeing, which included the preserved Gearrannan ‘blackhouse’ village with its working Harris tweed loom, the impressive standing stones
30 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
Ferry to Berneray. Photo: Irene Mumby
Priviledged parking on ferry to Berneray
www.mgcc.co.uk
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FEATURE
Martin MGA Steamer. Photo: Colyn Firth
at Callanish and the Lewis chessman statue at Uig where the originals were discovered. I should say at this point that although the Outer Hebrides are famed for poor weather our classic car maintenance and sightseeing thus far had been blessed with dry and mostly sunny weather. As we took the ferry from Harris to Berneray and its causeway to North Uist, after a brief visit to Luskentyre Beach and sampling the haddock soup from the Leverburgh ‘Butty Bus’, the blue skies
still seemed to bode well. Alas, it was not to be and for the following day and a half the weather was resolutely wet. This didn’t stop our sightseeing but probably the best part of that dreary day was the cosy lunch at the Westford Inn pub at Claddach Kirkibost. There we were notified that the local police had a made a special trip to view our MGs in the pub car park and one of them had thoughtfully asked the landlady to tell us that one of our MGAs had its lights left on.
However, our luck with the weather returned the following afternoon as we continued south across further causeways through Benbecula and on to our South Uist hotel at Pollachar Point. There we enjoyed an idyllic evening watching the sun set over the standing stone with a calm Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop. Only some wayward windscreen wiper arms necessitated toolkit access and some improvisation that evening. The next day we drove yet another causeway to Eriskay and caught the ferry from there to Barra. There we enjoyed lunch at the airport and witnessed the little Twin Otter aircraft land and take off again, the only scheduled flight in the world to operate from a beach. The next day was our last in the Outer Hebrides, but before we caught the stopping ferry to Oban via Coll and Tiree we traversed our last Hebridean causeway, to Vatersay for a stroll along the idyllic beach at Vatersay Bay.
Atlantic view from Eriskay
32 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
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Martin MGA at Pollachar Point
Causeway to Eriskay
Oban was originally planned to be the end of our trip but, being so close, we couldn’t miss the chance to visit Mull and Iona so we took an extra day to take in these famous locations. Still under blue skies, we took the ferry to Mull and drove what was almost a ‘rat-run’ of tourist cars and coaches along the mostly single-track road from
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the Craignure port to the passenger ferry across to Iona and its historic monastery. Returning via the much less crowded and far more scenic route along Loch Na Keal proved a fitting end to a memorable and probably unrepeatable trip. I say unrepeatable as during the twelve days we were in Scotland we had just one and a half
Trumpan Head lighthouse on Eye Peninsula
days of rain, and as one of the locals in Oban said: “Make the most of it, it isn’t normally like this here!” Oh, yes. All the MGs did make it safely home, and so they should have, after so many of our spares and tools had been utilised along the way.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 33
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My J2, Chassis number J2023; UK reg. LV1162
TRACING THE ROOTS
K
athryn and I purchased J2023 in 2002. At that time, a minor racing history of the car was rumoured to have existed. However there was nothing known to be documented. As with the majority of 1929-1936 MG Midgets, Magnas and Magnettes, an original factory file is stored at the MGCC Kimber House headquarters in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. The bulk of these records were
By Jack Schneider
due to be destroyed as the MG factory works was closed and dismantled in the early 1980s. Mike Allison, an employee of the MG works and stalwart member of the MGCC and Triple-M Register, rescued the records, and stored them until they could be safely donated to the MGCC. These records have been made available to us as MG MMM owners. I have accessed, and have copies of, that file for J2023. Interesting documents are found within, and content varies from car to car. One can see original purchase documents, purchaser details, build sheets and letters written between the factory works and car owners. Communication letters continue after sale, detailing owner experiences, works repairs, etc. Another Triple M stalwart was Mike Hawke, a 50+-year owner and racer
of MG J Types. During his years, he did exhaustive research on the MG J Type. He attempted to identify known history for any and all J Types that had been raced throughout their existence. In 2007, he published his first book, “75 Years of the J2 MG�. Records of J2023 appearing in this book are of the car and original owner, Mr E A Eastwood, racing at Donington Park on May 13 1933. This was the second ever motorcar race event held at Donington. The event was the Second Race Meeting of the Derby & District Motor Club (D. & D. M. C.) first race of the day. race photo over the page, J2023 is circled. It is the number 39 car. Visible is a portion of UK registration number LV 1162. In the book there are also details and results of Mr Eastwood racing the J2 at the Southport Beach Races.
original chassis file for J2023 The guarantee card from the
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MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 35
Donington May 1933
Extract from Mike Hawke’s brilliant book, “75
Years of J2”
The District Derby Motor Club Badge
The Austin, car number 52 in the Donington race, did not finish. It flipped over on a turn on the back part of the circuit. According to my information, both driver and rider were not seriously injured. Mike Hawke published a follow-up volume to the first book, “How They Ran”. Listed in this book are further race records for the Donington event and information and statistics for the Southport British Beach Racing Club races that Mr Eastwood and J2023 participated in. Motorsport magazine in the UK is a monthly publication. In it, at the time, race event reports and statistics appeared. I have obtained both actual magazine articles and a compilation
t Austin flipping at the Donington race circui
36 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
The insert on J2023 from the “How They Ran” book
book of the magazine report articles. Included in these is the report of the May 13 1933 D. & D.M.C. club race event. In July and August 2018, assistance was offered to my fact-finding efforts. Brian Kelly, a fellow North American MMM Register member (NAMMMR), along with a friend of his in the UK found a few Southport Visiter newspaper articles reporting the Southport races and identifying J2023 and owner/driver, Mr E A
Eastwood, participating during July and September 1933. In September 2018, I travelled to England with three fellow NAMMMR members and one modern MG friend to attend the Beaulieu International Autojumble and The Goodwood Revival. At Beaulieu, I located a correct period Royal Automobile Club (RAC) mascot/badge, as can be seen on the radiator of J2023 in the Donington May 13 1933 race photo. Issuance of this King George V, RAC badge was
The article on the 1933 club race event
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FEATURE
The front door of Peter and Margaret’s house , still bearing the Breydon name The 1933 newspaper article showing J202 3 and driver, Mr E A Eastwood
1930-1953. Following these events we travelled north towards Liverpool, Birkenhead, Southport and Donington. During previous trips to England I had visited MGCC in Abingdon, and during one of those visits I had acquired the MGCC factory file for J2023 which gave the home location of the original owner, Mr E A Eastwood of Birkenhead. The address only included the house and street names. So began a scavenger hunt to try to find the house. Having the old address, we went to a local post office in Birkenhead to ask assistance in locating that address. Houses typically no longer carried names and were now numbered. Postal employees directed me to the nearest potential street crossroad and said that we should simply look up and down the street in hopes of finding the house. It didn’t take long. Some The RAC mascot/badge
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houses still carry plaques with the previous names, but also their current numbers. The current homeowner, Peter, happened to be in his front drive heading out for a morning stroll. I introduced myself and explained the reason I had just appeared on his doorstep. I was welcomed and invited to look around to take photos if I liked. He mentioned his wife Margaret was in the back garden if I would like to also look around the back. I met her at the back gate and was invited through. This was only after a younger woman, later found to be the couple’s housekeeper, introduced my presence. I heard: “There’s an American out there!” I was invited “through” and introduced myself. Between Peter and Margaret and our group, we spent a good hour and a half sharing all sorts of stories. We were even treated to coffee and biscuits in Peter and Margaret’s front room. Next, our group made its way a short distance to Southport. We located the Southport Visitor Bureau, also library and museum. We inquired to get information and the location of the former racing location. A gentleman there pulled out an area
map and pointed to the location on the beach area where racing formerly occurred. Driving to the identified beach area, we looked over the sea wall and I immediately identified the actual race area. I have found images and videos online of old races at Southport and the actual area was easily recognisable. Since returning home after this trip, I was lucky enough to find and acquire a period correct Southport British Beach Racing Club mascot/ badge. These are extremely rare pieces. I have only ever seen photographs of two others from private collections and automobilia auction results. This is the other badge visible on the grille of J2023, during the May 13 1933 Donington race. I continue the search, in an attempt to locate additional Southport race reports. A few blanks in the records The Southport British Beach Racing Club mascot/badgeWe
A photo of a similar period race on the Southport beach MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 37
Period photo of the Donington start/finish straight
still exist to be filled. Next we visited Donington Park Race Circuit, near Derby. At the Circuit museum, I spoke with a couple of representatives. I also brought along the 1933 race photo to talk about. It was mentioned to me that there is a local gentleman writing a book on the history of the Donington track. I was given his contact information and urged to contact him, as he might provide additional information pertaining to my J2 history and that of the Derby and District
Motor Club. After touring the museum, we ventured to the track area. It was a vehicle test day which included a variety of different, late model performance cars. We made our way through the paddock area to the grandstand. From the grandstand adjacent to the Start/ Finish line, I oriented myself to where the 1933 race photo was taken. The grandstand is on the inside of the track and the 1933 photo was taken just opposite, outside the track, from where I was situated. The curve approaching
Moss Safety Fast April.qxp_Layout 1 16/04/2018 09:19 Page 1
the Start/Finish is the same, seen from both vantages. I have since contacted the gentleman writing the Donington history book, currently in the final steps of publishing. He and I will be in touch again very soon. He did mention the 1933 race photo is a two-page spread in the book. This was an amazing trip. I couldn’t have imagined the discoveries made about the history of the J2 that, at the time of purchase, was only rumoured to have had some history… Fast forward to September 2019. The Schneiders and Minnesota MGT Register friends, the Belongias, will spend two weeks on holiday in England. We have been cordially invited to Peter and Margaret’s home in Birkenhead for Afternoon Tea. It is our MGs that bring us all together. It is the people that keep us together!
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THE WELSH RALLYE
Mike and Pam Baker in their MG GS
T
he MG Welsh (Touring) Rallye was started in May 1997 by then Centre Chairman, Rick Howson, as a non-competitive variant of the proper rallies that the Centre used to run many moons ago in the 50s and 60s. Hence the Rallye spelling to differentiate it as non-competitive, and then the addition of ‘Touring’ to indicate that it was held under an MSA Touring Assembly Certificate of Exemption. Its main aim was to give drivers who like to use their Classic Cars a decent run on roads that would not
Top down MGC weather for John and Marie Burton
40 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
The Trophy Yellow Mk1 MG ZR of Neil and Denise Davis
By Brian Osborn Photos by Martin Price usually be visited on one’s own and be of a length to be interesting and challenging rather than just a tootle round the block. Now in its 23rd year, the MG Car Club Midland Centre’s Welsh (Touring) Rallye continues to be popular and takes the participants to some hidden gems of Wales that folk might not normally venture to. Last year’s event was blessed with good weather. The weekend was beautiful for topless motoring – bright, sunny and warm. This year the date for the Rallye is May 17-19. If you do want to go, here’s what to expect based on
last year’s Rallye which was centred on the Marine Hotel in Aberystwyth. The Saturday ‘suggested’ route took cars south east from Aberystwyth, following the Ystwyth and Teifi valleys for a scenic drive to Tregaron and then along the very scenic mountain road with fantastic views of the lake, deep valleys and mountains to and around Llyn Brianne Reservoir to a coffee stop at the riverside Towy Bridge pub, near Rhandirmwyn. The next stage then headed south west past the Roman Gold Mines at Dolaucothi and further south over
Stunning Welsh scenery encountered on the Rallye
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EVENT
some wild moorland to Newcastle Emlyn, on its way to a lunch stop at another riverside pub, The Nag’s Head in Abercych. After time to digest and relax, it was onwards south and up the enchanted Cych Valley before turning west into the Pembrokeshire National Park to and over the Preseli Hills. After following the Gwaun Valley to the famous Dyffryn Arms pub at Pontfaen, the route then swung north to negotiate the switchbacks over Carningli (Mount of Angels). Spectacular coastal views were enjoyed on the decent into Newport. The coast was then followed as closely as possible via Ceibwr Bay, Poppit Sands, and the Teifi Estuary to Cardigan with its 12th century ruined castle, then alongside the northern shore to a great tea stop at Cardigan Golf Club, with fantastic sea views. The route back to Aberystwyth was via Aberporth, then north along
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the coast road to head inland a bit at Aberaeron. This route took in some pretty Welsh towns and villages on the way back to the main road and a drive along the Prom into Aberystwyth and back to the hotel, where it was refuelling time for most in the bar. Saturday evening saw many of the guests adopt the Fancy Dress theme for the year – ‘Pirates of the Ceredigion’ (note the play on words there!) – for the Gala Dinner, with a good local Welsh group providing the music. Sunday morning’s excursion was on the Vale of Rheidol narrow gauge steam railway, which was quite stunning, with beautiful weather and precipitous drops off the side of the track up to Devil’s Bridge and back. We returned to the hotel for a good Sunday lunch, where several trophies were awarded. Then most guests made their way east and home, although many opted to stay
over until Monday and make the most of the good weather. As mentioned, the next event is scheduled to be held over the weekend of May 17-19 2019 and is based in Llangollen, with a Saturday run to north west Wales and Snowdonia and back. Entries are coming in fast, but at the time of writing there are still places available. For more details of the weekend package and an entry form please contact rogerking43@gmail. com or phone 0121 476 6649.
MG TD enjoying the quiet Welsh roads during the 2018 Welsh Rallye
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 41
MG AND TRIUMPH SPARES DAY
T
AT STONELEIGH
he show was held on a very wet and windy Sunday February 10th, so we all appreciated that the show was undercover. Although the Main Club did not attend, we were well supported with six Registers and one Branch in attendance. These included the Midget, B, T, Triple M, Zed and F Registers together with MGs on Track. There were over 500 cars on display, together with dozens of trade stands to view. The Club’s ZR van attracted much attention on the Zed Register’s stand with the marathon B doing the same for the MGB Register. A beautiful M Type took pride of place on the
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Triple M stand to mark the model’s 90th birthday. Geoff Clark’s beautifully prepared Midget, which recently featured in Safety Fast!, drew lots praise on the Midget Register stand. Of particular interest was the body kit available for the MGF from RPS who were showing a fully kitted car for the first time. Its inspiration came from the MGF Super Sport and the kits consist of bumpers, side skirts, vents, etc. Each panel can be bought separately or as a complete kit. Attendance was good, up on last year, and marked this as a premier annual event for both Triumph and MG enthusiasts alike.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 43
SVW NEWSLET TER Paul Campbell svw.safety.fast@gmail.com www.svwregister.co.uk
WELCOME TO THE SVW NEWSLETTER I always look forward to having more space as there always seems to be plenty to write about. This month we report on an interesting SA Tickford, update you on our Facebook group and regalia sales, talk about Smiths componentry
on our cars and I report on some work currently being undertaking on my VA Tourer. Please also see the flyer for the June SVW event in Holland.
SA TICKFORD EXX 100 Mike Holifield, a collector of MMM MGs, wrote to me recently with information about his late brother Barrie’s SA Tickford, the registration number of which was EXX 100. Barrie Holifield’s children are interested to know what has happened to this car that they remember fondly. I passed this to our Registrar, Gary Perry, who suggested the SA may have been in the USA for some years. There was, however, some confusion as EXX 100 is noted against two SA Tickfords in the database, the last known location of the other being in Hampshire, UK.
Mike went on to send me an old photo which you can see here. Subsequently, he found the old (continuation) log book for EXX 100 which shows its first registration on May 13 1938 and that Barrie owned it from February 1964 when living in Wheatley, Oxfordshire. The SA moved with him to St Neots, Huntingdonshire, and subsequently back to the Wheatley address. The stamps show that he was still taxing it in July 1966. The SA was black from new. The engine number in the log book ties it to the Hampshire car, although the chassis number WO
3595 is a mystery as this is not the normal configuration, nor the range. The current owner is not a member of The SVW Register, so if anyone can shed light on its current whereabouts we could complete the circle. I’m sure the current owner would love to see old photos of the SA and the original log book, and of course the Holifield family would love to know more about the car now. Yet another good reason to stay in touch with the SVW Register as we find out more and more about the surviving cars.
Holifield – SA Tickford EXX 100. Photo: Holifield Family
44 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
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SVW NEWSLET TER
SMITHS PRODUCTS ON SVWs Our long-standing member John Bates, previous Chairman and long-term committee member of the SVW Register, is often researching more about the VA Tourer he’s owned since 1963. John was intrigued about the continental influence of our Jaeger dashboard instruments, in particular the use of ‘M’ for ‘thousand’ on the rev counters. John is also in the Morris Register and has found that ‘M’ was used extensively in the 1930s in examples such as the numbers of each document printed by the Morris Oxford Press at Cowley. We’re now more used to seeing ‘k’ in this role. The water temperature gauge is also in Centigrade rather than Fahrenheit, whereas the speedometer is, of course, in miles and the oil pressure gauge in pounds per square inch. I recall that Smiths Industries owned at least part of Jaeger when our cars were produced. Looking at this more in depth, S. Smith & Sons was started by Samuel Smith in
1851 in SE London before moving to The Strand in 1872. They competed with Lucas on a range of products but established a trading deal with Lucas in the 1930s, whereby the two would not compete in certain areas and Lucas took on part of Smiths non-instrumentation assets. Consequently, even though most of the instrumentation on a British car’s dashboard would typically be Smiths/Jaeger, the ammeter would more often than not be a Lucas instrument. The KLG (Kenelm Lee Guinness) distribution rights had been purchased by Smiths as early as 1919 and they bought the company in 1927. In the same year, Smiths bought 75% of Ed. Jaeger (London) Ltd, which became the British Jaeger Instrument Company in 1932. Jaeger was originally founded in Paris by the watchmaker Edmond Jaeger in 1880. The Jackall hydraulic jacking system was manufactured from 1935 by Smiths Jacking Systems and of course was adopted as an option on the SVW cars.
REGISTER NEWS By the end of January we had 115 members in our Facebook group. It’s really become a useful resource, especially when including photos in your posts, and of course for the social side of things. I say 115 members, but it’s interesting that whilst writing this I’ve had to update that number three times! We usually have a spate of joiners each time Safety Fast! arrives, so I shall continue to mention it. John Dutton has provided lots of information in his Chairman’s Chat, but it’s worth my emphasising a couple of things. Firstly, all of our regalia is available through the MGCC website at https://shop.mgcc.co.uk/ Once you’re
there, enter ‘SVW’ where it says ‘Search Products’ and the full range will be displayed. Anything you purchase can be added to your cart and paid for by credit card, which is a great improvement over the previous ordering process Of particular note is the Salesman’s Manual for the SA, VA, WA and TA models, which has been very popular and once they’re gone we’re unlikely to produce any more. The other innovation is the fact that anyone can now pre-order the next edition of The SVW Review, this year being edited by Malcolm Robertson in Australia. This is free to members of the SVW Register, £8 in
advance for non-members and £10 post-publication. By pre-ordering you’re reserving your copy and you’ll be added to the distribution list and receive it at the same time as members wherever you are. We usually arrange publication in time for MGLive! and the annual SVW event, both of which take place in June. Clothing with an embroidered Register/Centre logo was previously supplied by a company called Topsigns, but this arrangement has now come to an end. Main Club is looking for a replacement, which will hopefully be announced in time for you to stock up for the driving season.
RUNNING PINS AND KING BOARDS All the right words but not necessarily in the right order, as Eric Morecombe may have said! Well, it does draw attention to find out what on earth I’m talking about. The fact is that I’ve bitten the bullet and am replacing the old-style king pins that I had fitted last year with the later type, which my VA should always have had. The fact is that over the 50 years I’ve owned it, the king pins have
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always been the old type with the top race bearing rather than the bottom bronze thrust washer. The later type was fitted new from VA1254. The new bushes are now in place and I was lucky enough to borrow the correct stepped reamer from Jim Andrews to do it properly. By changing the king pins and setting them up correctly, replacing the front spring buffers, tightening up the suspension and
checking the tracking, I will hopefully find that the driving experience is back to what it was in the past. Talking of the front spring buffers (part S 75/29 in the VA parts list), these are available from our regular SVW source but at a cost of £26.40 each, plus delivery. Mine were still the originals from 1938 and resembled an oily sponge with a crusty surface – think black meringue! Given the
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 45
SVW NEWSLET TER
Use of Stepped Reamer on New Bushes. Photo: Paul Campbell
price of these I decided to see what I could make and came up with a 2”
(5cm) door stop bought from my local hardware store that, using my rubbercarving skills, I managed to fashion into something that fits the mounting plate and looks and should perform as required – see before and after photo. At the same time, I’m attending to the offside running board in the same way as I did the nearside two years ago. I’ve removed the running board and it’s gone off for welding, sand blasting and priming. This time I found that the wood beneath the driver’s door is in remarkably good condition, unlike what I found two years ago, although I still have to sort out the ragged bottom edge of the metalwork. My target is to have everything ship-shape in time for the Brooklands MG Era Day on April 14, a day not to be missed if you can make it.
REGISTER CHAIRMAN’S CHAT This will be my last chat as Chairman, as I will be giving up the post at the AGM, to be held at the Holland event in late June this year. I have very much enjoyed my time as your Chairman, and have had superb support from the committee members – I cannot thank them enough. The Register has developed through these years and is now, I hope, more accessible to both members and non-members through the Facebook page established last year. This has now over 110 members and is proving, together with the Yahoo forum, to be a more topical and vigorous vehicle even than our website. We have also recently clarified some the roles of the committee members to ensure we have no gaps in the service we offer, except where owners may have expected a facility we do not offer! For example, many owners seem to believe that our spares secretary will be able to sell them spares. In fact the role has always been to research sources for hard-to-find spares, or to amalgamate a known need to give a manufacturer sufficient volume to justify supply. It has always been Club policy not to sell spares to members, but to ease communication between owners and spares suppliers. In 2019 the SVW Review will be edited by Malcolm Robertson, that well-known owner and scribe from Melbourne. The printing and circulation will still be handled from the UK, and the advertisers remain mainly UK based,
46 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
Bump Stops – Before and After Front Spring Buffers. Photo: Paul Campbell
but we hope the international ownership will be reflected more fully by this change. Non-members will still be able to buy a copy as before, but from this year can order a copy in advance of publication at a favourable price. Another significant recent change to the way we operate is to establish an online shop for our regalia as part of the MG Car Club shop. This will make it easier for owners to buy things from us, using a credit card if they prefer. We will still offer our regalia through our website for some time. Recent work to offer reproductions of original MG material related to the SVW range has proved very popular and it is mainly because of that, together with sales of back copies of the Review, that the Register is in good health financially. We are always interested to hear from owners about what they would like us to offer from our shop. We have welcomed quite a few new members during 2018. Main Club usually, but not always, advises us of new owners of the cars, so do get in touch if, as a Club member, you have recently acquired an SVW car but have not received a personal welcome letter from the Register Chairman, plus a copy of the current issue of the Review and windscreen sticker. Finally, I would like to pay tribute to a long-standing owner and member who sadly died last year. Jeff Gibson was a great supporter of the Register and his WA saloon graced many of our events. We all miss him very much. John Dutton
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The 6th SVW Meeting Holland June 25, 26 and 27 2019
The event will take place in the Green Heart of Holland, east of The Hague and north east of Rotterdam. The hotel will be
The willValk takeAvifauna place inHotel, the Green Heart of Holland, east aan of The Hague north east The hotel Theevent Van der Hoorn 65, 2404 HG, Alphen de Rijn. Thisand hotel chain hasofa Rotterdam. very good reputation will be The Van der Valk Avifauna Hotel, Hoorn 65, hotel 2404has HG, Alphen aan in Holland and the selected a unique bird zoo.de Rijn. This hotel chain has a very good reputation in Holland and the selected hotel has a unique bird zoo. Check in at the Avifauna Hotel is from 15.00 on the 25th, but arrive as early as possible as we will have a romantic midsummer buffet on a 4-hour boat tour through the canals and lakes in the area boarding at 16.45.
Check in at the Avifauna Hotel is from 15.00 on the 25th, but arrive as early as possible as we will have a Toursmidsummer are planned for the 26th 27th boat and Th e SVW Register take place evening before romantic buffet on aand 4-hour tour through theAGM canalswill and lakes inon theWednesday area boarding at 16.45. dinner. Lunch is planned on Thursday after which some may wish leave, but for those staying on there will be a tour returning to the hotel.
Tours are planned for the 26th and 27th and The SVW Register AGM will take place on Wednesday evening before Hotel booking: price ison €107,00 per night 2 persons for leave, the 2-night stay). Thisstaying includeson room, breakfast dinner. Lunch isthe planned Thursday afterfor which some(€214,00 may wish but for those there will be a and returning local taxes.toAdditional tour the hotel.nights are the same price. This hotel only has double rooms, single occupancy would be €96,00 per night. The hotel reference is AVI-GF38421 (MG Event) via e-mail to n.vandervalk-bergers@avifauna.valk.nl or Tel. +31 (0) 172the 487price 508. is Once you have please email to confi rm your providing Hotel booking: €107,00 permade nightyour for reservation, 2 persons (€214,00 forusthe 2-night stay).entry, Thisalso includes room, details of your car and the names of those coming.
breakfast and local taxes. Additional nights are the same price. This hotel only has double rooms, single the be boat€96,00 tour andper evening meals not included in the price, so the total of thesevia is e-mail to occupancy Note: would night. Thearehotel reference is room AVI-GF38421 (MGcost Event) €90,00 per person, this to be paidor please May172 26th487 to R.L.M. Pas / P.J.M. van den Heuvel - reservation, n.vandervalk-bergers@avifauna.valk.nl Tel.before +31 (0) 508. Once you have made your bank also account numberdetails : NL75RABO 48.names of those coming. please email us to confirm your entry, providing of your03368718 car and the
If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us; Note: the boat tour andPas, evening meals in van the room price, so René +31 (0) 653are 806not 653included and Peter den Heuvel +31the(0)total 652cost 691 of 209these is €90,00 per person, this to be paidEmail: pleaseinfo@mgsvw.nl before May 26th to R.L.M. Pas / P.J.M. van den Heuvel bank account number : Website (under construction): www.mgsvw.nl NL75RABO 03368718 48. We look forward to seeing many of you there! René and Peter If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us; René Pas, +31 (0) 653 806 653 and Peter van den Heuvel +31 (0) 652 691 209 Email: info@mgsvw.nl Website (under construction): www.mgsvw.nl We look forward to seeing many of you there! René and Peter
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MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 47
526,61£
OnlineClassic Classic Car Online CarAuctions Auctions
retsdaoR CGM 005,71£ ROF DLOS
DEVIECER RODNEV
MGC Roadster MGA Twin Cam VENDOR SOLD FOR £17,500 SOLD FOR £38,900
OV CAR ER 100 S IN 2 SOO LV 018 D C ER 1
ARS IN 2 SOL 018 1967 MGB Roadster RECEIVED £1
VENDOR RECEIVED
£
GC Roadster LD FOR £17,500
MGA Twin Cam SOLD FOR £38,900
SOLD FOR £18,000
1967 MGB Roadster SOLD FOR £18,000
VENDORFOR RECEIVED £36,955 £17,500 VENDOR RECEIVED £16,625 VENDOR RECEIVED £17,100 SOLD
MGC Roadster SOLD FOR £17,500
e Clas ic Car Auctions
MGC Roadster
NDOR RECEIVED £16,625
VENDOR RECEIVED £36,955
VENDOR RECEIVED £17,100
MGA NEWSLET TER Edward Vandyk Tel: 01488 608810 Email: mgascribe@vandyk.co.uk
WELCOME TO THE MGA NEWSLETTER Spring is (almost) here! The meteorological calendar tells us March 1 is the day, the astronomical calendar gives the equinox as being March 20 but, regardless, we should all be thinking about the last-minute preparations for getting our
MGAs back out on the road again. One of the few irritants in so doing can be making the indicators work reliably and appropriately, by which I mean a self-cancelling signal after a suitable interval.
LUCAS TPS1 TURN INDICATOR SWITCH This self-cancelling, vacuum-operated switch was fitted to every MGA and Twin Cam during the production run. It was previously used in the Morris Minor, MG TF series, and contemporary sports cars such as Jaguar XK140, XK 150, Bristol 2 litre, Bristol 400 to 406 plus a variety of models from Healey, Jenson, Jowett and Rolls Royce. Electric Engineer and Twin Cam owner Alan Whitfield has produced
an illustrated technical paper for the MGA Register describing the service and repair of this vital component. The paper will be available to download from the website by the time you read this magazine. You will find it on the “Technical Advice” page, item No. 20. In support of the publication of the repair procedure, MGA Register has obtained a supply of the leather washers fitted to these switches. They
work like those in a bicycle pump and over time become unserviceable. Priced at £6.50 plus £1.20 p&p, the washers will be available from March 1 through our online shop and at shows and events. The technical paper includes detailed instructions for removing the old washer and fitting the replacement. Be aware that a new, reproduction, switch will cost around £100.00.
IN PERIOD – WHAT PRICE THE MGA, HOW TO AFFORD ONE AND WHAT PRICE THE OPTIONS INCLUDING THE DE LUXE? In an earlier article in Safety Fast! (March 2016 – MGA Era) I set out the political and economic background against which the MGA was produced and marketed. To compliment that article I thought I would try to determine the UK ‘affordability’ of the MGA when in production and see what a comparably affordable car is today. My conclusion does not reflect any comparison between the merits of the MGA against today’s production car! Some of the data collected was from contemporary road tests but these were both light on pricing details generally and, conversely, almost the only source of the pricing of ex-works extras when pricing was included. Autocar, Motor and the Nuffield Organisation’s Outlook magazine also contained pricing details. In addition, eBay and the Beaulieu Autojumble and the like have, over the last couple of years, yielded a number of MG Price Lists which together give sufficient information over time for me to believe my data set is complete – if you believe to the contrary please let me know. MG price lists during the production of the MGA do not disclose ex-works option prices at all, save in very rare cases such as, for example, the Twin Cam option and MG Magnette Duotone paint. From its launch in September 1955 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, until production ceased in June 1962, the MGA being
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superseded by the MGB, the MGA Roadster encountered two variations in price ex works in the UK, both changes being increases. In the same period the UK Government changed the tax rates four times, two of which changes led to ‘on the road’ price decreases. Launched at £595 0s 0d ex works, MG must have been pleased to have an ‘on the road’ price of £844 0s 10d including purchase tax at 42% in their September 22 1955 UK price list. However in the October 27 1955 price list the purchase tax had risen to 50% and the ‘on the road’ price to £893 17s 0d. This represented a 6% overall price increase in the first month! Two further price increases are recorded during production. In November 1956 the price, ex works, was increased to £640 and in October 1957 to £663. These increases led to ‘on the road prices’ of £961 and £995 respectively. The ex-works price remained at the £663 level until the end of production and this spanned the introduction of both the MGA 1600 and MGA 1600 MkII. However the tax man dropped the rate of purchase tax to 42%, from 50%, as shown in the April 1959 price list, resulting in an ‘on the road’ price reduction from £995 to £940. He then dropped it again to 38% in 1962 so the MGA 1600 MkII bowed out at an ‘on the road’ price of £912.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 49
MGA NEWSLET TER
To put the price of the MGA Roadster into context it is necessary to look at the ‘on the road’ prices of the MG TF that preceded it at £780 ‘on the road’ and the MGB that followed. The MGA at its launch price was some 8% more expensive than the MG TF 1500 but a whopping 15% more after the November 1955 tax increase. The MGB launch price ex-works from the October 1962 price list was £690 and purchase tax had earlier in 1962 conveniently fallen to 38% so the resultant ‘on the road’ price was £949, only 4% more than its predecessor and essentially the same price as the MGA in 1961. During the same period (1955-1962) inflation rose by about 25% and average manual worker wages rose from c£11/week to £15.50/week. House prices in 1955 averaged £2,064 and a gallon of petrol was 4s 6d (22p!). Wage growth outstripped inflation and both far exceeded the price variations of the MGA in the UK, making the car simply more affordable. It is of some interest to note that MG must have felt more confident in terms of price resistance on the introduction of the MGA than they did on the introduction of the MGB where the price differential was less. To put this into context, the inflation-adjusted GDP per person in the UK rose by 1.3% in 1955 and only 0.8% in 1962. Macroeconomics may well impact pricing decisions. One could argue that the MGA was such a radical step up from the MG TF that market resistance to any price increase was going to be less of a factor in MG’s mind, although there has to be a suspicion that the increased cost of production of the MGA over the MG TF made the price rise simply a necessity. The MGB was seen, at introduction, as an equally transformational step up from the, by 1962, somewhat outdated MGA. The MGB had more room, windup windows, a monocoque construction and more power. It provided a driving experience more in tune with the times. The MGB (largely) left behind the prewar driving experience which was incomplete unless accompanied by draught, rain and often a ‘failure to proceed’, as RollsRoyce term a breakdown, whereas the MGA represented a transition, especially in Roadster form. I base this somewhat subjective assessment in large part on my recollection as a teenage car enthusiast deeply into the magazines full of new car reviews at that time. In isolation, and with hindsight, the perception of the MGB could be thought capable of possibly supporting a greater price rise on its introduction; however the price
50 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
was probably determined by its opposition, principally the Triumph TR4 which had an ‘on the road’ price of £913. Affordability However, just how affordable was an MGA? The ‘average price’, taking the end 1958 (1500) MGA, ‘on the road’ was to all intents and purposes £1,000 and the average wage at the same time was c£13/wk or c£675/year. Average wages currently (March 2019) are c£27,500 which equates on the same basis to a current new car of equivalent value of just over £34,000. However, discounting is now prevalent whereas back then British reserve had often not overcome the challenge of asking for a discount. Taking a 5% discount gives an equivalent car value of £36,000 today. That encompasses, albeit in the the somewhat limited two seater sports category, a couple of models of the Mercedes SLC and two basic Mazda MX5s, a pretty near current equivalent, I suggest. £100 in 1958 is worth about £2,350 today, so the MGA in today’s money would have cost about £23,500 which is pretty comparable to the Mazda MX5 today. It is worth noting that current restored MGA values approximate to the inflation adjusted cost in period. On that basis the MGA has to be about twice the real cost of a comparable car today because in 1958 its cost
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MGA NEWSLET TER
represented 1.5x annual salary, whereas it is about 0.8x current annual salary. However, when compared with house prices the affordability ratio is quite shocking. The ‘on the road’ price of the MGA Roadster at the end of 1958 represented 50% of the average house price at the time of a little over £2,000. The Mazda MX5 represents about 10% of the current average house price of c£215,000. Two brand new MGAs could have bought you a house! How did one actually pay for an MGA? If Bank of Mum and Dad did not provide then HP was the answer. HP in general was much more regulated in period than finance is currently, although in 1958 HP restrictions on cars were dropped. With HP you had to find a deposit and the minimum level and repayment period were, in 1958, fixed by the market, with up to three years to repay being the norm. Today with the advent of of PCP, or Personal Purchase Contract, affordability is increased. The MX5 can be financed on a PCP over 24 months for a deposit of about £3,400 at £199/month and there is a residual of about £9,000 to pay at the end of the term. The MGA would have required a 1/3rd deposit, as against the 1/5th upfront payment for the MX5, but the monthly payments would have been £32/month over 24 months but with no final payment. The above are thus not directly comparable, but simply in terms of monthly outgoings the MGA cost over half of one’s gross salary, whereas the MX5 today cost less than 10%. There is a large element of comparing apples with oranges in this analysis but the big picture is clear: namely, the average man in the street could not afford an MGA, whereas today he could afford an MX5.
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Pricing options Turning now to the MGA factory-fitted options this is a challenge because MG never seemingly published a price list. If they did I have never found one! These options are set out in the numerous brochures MG produced over the years and are remarkable for both their inconsistencies and ambiguities. However the brochures offer no pricing information. MG produced accessories lists with things like travel rugs which were priced; however the only option priced for the MGA was the Twin cam variation which was, of course, a model in itself. The Twin Cam option was consistently priced at £180 ex-works. A more definitive guide to options appears in BMC’s ‘Salesman’s Reference’ (AKD 1003B) publication and we know that it was left to the dealers to address the option pricing question. One could conjecture that then, as now, throwing in a free option was non-discounted discounting! In period Glass’s Guide tells us that in 1961 the heater was £17 12s 6d and wire wheels £38, all ‘on the road’ prices. Various in period periodicals reveal that the adjustable steering column was £2 16s 8d, a radio was £34, screen washers £2 16s 8d and an aluminium hard top £75. Incidentally, the road tax was £22 in 1957. Competition (de luxe) seats were £9 18s 9d and the heater and oil cooler for the Twin Cam were £18 8s and £9 18s respectively. Finally I eventually found the headlamp flashers at £2 16s 8d and the ashtray at £1 4s 10d. Of course option prices varied, as did the tax on those options. Option prices were generally quoted in articles as the ‘on the road’ price including tax but were occasionally quoted ex-works. The source articles necessarily do not coincide with the 1960 De luxe advert referred to below and thus cannot be completely relied upon. Nevertheless, option prices seemed to have varied little over the years where there is more than one example of them being given. There is a 1962 priced option list in Olyslagers afterperiod 1963 book which is as near to being definitive as we are likely to get, but purchase tax at that time (38%) makes extrapolating the De luxe option price in 1960 based on these figures more challenging. Pricing the De luxe option That leads me on to what was the cost of the De luxe option, a price list or an invoice I have been seeking for some years now. I am going to hazard a guess by deconstruction because we do know the price asked at the de facto introduction of the option in 1960 from the adverts run in the motoring press at the time and the specification of the car as set out in those adverts and confirmed from the production records at Gaydon. This deconstruction relies on the fact that these 12 cars, the subject of the adverts as matched by colour and production specification, were
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 51
MGA NEWSLET TER
not discounted. These cars were advertised at £1,031 4s 5d, including purchase tax, with four extras over and above the de luxe specification of Dunlop Disc Brakes All Round and Road Speed tyres. The extras being adjustable steering column (£2 16s 8d), de luxe seats (£9 18s 9d), windscreen washers (£2 16s 8d) and heaters (£17 12s 6d using the push rod heater as the comparator). The above extras total £33 4s 7d thus giving a base price, including purchase tax, of £997 19s 10d for the bare roadster with the de luxe option or £56 12s 4d for the option alone. Purchase tax was 42% at that time so the ex-
works price of the de luxe option was £39 17s 6d, rounded. Someone please prove my calculations wrong by producing an original price list or invoice for a De Luxe or indeed any original MG or dealer list.
SCOTTISH MGA DAY Full details of the Scottish MGA Day event are now available on the Caledonian Centre website at:-https:// www.mgcaledonian.com/event/2019-scottish-mga-day/
GOODWOOD MEMBER MEETING 2019 The MGA is returning to Goodwood! Whether or not we see MGAs competing at Goodwood depends on what races are scheduled at either the Members Meeting in April or the Revival in September. For some time I do not recall seeing an MGA at either, but this year we have three MGA Twin Cams in the Tony Gaze Trophy which is Race Seven at the Members Meeting on Sunday April 7. Currently SRX 210, the Le Mans class winning car car will be there along with YRX 310, Bob Olthoff’s car which competed in the 1961 Tourist Trophy at Goodwood and four other races there in period, and finally an aluminium bodied continuation car (444 FKO) which is configured as were 1 and 2 MTW in the 1960 Tourist Trophy. Both the MTW cars now have steel bodies following in period accidents. Should be quite a race!
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1971 MGB Roadster restored to a very high specification. Call for details.
Other Tubular long branch exhaust Oselli cast rocker cover £185 Weber carb kit £795 Performance distributer £265.00
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Head and engines supplied on an exchange basis Prices subject to VAT
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 53
MGF NEWSLET TER Tim Morris 01932 882467 scribe@mgfregister.org • www.mgfregister.org
WELCOME TO THE MGF NEWSLETTER
Timeline at Stoneleigh 2014
STONELEIGH PAST AND PRESENT The Register started the year off at Stoneleigh for the MG & Triumph Show which was something of a triumph for the Club. We have been going to Stoneleigh for longer than I care to remember and seen the show change hands, move into bigger halls and then merge with the other marque to make an even bigger show. Despite the changes the essence remains the same – plenty of parts for sale, both second-hand and new, car care, cars for sale, trade stands, all propped up by Club displays. Some MGF/TF traders no longer attend and others have arrived to showcase their wares, thus bringing their products or services to the notice of a wider MG enthusiastic public. It’s always been a great season starter to get thing rolling for us and a great chance to meet members both old and new. This year we were also representing young members with Iwan Jones from the Young Members
Tim and Martyn Wise launching the first edition of FasTForward Stoneleigh 2006 www.mgcc.co.uk
Committee on the stand with his LE 500. Complementing the youthful corner were a splendid very early Trophy 160 (number 1) from our friends, Church Square Autos, and a Pearl Black TF belonging to member Stephen Calcott. Although the main Club does not attend, other Registers including the T Type, Triple M, Midget, MGB and ZR/ZS/ ZT represent the MGCC, but I think we must be the most regular attendee from the Club. Looking back at the show, I remember launching our Register magazine there on a cold morning in 2006 with Martyn Wise (then editor of MG Enthusiast) cutting the ribbon – we are now on issue 53 of that magazine! One year we had a daffodil theme with a
Supersports 1 backed on to Supersports II at Stoneleigh 2007 (you can just see it through the stand) MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 55
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The “Trophies” stand featuring plenty of bunting, inflatable trophies, flags and cars
number of cars on the stand – all yellow, of course, with the odd rabbit hopping around. Then we celebrated trophies, not just the Trophy 160, but race cars, too, complete with inflatable trophies, bunting and chequered flags. There was the year that we featured Supersports 2 on the stand and coincidentally Supersports The “Daffodil” year – bunnies, flowers and 1 was also there on another stand but yellow cars backed right up against us – that may be the only time both cars have been seen together at a show. Why we didn’t photograph them actually together is quite beyond me! More recently, we have featured three cars on the stand with a red, white and blue theme and a timeline from 1995 to 2010– I wonder what it will be in 2020 – the silver anniversary of the MGF?
This year’s stand. Photo: Keith Williams
BRAIN TUMOUR CHARITY This year the MGF Register will be supporting the Brain Tumour Charity which has a strong resonance to one of our committee members. We will be shaking the tin at various events this year and staging specific events to raise funds for this vital research. The charity works with various other organisations including Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council, and Great Ormond Street Hospital to raise funds for research and awareness. Brain tumours are the biggest killers of children and adults under 40 years old in the UK, yet receive only 2% of national spend on cancer research. 31 new cases are diagnosed every day and at any one moment it is estimated that 102,000 adults and children are living with a brain tumour in the UK. Many people fundraise for the charity and this year so will the MGF Register and we hope that you can give generously to help them provide support, information, highlight the symptoms and help drive down diagnosis times with the aim to double survival rates within 10 years. You will find collection tins with all our Regions and at most of the events we run both locally and nationally this year. You can make donations online on our charity fundraising page anytime at https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/ mgfregister2019
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MGF NEWSLET TER
CHAIRMAN’S CHARITY WEEKEND The first of those charity events takes place on March 30-31 and will be based at the elegant Wroxall Abbey Hotel. The location is popular with car clubs and was once the home of Sir Christopher Wren. The Lady Chapel, also known as “Wren’s Cathedral” is an outstanding feature in the grounds, as is the imposing gothic-style manor house. The MGF Register will hold its AGM at 1.00pm on the 30th in the hotel and all members are welcome to attend. The annual MGF Register Awards will also be handed out and there will be a dinner, for those staying at the hotel, in the evening with fund-raising raffle. On Sunday the annual Chairman’s Charity run takes place and will start at Wroxall Abbey. Gather at the hotel by 10.00am for signing on, etc. and we’ll aim to leave at 10.30am for a cross-country Midlands scenic drive, passing Kenilworth Castle and Hatton Locks where you might care to stop off for a walk and refreshments at the cafe. We’ll finish at Packwood House, which is a National Trust property and famous for its 17th century Yew Garden with over 100 specimens. If you wish to join us and stay at Wroxall Abbey then phone the hotel direct to book, mentioning the MGF Register – cost is £169 for a double room or £150 for a single, to include evening meal and breakfast – phone 01926 484470 and there is a £40 deposit on booking. The Sunday drive out costs £5 for members and £10 for non-members and you can make a charitable donation either on the day or online at the MGF Register fundraising page.
WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING? Naturally, there is plenty more happening around the Regions but do look out, in particular, for MG Day at Brooklands Museum on April 14 – the South East Region will be having a stand as normal, and if you would like to join in please post on their Facebook page or internet forum. April 28 is Drive it Day and the Anglia and Thames Valley regions will be joining in the St George’s Day Run organised by the Norfolk Classic Car Club, and there is an MOC meet at Amberley Museum in Sussex that we are also supporting.
SEPTEMBER SOIREE The Register’s main event moves north this year to the county of Durham and more specifically the Heather View Leisure Park, just outside Stanhope in the lovely Durham Dales. There is a variety of accommodation for this three-night stay, but I gather the deluxe lodges are all now taken – however there are deluxe and superior caravans still on offer from £177.65. Food, etc, will be extra and there are restaurant facilities and entertainment on site. There will be drive outs to places of interest in the surrounding countryside over the weekend, which should please most tastes. Book now direct with the park quoting MGCLUB15 and there is a £50 deposit per unit payable – 03300 535524. Once booked, please email Ian Wright at mgf.events@mgfregister. org to let him know.
Both are good chances for Club members to get together for a drive out. If you would like to join in then please contact Ian again at mgf.events@mgfregiater.org The Register will also be following the MGCC race meetings as they will be featuring a contest for the MGF Cup this year at all five race meetings, starting at Silverstone on March 30 and then Brands Hatch on April 27-28. We’ll be keeping a special eye on how Phil Rigby does in his first season as a rookie and David Koskela who returns to the grid in Racing Red.
SPEEDING I have recently been a little preoccupied with speed, helping to organise and present two events at Brooklands concerned with the Kings of Speed, from the very earliest at the end of the 19th century, whose cars, strangely, were electric powered and achieving some 40mph, through to Thrust SSC breaking the sound barrier and more. It is interesting to note that the development for the first six records was all electric rising
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up to nearly 66mph in just a few months. It makes one wonder, if that development had continued, would we now all be driving around in long range, quickly chargeable electric cars? We probably will be in a matter of a few years in any case, but maybe a few decades too late. It didn’t happen, however, as the next record in 1902 was by a steam car – another alternative method of propulsion that didn’t develop; however, the last
steam car absolute land speed record by Fred Marriott in 1906 pushed the speed up to just over 127mph. The internal combustion engine then took until the mid-60s pushing the limit over 400mph before the era of the jet engine took off and speeds rose rapidly to Thrust SSC’s 760mph-plus and whatever Bloodhound may achieve – over 800mph perhaps? Whilst MG did not attempt an overall LSR, there were plenty of class
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 57
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The EXF on Bonneville Salt Flats 1997
records from Goldie Gardner, George Eyston, Stirling Moss and Phil Hill. The latter held the record for the fastest MG, achieving 254mph in 1959 in EX181. That would be the last time that MG seriously campaigned a speed car – until 1997. In the Register magazine FasTForward we ran two in-depth articles as we passed the 20th Anniversary of two attempts, both involving the MGF. Here we summarise both of those attempts and salute all those MG engineers who made it happen. With the gap approaching 40 years since Stirling Moss’s record-breaking run in EX181, a small group of Rover engineers got together, off the back of
Andy Green testing out the cockpit
58 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
MG’s new-found enthusiasm for racing with the MGF, with an aim of capturing the 1100-1500cc class record and a car capable of more than 200mph. Wynne Mitchell, who had been involved with the Cup cars and Metro 6R4, conceived the idea with the backing of the board including Engineering Director Nick Stephenson and Tom Purves, the Marketing Director, who was looking for a good publicity opportunity to promote the MGF. Dave Kewley gave the goahead and the team began converting a standard MGF at Rover’s Gaydon facility. There was a target of August 16 1997 and a location – Speedweek at Bonneville, USA. Work to create the EXF (or EX253 as it was known later) began with the aim to rebuild a standard 1.4L K series engine with the help of Janspeed Engineering, and original body designs were by David Woodhouse, who also designed the
Supersports concepts. Rally driver Tony Pond helped out with development and testing, until finally the car was ready to take to America. The driver, a US Land Rover technician with Bonneville experience was Terry Kilbourne. The whole project was an open secret and work was carried out in the engineers’ own time beside their normal duties. Final adjustments were made on Terry Kilbourne’s driveway, some 600 miles from Bonneville. Arriving on the Salt Flats the team had to “prove” the car over 175mph on a short course. They only reached 168mph thanks to a failing pump on the turbo inter-cooler. Using a pump from the air conditioning on the team’s Winnebago the car successfully exceeded the target, reaching 195mph. Thus “proved” they took on the 200mph and smashed through it achieving 217.4mph and became the fastest MGF. The team and Rover hierarchy were buoyed with the success and resultant publicity which led to the quick authorisation for an attempt the following year on 300mph – to become the Fastest MG. The EX255 was a completely new design, although built outwardly to resemble an MGF, and Rover were keen for a great marketing opportunity! They were keen to beat Phil Hill’s 1959 record as the ultimate fast MG at 254.91mph, and a good omen was that the next “EX” number was 255 (mph) – the interim EX254 being the Supersports1 concept. A further good portent was their entry number at Speedweek – 255.
Mock-up picture of EX255 on the salt
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MGF NEWSLET TER
EX181 and EX255 at Brooklands in October 1998 showing the much larger size of EX255 over the 1957 car
The development, again, was backed by Nick Stephenson and the full board, with a budget as well! 1997 was a momentous year for speed, not only with MG EXF at Bonneville but with Thrust SSC out at Black Rock obliterating the overall Land Speed Record with pilot Andy Green at the controls. Who better, then, to drive EX255? Surprisingly perhaps, Green was keen to get involved with a somewhat slower attempt but one involving a famous brand, MG, and the chance to follow in the driving seat of Sir Stirling Moss and Phil Hill. The project was launched on May 28 1998 with project director Dave Kewley at the helm and MG were eager to capitalise on the golden ticket of having Andy Green on board – there was much publicity and enthusiasm as result. EX255 was engineered to produce 900bhp and exceed the 255mph target. The marketing team’s need for it to look like an MGF prohibited complete streamlining but the body panels were built in such a way, and with a closed cockpit, that it actually did allow a good flow of air as demonstrated at MIRA. There was to be a considerable increase needed from the 329bhp of the EXF, so it was clear another power plant was needed and, of course, there was one such in the MG Rover stable already – the venerable Buick/ Rover V8. The engine size was increased to 4.8 litres and initially twin superchargers were fitted and the whole set-up placed in the rear of the car, as per the MGF. Cooling was via a 150 litre recirculating tank with
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heat exchanger and the car painted in the unique colour “Andes Green”! There were high hopes, then, as the car was shipped out to Utah for the 50th Anniversary Speedweek. The first official MG ‘Works’ entry to tackle a speed record in 40 years. However, with just days to go last-minute changes were made, as it was realised the superchargers would not provide sufficient power and in came turbo chargers instead. More last-minute preparations were carried out in a hangar at Wendover USAF base. There was frantic activity creating new exhaust outlets and building a salt pan under the car; however the team did not feel they were quite ready to run on the first two days of Speedweek. By the second day it was clear that there was a major problem with a leak from the hydraulic clutch slave cylinder. A 30-man hour job to fix, and even then it distorted under pressure, still causing fluid to leak. There was an option to run clutchless; however the car had not been run at all on the salt, which forced Nick Stephenson The
to reluctantly cancel the attempt, announcing that the team would be back in 1999 for a further attempt. They still hoped to get the car running on the salt and a solution to the faulty seal was found in an unlikely place – a sink on a Fairchild C-123 aircraft! The washer was about the same size and so was put into the car and suddenly no leak. Thursday was a washout and Friday the car was rolled out with Andy Green suited up ready for a run – until a lubrication problem showed up on the engine and no powered attempt was made. However Andy Green was still suited up, so the car was taken to the salt flats and some pictures were taken with the car – static shots and the closest the car ever came to actually running at Bonneville. There was a round of publicity appearances when the car returned to the UK but these petered out in 1999 and the expectant excitement for a return fizzled out, too, as events overtook the company with the takeover by BMW. There would be no further attempts on the record and the car itself is now a museum piece at the British Motor Museum. The EXF, however, did have another lease of life and obtained the speed record for a solo blind driver, Ken Moss, in 1999 at 131mph. The car was sold in the MG X Power auction of 2006 and in 2007 it was campaigned again at Bonneville using bio-ethanol fuel in a team run by privateers Jonathan Suckling and Daniel Nash. It was campaigned again at Speedweek in 2009 and since then has remained unused in America. The full story of both cars and the teams of enthusiastic engineers can be found in FasTForward issues 48 and 52. The latest edition of the new look FasTForward is out now.
cover of the 1998 Press launch pack for
EX255
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 59
CLASSIC CAR RALLIES
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RACE TORQUE
RACE TORQUE by Mark Baulch
Exciting Start to Racing Year As the clock counts down to the start of the MG Car Club racing season, many competitors will be either making the final adjustments to their cars or rushing to start work! The first race meeting is at Silverstone, on the National circuit, on Saturday March 30. Ahead of that, many of the team that help to organise the racing, as well as competitors and members, will have been to Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire to enjoy the Race Retro exhibition. With huge numbers of classic competitive cars and a live rally stage in the grounds of the venue, this is always a wellattended show and one which helps the Club to promote classic racing to a wide audience. With regards to our Race subCommittee, when the “new� RsC was established, Geoff St John Mitchell agreed to continue as a member until the end of 2018, especially to help with the negotiations with Morgan, Porsche and Equipe. This has been completed, so he will now step down, although he will continue to support the racing as a Club Steward. In true MG family style, his wife Sharon will help John Hutchison with Race Administration and their daughter will be serving the refreshments in the British Motor Heritage-supported Welcome Centre. All the RsC would like to thank him and his family for all their support, not only during a difficult year in 2018, but over very many years and at times when his experience and wise counsel have ensured the continued
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success of our Club racing. This is something that many other car clubs look upon with envious eyes. Talking of the Welcome Centre, we are seeking volunteers to help, specifically at Brands Hatch and Snetterton, so if you fancy being right at the heart of the event and having tea, coffee and biscuits available at all times, please do get in touch. You will need to be willing to serve them as well as consume them! Following the decision of Geoff to step down from the RsC two new
members, Gil Duffy (MG Midgets) and Peter Burchill (MG Cup) have agreed to join the Committee. Both bring valuable racing and business experience and are most welcome and I will introduce them to you in more detail soon. If we do not see you at Silverstone at the end of the month, then we look forward to seeing you at another event in 2019. Geoff St John Mitchell (right) with Alan Jones of the HSCC at the 2019 Autosport Show.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 61
DUNCAN WOOD DUNCANW@MGS-ON-TRACK.COM WWW.MGS-ON-TRACK.COM
MG on track
YET MORE ADDITIONS!
I
n a continuation of last month’s theme of constant developments in our Calendar, I am pleased to report that another three events are now confirmed for 2019. We will be visiting Blyton Park in Lincolnshire in early June for a limited in numbers, dedicated MGs on Track day, and will be holding our popular North Weald experience day in early July. Blyton Park has become a firm favourite with the committee and members alike and offers a more relaxed environment than some pure race circuits, which will make it attractive to a first-timer or novice, whilst still presenting challenges for even the most experienced driver. Of certain appeal to those that have yet to try one of our normal track events, the North Weald experience day gives drivers the chance to test their skills in the wideopen expanses of an airfield, with no requirement for any special equipment save for having an MG car. I will describe North Weald in greater depth in a forthcoming issue of Safety Fast!. The third addition to the Calendar is our visit to Donington Park on October 7. Although there was originally some doubt that we would
62 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
be able to mount this event as we lacked a suitable partner, happily the CSMA have agreed to fill one of the three sessions so we will not be denied our annual visit to this fantastic circuit. As often mentioned in past reports, we benefit from these liaisons with nonMG but broadly compatible car clubs as they go some way towards ensuring the success of our own events, and also allow our members access to circuits like Croft or Anglesey that we might not otherwise visit. In similar vein, we have agreed with the Triumph TR Register that they will take a proportion of the places at every MGs on Track event this year and, again, this can only be beneficial to both of our clubs. There may still be places available for the Bedford Autodrome track day on March 11, and this can be checked on the website. By way of research, a dozen MGoT stalwarts visited the circuit in late January in the company of Lotus on Track and I believe that feedback was completely positive. At nearly four miles long and lacking landmarks like grandstands or advertising hoardings, it did take some time to understand the layout, but all
were agreed that Bedford certainly deserves its’ place on our calendar. Although the longest straight has a chicane half way along its’ length, this can still be taken in third or fourth gear and at considerable pace, so momentum is merely slowed rather than halted. There are a couple of hairpin corners where brakes are fully tested but, in general, the track is flowing in nature, not closely hemmedin by barriers and has plenty of benign grass run-off to gather your thoughts should driving talent temporarily desert you. As mentioned, this is a circuit where brakes will be quite heavily used so it’s probably best to check for sufficient pad or shoe material before attending rather than discovering this at the end of the long straight! If the conditions are dry drivers can also expect fuel consumption to be on the high side, but petrol is available on site, as are good catering facilities and complimentary hot drinks in the pit area. As you read this Cadwell Park and Snetterton should both be open for booking. They are quite different in feel and appearance, but very alike when it comes to track day fun. As always, visit our website to book your place.
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MG CAR CLUB SPEED CHAMPIONSHIP MGS ON TRACK – 2019 CALENDAR MGs on Track – 2019 Calendar Please visit www.mgs-on-track.com to register, check availability, or to book a track day. Registered members will receive regular newsletters and notification of event opening dates. Bedford Autodrome GT – March 11 At 3.8 miles in length, there is ample space to unleash those horses, with generous run-off areas for the directionally challenged! NEC Practical Classics Restoration Show – March 22-24 Visit MGoT on Stand 5-415 to find out more about our events, or just to say hello. Cadwell Park – April 15 A twisty and hugely scenic circuit in the Lincolnshire Wolds; flat it certainly isn’t! Snetterton – May 20 A fast and open track; long straights combined with a challenging infield section. Blyton Park – June 3 Not a traditional racing circuit, but a fun and friendly venue boasting a layout with real character. Castle Combe – June 24 The first of two annual visits to this very welcoming circuit in Wiltshire. North Weald – July 5 An introductory activity day for those who have not yet tried a full track day. A chance to explore the capabilities of driver and car in complete safety. Croft – July 12 Experience one of the hidden gems of British Motorsport on a day shared with Lotus on Track. Brands Hatch GP – August 1 A rare chance to experience the full GP Circuit on a day shared with Lotus on Track. Anglesey – August 12 Experience this challenging circuit on a day shared with the Lotus 7 Club. Overlooking the Irish Sea and with views to Snowdonia, this track offers something for all. Castle Combe – September 9 A second opportunity to enjoy the thrills of this everpopular track which includes a couple of chicanes and high-speed, technical corners! Donington Park – October 7 A flowing, historic circuit in the Midlands, featuring the fantastic Craner Curves and Old Hairpin sequence. Goodwood – October 28 A second visit in case you missed the first due to popularity! Brands Hatch ‘Indy’ – December 2 Our last event of 2019. Don’t miss the chance to enjoy this undulating circuit including Paddock Hill Bend!
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JOHN WILMAN, BEECHFIELD, FERN BANK, CHAPEL-EN-LE-FRITH, HIGH PEAK. SK23 0JJ TEL: 07778 165186 WWW.MGSPEED.NET
Now the festive season is well behind us, we mark time anticipating the return of the good weather and, of course, the start of the 2019 season of our sport. During this period the co-ordinators of the various series and championships are at their busiest until the season starts and all the paper-shuffling and keyboard-bashing gels together into what we hope will be another season of exciting sport. Registrations for 2019 are going well and I anticipate at least the same number of entrants as last year. It is good to see new names appearing on the list as this bodes well for the future of our Championship. In the last few years we have seen, as anticipated, many entries from the more modern MGs which have provided a relatively low-cost entry into the sport. However, I am beginning to see a resurgence of entries from Midgets and MGBs in various stages of tune. I find this most encouraging, bearing in mind that all the monocoque sports cars produced since the early 60s have increased in value so much in the last few years. It goes to show that there will always be a reservoir of owners who are prepared to use their cars in competition, regardless of financial considerations. This, of course, applies fourfold to those who campaign cars from the pre- and just post-war period. Looking to the near future. We start the season with our first visit to Curborough on April 7 with the Midlands Centre of the MGCC. This is always a popular starter and the entry is composed mainly of MGs. The following weekend, the 14th, we join the BARC Yorkshire at the magnificent Harewood hillclimb. This venue is currently in its 57th year and, from both a driver’s and spectator’s point of view, is among the best in the country. Kicking off the season for our Southern competitors is our visit to the historic Goodwood circuit, courtesy of the Bognor Regis MC. This is a very fast and challenging venue, having played a pivotally important part in the post-war history of British motorsport. The calendar for May is very crowded with something for everyone in all parts of the country and I will preview these events next time. April Events April 7 Curborough Sprint April 14 Harewood Hill Climb April 20 Goodwood Sprint
MGCC Midland Centre BARC (Y) Bognor Regis MC
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 63
OVERSEAS NEWS
MGCCT ROAD WARRIORS
H
ow did this group come to be? Well, in 2004 one of our members suggested a weeklong drive around Lake Ontario. Ten MGs followed him in his TD and thoroughly enjoyed the scenic roads, sightseeing and the camaraderie. Of course, this special group of long-distance drivers needed a name; hence the MGCCT Road Warriors were born. Since then, we have been organising an annual long-distance drive, usually to an MG event destination. We decided that it would be fun to return to Stowe, Vermont, for the annual British Invasion car show. In September we gathered a group of 14 MGBs, RV8, MGF, Ford Mustang and a Ford Edge and departed from
By Johan and Renée Petersen
on to Tupper Lake where we rode on Whitby, Ontario, for the first leg to a unique carousel with hand-carved Brockville, Ontario, with a lunch stop wooden animals of the Adirondacks – in Belleville. birds, foxes, bears, etc. On day two we left our hotel after Upon arrival in Lake Placid we breakfast to cross the St Lawrence checked into our hotel on Main Street River at Johnstown to the USA for our with pre-arranged reserved parking drive to Lake Placid, NY. behind the hotel. That evening was To try to avoid driving on free for all to choose their own motorways and interstate highways, restaurant and explore the town, site scenic roads are chosen as much as of two winter Olympics. possible. Throughout the years we have seen more of countryside North America than we normally do in our regular cars. As we were supplied with lunch boxes, a picnic stop was planned at Paul Smith’s College VIC whose mission is to connect outdoor recreation, experiential education, and the arts – a lovely location in Leaving the hotel in Stowe the countryside. We continued
Picnic at Paul Smith’s College www.mgcc.co.uk
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 65
OVERSEAS NEWS
British Invasion - Stowe VT Picnic at Paul Smith’s College
Tupper Lake carousel
Day three was a day for sightseeing in Lake Placid. Some went shopping (amazing how much one can fit into an MG!), others for walks and kayaking on Mirror Lake. Instead of the cold weather we had expected, we had a heatwave, sending everyone scrambling to buy T-shirts! I led a group of seven MGs to the top of White Face Mountain for a spectacular view of the area. The elevator which takes you to the summit
broke down two years ago and has not been repaired, so some of us hiked the rest of the way to the top. A well worth climb to enjoy the fantastic scenery. That afternoon when we were parking our cars back at our hotel, we heard a very loud shout by one of our members. “YOU HAVE DRIVEN OVER MY FOOT” and he fell awkwardly onto the pavement. His wife, while reversing her MGB into her parking spot, accidentally drove over her husband’s foot with her front left wheel. An ice pack and a few drinks helped the healing process.
White Face Mountain - Adirondacks
66 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
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OVERSEAS NEWS
Day four. We collected lunch boxes at the hotel and departed after breakfast. We drove to Essex, NY, for the ferry crossing of Lake Champlain to the state of Vermont. Whilst parked waiting for the ferry we noticed that one of our member’s MGB GT front tyres were worn right down to the steel belts. His car was not safe to drive and he had to purchase new tyres. Apparently the damage was caused by the front wheels being out of alignment. In Vermont one of our members accompanied him to the nearest town to purchase five new tyres and the rest of the group proceeded to the picnic stop, then onward to Stowe. We checked into our motel on the outskirts of Stowe and then registered for the British Invasion car show and attended the welcome reception on the field. There were British cars from several North East States, as well as the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario.
The Road Warriors
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Day five was the car show day, where we enjoyed inspecting a variety of beautiful British cars. Dinner in Stowe was followed by a fun street party organised by the event. The main street was closed off and British cars lined both sides of the street. A band played music from the Beatles, Rolling Stones, etc., and we danced the evening away under the stars. Day six was free to sightsee around the area. Some went back to the car show, others went shopping in Stowe and some of us went for lunch at the Von Trapp Brewery and to visit the historic Von Trapp lodge, built by the family who fled Austria prior to WWII (made famous by the film The Sound of Music) and who then settled in Stowe, Vermont. Day seven. We departed our motel for the steep and twisty climb up to narrow Smuggler’s Notch. We all made
it, except the MGB GT whose plugs kept on fouling up and misfiring. Once on the other side of the Notch we waited as some other members who had noticed the problem stopped to assist the GT and finally made it over the hill. Onwards we drove north of Lake Champlain, over the Adirondack Mountains where a picnic stop was planned, to our overnight stay in Watertown, NY. Day eight. We departed Watertown to Cape Vincent to catch the ferry to Wolfe Island, Ontario. From here we took another ferry to Kingston, Ontario. Here some of the group decided to take the motorway back to Toronto while the rest of us chose to take back roads to Lake on a Mountain for lunch and then onward home to Toronto. The trip was planned by our members Bob and Maureen Riddell, my wife Renée and myself. Renée and I were the lead car for the eight days of this scenic and enjoyable drive of approximately 1,600 kilometres. We have some requirements for the MGCCT Road Warriors. One is that their MGs be well mechanically maintained to avoid breakdowns on the route. When and if breakdowns occur, most of us carry spare parts and assist the broken down car to the best of our ability in order continue the drive as a group. The second one is crucial to keeping a large convoy together. We request that all cars be equipped with working CBs to enable us to keep in contact with all cars whilst on the road. Although written route instructions are given prior to the drive, Renée reads out instructions for upcoming turns, etc. and warns of road hazards on the CB. As well, if someone breaks down or wants to warn the group of cars/trucks trying to overtake the group, there is easy communication and when there are no instructions upcoming members can chat over the CB.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 67
CENTRES
ABINGDON WORKS
RICHARD MARTIN sfscribe@mgabingdon.org.uk www.mgabingdon.co.uk It’s glorious, sitting here in shirtsleeves, basking in the sunshine, penning this month’s notes. Where am I? Abingdon, but indoors, as outside it’s -7°C with everywhere covered in snow and looking very picturesque. The snow arrived a few days ago, on the
evening of the Abingdon Natter and with blue skies and sunshine during the days since, people have been seizing photo opportunities, including a number involving MGs that I’ve seen online. The snow was still a few hours away from Banbury when
MGs at Banbury awaiting the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique
ANGLIA
ROB MUIR 01206 862619 scribe@mgccanglia.com www.mgccanglia.com
MGB GT V8 Police Cars Following on from the Riviera Run report last month with my request from members for information about previous V8 Police Cars, I am indebted to Club member B. Monk who emailed me with information, saying that in the for-sale section of August 2018 Safety Fast! on page 92 is an ex-Police V8 with photo and that an article on the car was printed in a previous copy of Safety Fast!. There is also a lot of information on these rare cars on the V8 website.
by Alison Isaacson. 20 members attended in a range of MGs which included an MGA, plus MGBs, MG TFs and a MG ZT 190. Workshop owner, Luke, provided us with breakfast of bacon and egg rolls plus plenty of tea and coffee, on a day when the ambient temperature never rose above zero. The performance of the day came from Ian Randall’s TF160 with a power output of 170bhp. Thank you, Luke, for the hospitality; we are already planning a return trip for next year.
Rolling Road Day Luke Stevens Developments based at Mildenhall Rd, Fordham, near Cambridge, were the hosts for the Anglia Centre Rolling Road day on Saturday February 2, organised
Club Meets Most of the Club Meets have now had their end-of-year celebration dinners. One of the final ones was the East Suffolk Club Meet, hosted by Peter Skipper and held
68 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
the town once again hosted a Passage Control stage of the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique. MGs were well represented amongst the cars displayed to welcome the competitors, with members of the local NONG Natter going along, as well as Centre members from a little further afield. Thanks to Pete Chaundy for the photo. This month, March, we have our AGM at Kimber House on Saturday 2 and we’re looking forward to welcoming ‘new’ Car Club Chairman, Dave Tynan, who will be saying a few words. Please come along and take the opportunity to speak to him and the AWC Committee. In April, we have the “Not Quite St George’s Day Run” which visits the Atwell-Wilson Motor Museum, a wonderful collection of vehicles. An
at The Artichoke in Broome. 22 members attended the successful and happy luncheon, Committee Meeting Please note the new venue for the Anglia Centre Committee Meeting being held on Saturday March 2, at The Cedars Hotel, Needham Road, Stowmarket IP14 2AJ. Contact any of the committee members if you would like a subject discussed, or for
Sports cars at Atwell-Wilson Museum
entry form appeared in February’s magazine, or can be found in the Events Calendar on our website. Finally, a reminder that as from March 4, the Aylesbury Natter’s first Monday-of-themonth meetings will be at The Lion, 70a High Street, Waddesdon, Aylesbury HP18 0JD. Welcome to all our new members whom we look forward to meeting during the coming months.
more details contact Chairman William Ball 01508 471506 or Secretary Roger Moran 01502 722122. The 2019 Racing Season starts for us on March 30 at the Silverstone National Circuit. Both the Peter Best Insurance Cup and the BCV8 championship will be at the meeting and, with a large number of Anglia Centre drivers racing, a full report will be in our notes next month.
1966 MGB GT on the Rolling Road www.mgcc.co.uk
CENTRES
CALEDONIAN
BOB MACGILLIVRAY 07870 407111 mgcarsscotland@gmail.com www.mgcaledonian.com
Already it seems a long time ago, but we had a good event at our annual Film and Fish night in January. With an attendance of almost 40 it was the best supported since its inception. I am always on the lookout for old MG, Scottish Centre or Scottish motor sport films for future events. Does anyone have old film of the California Cup events of the 1950s/60s? If you have anything suitable, let me know. Our AGM is not far away on April 2, held at the Royal Hotel in Bridge of Allan. If there is anything you would like to ask regarding the Centre then this is your opportunity. Tea and coffee is available prior to the meeting,
and to assist with catering it would be helpful if you would register through the website. Our spring lunch is again at Airth Castle, this time on March 17. The cost is a very modest £20 per person, and as this is a popular and informal event it would be helpful if you would register, again through the website. There will be a cut-off date for bookings, so please do so soon! All the details of our regular shows are on the website. Please book early so we can plan layouts, etc, and please remember that ALL ages and models of MG are welcome, not just at shows but at any of our events. I know that some members prefer driving rather than
DEVON & CORNWALL YOUNG JANNER II bobslatter@hotmail.com www.mgcc.co.uk/devon-cornwall-centre/ Let me start with a quick reminder that the Centre Annual General Meeting is being held on Saturday March 23 at the Callington Bowling Club. Full details and the official agenda were published in last month’s
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Safety Fast!. Please come along and have your say about how the Centre is run and what you would like to see organised by your Committee. We will even feed you with a complimentary buffet afterwards.
shows but two shows, Glamis and Bo’ness, give the opportunity on the Saturday of decent drives as well as the show on the Sunday, so you can have the best of both worlds. The Bo’ness weekend will be a celebration of the life of Jim Clark, with many of his cars on display and as an interesting aside he was a member of the MG Car Club but to my knowledge never owned an MG. You can also now book for the April Satellite run. This has three start locations, hopefully to entice a
good spread of members to attend. No matter if you are in Inverness, Fife or Glasgow this is an event for YOU! Check the website, please. Bookings are also open for the August Five-Day Tour, this time based over the border in the Lake District. This is an area which we have never touched previously and it’s likely to prove a popular event. Check the website for details. And the committee is still looking for someone to take responsibility for our Regalia sales. Any volunteers?
Film Night 2019
Prior to the AGM, our Centre Chairman, Bernard Curren, and myself will be attending the next MG Car Club Council Meeting on Saturday March 16, to see how the Club and all its events are being run. We will be able to report back to you all at the AGM. Again plenty of advanced warning for National Drive It Day on Sunday April 28 when it is hoped that as many as possible of the Natters will organise a run to a common finish for a late lunch at the Lifton Strawberry Farm. I know that a couple of them have already committed to joining in. Keep in touch with your Natter leaders for further details. This year’s Atlantic Coast Express Run is being organised for Sunday May 19 starting at Okehampton Railway Station once again, and finishing at Petroc College, Tiverton. The route is still being worked on
but it will be less than 100 miles in length and if you haven’t received an entry form yet as a previous entrant, or downloaded it from the Centre website, let me know and I will forward one on to you. The attached picture is of some of the participants in last year’s ACE Run. Peter Opie, a Director of the Club and D & C Committee member, does an excellent job of looking after the Centre website, Facebook and Twitter accounts for us. If you have anything that you would like included on these sites, be it details of Natter events, pictures and reports of events you have attended, etc. then pass them to Peter at webmaster@mgccdc. org for all to see. It is also the quickest way to make contact with most members should any last-minute changes be necessary to events.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 69
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CENTRES
LINCOLNSHIRE
IAN MACKENZIE 01529 497849 MaccaV8@aol.com www.mgcclincolnshire.co.uk
March Natters: Wolds Wednesday 6; Abbey Lodge Monday 11; Wishing Well Wednesday 13; Three Horseshoes Thursday 21; Lincoln Tuesday 26; White Hart Thursday 28. Luncheon Club: Wednesday 20.
Sunnier days! Perhaps new shorts for 2019, Chairman Andy!
March Event: Lincolnshire Centre AGM 7 – Abbey Lodge. What a glittering event! Lincolnshire’s Annual Dinner and Awards presentation at the Bentley Hotel, Lincoln, passed off without a hitch, thanks (inpart) to the efforts of organisers, Chairman Andy and his navigator Kimmi. On the night, we were joined by George Wilder and Susie Schwier from Main Club, who brought along both the Longbridge Trophy and BMC Trophy, which were presented to our victorious MGLive! autotesting teams. A good night was had, George presented the bulk of the awards, and dancing continued
MIDLANDS
BRIAN OSBORN brianosbornmg@gmail.com www.mgccmidlandcentre.co.uk
Spring is springing and the grass is rising and so into another hectic MG season and hopefully a bit of sun like last summer, who can tell? The Midland Centre is looking forward to another exciting season. I say exciting because, although similar to previous years, it usually is. First up on our calendar of events is the Spring Sprint on Sunday April 7 2019 at the Curborough Sprint Course where our sprinters, including the MGCC Sprint Championship (was Luffield), will be having a go at the figure-of-eight course. Regs and Entry Forms now available on our website. Helpers and spectators welcome. Our sprints
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have remained very popular over the years and thanks to the efforts of our Chairman – Martin Price – have stayed competitive costwise; we are about the best value for money on the speed events calendar. For newcomers needing advice, contact Martin on 01299 40 11 77. Our popular annual social event, the Welsh Touring Rallye over the weekend of May 17-19, is now in its 23rd year and filling up fast. This year it is based in Llangollen with an interesting Saturday Run heading north west towards the coast and then into Snowdonia before returning by a more southerly ‘suggested’ route. See our advert. For more details of the weekend package
until midnight, one of our two youngest members, Ivy, showing the old stagers a move or two on the “floor”. As the event has been held at this venue for five years, it might be time for a change – if you have any suggestions for an alternative venue in the county, please let Chairman Andy have the details. One event that did change venue last month was the Boston area Natter, now at the White Hart at Old Leake. On a particularly foggy night, those who managed to find the pub in the murk were heartily welcomed, and a jolly evening ensued. Well done to Vicki and Geoff for coming up trumps with a great new venue. Here’s to future clear skies! Afternoon Tea. Rosemary Baker is trying to organise a
‘girlie’ afternoon tea bash at the Branston Hall Hotel, Branston, Lincoln. The cost would be £15.50 per head. Time 2.00pm onwards and the provisional dates are Wednesday March 6 OR Sunday March 10 2019. If anyone is interested please email keithbakerv8@gmail.com with your preferred date or for any other questions please ring Rosemary Baker on 07866 849 656. Remember, remember, our first autotest event of the season is at East Kirkby on Sunday April 14. Chairman Andy has some fresh ideas, so, if you’re interested in having a go, please contact Dave Stonehouse, our Competition Secretary. Don’t forget our Centre’s AGM on Thursday March 7, starting at 8.00pm. We would love to see you and hear your points of view.
and current availability please contact Roger on 0121 476 6649. Promises to be good, as usual. We have been trying to organise an AutoSolo since our late chairman, Paul Hipkiss, tabled it a few years ago but so far, due to shortage of volunteers, to little avail. However, we have now liaised with Cannock and District CC who organise some PCAs, as they call them, at Curborough and – unknown to us – MGCC and members are an invited club. So, if you are up for this fun, low-cost and exciting motorsport have a look on their website (cdcc.org) for the entry details. Next event at Curborough is scheduled for April 22. Our Camping Marshals will be in action again at MGLive!, Silverstone, over June 15-16.
Chief Marshal, Scott Munton, could do with more volunteers. Phone him on 07852 276234 if you can help. Could be a ticket and a can of OSH in it for you. Then we have the Joint Natter, probably on Wednesday evening July 17; Summer Day Out in July at TBA (watch website); Summer Sprint at Curborough on August 4 and the Autumn Trial on September 29, provisionally to be held at East Lodge Farm, Bromsgrove, although Tony Lake is currently attempting to get another permit from Warwickshire CC for the use of Burton Dassett Country Park, near Gaydon, like we did for over 40 years. Watch our website www. mgccmidlandcentre.co.uk We hope to see you at some, all, or one of these; please make yourself known.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 71
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CENTRES
NORTH WEST PAUL GOODMAN 01625 876300
March is the month in which everybody begins to build up towards the new season of racing, speed events, runs, shows and social events. Our events begin on Tuesday March 12 with the gathering at the Shrewsbury Arms. Then one week later we have two events on Tuesday March 19. At 5.00pm we have arranged a visit to Trevor Farrington & Co Ltd’s business premises, Moseley Hill Farm, Chelford Road, Knutsford, SK16 8RB. The company carry out all aspects of car restoration and repair including bodywork, engine building and trimming. The staff will show us round and answer our questions. There is no need to book in advance. Then we
will be moving on to the Plough and Flail for our normal evening meeting. Our lunchtime meeting will be on Wednesday March 27 at The Morris Dancer, Chester Road, Kelsall, Tarporley, Cheshire, CW6 0RZ. The competitors in the Cockshoot Cup Race Championship will be making their final preparations for the opening round. This is as part of the MGCC race meeting at Silverstone on the short national circuit on Saturday March 30. There will be lots of races during the day with great spectating opportunities as the cars complete the short laps very quickly. The Speed Championship begins one week later on April 7 at the
SOUTH EAST JO RUFFELS joruffels@gmail.com www.mgccse.co.uk
March pretty much kick-starts the beginning of the season for MG motoring, with some great events in store for 2019. You should have received your MGCC SE 2019 calendar outlining these, so please add these events to your diaries. The Spring Naviscat is being planned for March 10 (Philip Bayne-Powell 01483 811428) with the entry form and flyer available on our web page: https://www.mgccse. co.uk/2019/01/28/springnaviscat-flyer-and-entry-formnow-available/ Following on its heels is the Fairmile Natter hosting a film and talk by Graham Robson on March 14. Graham is best known as a motoring historian and has had close ties with the sport of rallying
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as a competitor, team manager and commentator (Ian Ailes 01932 856960). The Pheasant at Buckland is the venue for our General Meeting, followed by a talk about the Schlumpf museum and their collection of historical and prestigious cars, March 18 (Philip Bayne Powell 01483 811428). This year Brooklands MG Era Day, April 14 2019, is celebrating an amazing 10 decades of the MG. The display in the Octagon will feature one car from each of the first eight decades of MG production, with later cars from the 2000s joining them. Tickets are already available: https:// www.brooklandsmuseum.com/ whats-on/brooklands-mg-era or can be bought on the day.
much nearer to home and, once again, offers of assistance will be very welcome. Finally, we would like to run a photographic competition this year. Each month we will select a photo to feature on the Centre web pages and Facebook. At the end of the year a winner will be selected. The starting date will be April 1.
Curborough Circuit, near Lichfield, run by our friends in the Midlands Centre. Spectators are welcome and there is always an interesting entry of MGs from all eras. Entry forms have been published for the Centre’s speed events and planning is well advanced. We are welcoming more than a dozen guest clubs to Anglesey over the weekend of May 4-5. This will mean a big entry with a wide range of sports, saloon and single seater cars. There is a great opportunity this year for members to assist in the running of the meeting. Young members will be particularly welcome. Under-16s can help with off-circuit activities and over that age on-track marshalling under supervision is permitted. Then two weeks later our Scammonden Dam Hillclimb will be held on May 19. This is
Archway Engineering MG Specialists in Manchester in the early 1960s. Provided by Mike Entwisle
The spring run coincides with Drive It Day on Sunday April 28. The run is being organised by Dick Owens (01689 858907) and will finish at the Medway Yacht Club. The Brands Hatch MGCC Race meeting is also being held on April 27-28, a must to experience the excitement and awesome spectacle of 50s/60s MG race cars plus the fantastic Triple-M cars in the paddock and racing the Indy track. Any of you wishing to sign up for the Belgium Rally May 3-6 2019 need to contact Derek Edwards direct on 01737 765891. Details will be on our web page shortly. This year’s Awards Sunday lunch is being held at the Hartsfield Manor, Betchworth, on Sunday May 19. The Centre has been producing a very successful bi-monthly Newsletter for around ten years now, informing members on
what is going on in our area, with reports of past events and details of upcoming events, as well as a for sale and wanted section. However, it appears that there are many people who have not signed up to receive their e-mailed copy every two months. This is easily done by going onto the SE website (www. mgccse.co.uk) and clicking on the Newsletter tab at the top of the page, which then asks you to enter your name and e-mail details which ensures you are added to the mailing list. Alternatively, you can e-mail your details top617haynes@ hotmail.com The MGCC SE are urgently trying to secure a new Newsletter editor to take over from Peter Haynes who is standing down after six years. Full details of this opportunity are set out at https:// www.mgccse.co.uk/2018/10/08/ newsletter-editor-urgentlywanted/
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 73
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CENTRES
SOUTH WEST
DAVID MOTHERSDILL davidmothersdill@aol.com www.mgccsw.com www.facebook.com/MGCCSW Last minute reminder – the Centre AGM is on March 5; please make an effort to attend and tell us what you think of the events we put on and the way the Centre is run. Compton Martin Village Hall at 7.30pm, followed by the usual monthly Natter in the nearby Ring O’ Bells. Our events proper start as usual with the Kimber Classic Trial on the weekend of April 13. Starting as usual at Lanes Hotel in West Coker, near Yeovil, the event will follow a route of approximately 70 miles through some wonderful scenery, with some challenging competitive sections to keep you amused. Entry forms and full details are
available on the website mgccsw. com If you are not able to enter then marshals are always wanted, a good way to get close to the action and be a part of the event. Following the Kimber, the equally famous MGs on Grass is scheduled to be held on Saturday April 27, a light-hearted competition that is non-damaging to all MGs, involving timed runs round courses laid out with cones. Good fun for all with an optional pub lunch in the middle to enable you to get to know your fellow competitors. Details again are on the website; early entries always encouraged. The setting is signed from the A46 north of Bath and starts at the sociable time of 10.30am.
If you are at a loose end on April 7, Old Down Manor are holding their second Classic Car day, just off the A38 between Almondsbury and Thornbury. I went to the first one last year and it was well supported, with a variety of classics in attendance – over 50 cars turned up during the day. I hope to get there
again this year. Set in 66 acres of parkland with cafe and facilities, children’s play areas and bar, it has something for all the family. As always, check the website before attending our events. Sometimes we have to make last-minute changes due to unforeseen circumstances. Hope to see you at an event soon!
A mixture of marques at last year’s Old Down Classic Car gathering
TYNE TEES
TONY WOOD anthony@scrutonvillage.co.uk
Oh, you lucky people, you will probably receive this in good time to come along to the AGM at Coulby Newham on the 7th, where food and fun (though I may be overstating the latter) will be available, all for free. If you are attending, make sure Noel knows for catering reasons and remember this is for Members and partners only. Continuing the theme of fun for free, our first event of the year is Dennis Hope’s ever-popular Sunday Lunch run on Sunday (surprise) March 24. Starting at Durham Services, just off the A1M Junction 61, there will be a run of around 35 miles through the county to finish at a popular country pub between Piercebridge and Heighington for a carvery lunch. Meet at
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the Costa Coffee car park, by 10.30am for an 11.00am start. Contact Dennis on 07970 115202 or email denhope@ hotmail.co.uk to ensure a place. Our first major Road Run is the ever-popular Cobweb Run, again ably organised by Ian Graham, taking place on Sunday April 28. Starting at Brocksbushes Farm at the junction of the A68 and A69 at 10.00am, Ian promises a scenic tour of Northumberland of around 105 miles before returning to Brocksbushes for the always excellent Cream Tea around 3.00pm. Entries are limited to 60 cars; entry forms are on Tyne Tees Tidings. Send one to Ian or contact him direct on 0191 413 6321 email ianmggraham@gmail.com If the weather is kind why not
Charlotte flags away Ian and Justine in their TC. Photo: Noel Lindford
bring a picnic, but if al fresco dining is not for you, the cafes and hostelries of Alnwick should provide warmth in both the food and comfort departments. April will soon be upon us. Our annual Pride of Ownership competitions start a month earlier this year. Get out the polishing cloths and come
along to Coulby Newham or Stannington to dazzle us with the superiority of your coachwork. Failing that, come for a sociable chat, as many of us just enjoy driving our cars, not polishing them! My personal excuse is that I don’t wish to destroy the unique patina that years of careful neglect have created.
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 75
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CENTRES
YORKSHIRE
DAVID COPEMAN 07920 064585 www.mgccyorkshire.co.uk North – Nick Mann January’s Natter saw a good attendance for our AGM. All the principal officers remained in post. We have yet to finalise the format of some of the meetings but the programme for the forthcoming year looks an interesting and varied one. Following the formal business of the evening we concluded with a light supper of sandwiches, as is the usual tradition at our AGM. South – Geoff Norcliffe We started the year with our traditional Chilly Willy Run on New Year’s Day, our circular route taking us north from the Langsett start and over into Lancashire, before returning after 46 miles of
country roads in mild dry weather. Thanks to Pete and Keith, our regular organisers of this event. Pete went on to organise our other traditional January event, ten pin bowling in Doncaster. Malcolm Perry claimed the honours for the evening. East – Brian Rylance The Position and events Committees are as follows:Contact person – Brian Rylance. Secretary – Greg Thornton. Scribe – Brian Rylance and Chris Moore. Competition Sec. – Chris and Steve Moore, Social Runs Co-ordinator – Greg Thornton. May – Jan and Barry Tomlinson. June – Harry and Jan Hotchkin. July –Steve and Wendy
ULSTER
CAROL WILLIS 07831 345560 www.mgcculstercentre.co.uk carol.mgulster@hotmail.co.uk
With the Centre being shy on Committee members during 2018, we had decided to hold our AGM for 2019 in January, much earlier than usual as well and bringing it in line with earlier years. The turnout of 15 members was better than in recent times and as a result we now have a substantial committee. With 50 years as a member of the Car Club and experience in various disciplines of motorsport, Terry Ingles has taken over the Chair with gusto and is keen to ensure a good mix of competitive and social events for the year ahead. The early AGM gave our Treasurer, at the end of his first year in post, a bit of speedy post-Christmas adding-up to do to get the 2018 accounts
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into shape for reporting at the meeting. Owing to a much reduced committee at the end of 2018, we decided to delay our annual Derek Walker Trial until April. This has been fortuitous as newly elected committee member, Richard McCracken, along with stalwart Noel Cochrane, has been beavering away seeking out new test sites around the Ards peninsula. We will post more about the DWT once the route and tests are developed We were back at sunny but icy Delamont Country Park for our February Autotest and had 30 competitors with a healthy BMC entry, including two recently rejuvenated Midgets
Pountney. August – Carl and Natasha Reid. Wolds Way – May 12, Committee – Ray Snowley, the Bensons, the Moores and the Kirks. Christmas Dinner Run – Chris and Adrian Benson on December 8 2019 at Cave Castle. West – David Copeman The Annual Awards Lunch was enjoyed by all who attended, and the silverware was presented to the worthy winners. We will be hosting the Yorkshire Centre AGM at our March meeting. This year our present chairman, Stephen Dobson, will be standing down after serving five years, and we look forward to welcoming in a new chairman. The Daffodil Run, Woldsway Run and Heartbeat Run are coming up fast. Have you sent in your entry forms?
Tiger – Pete Welbourn Thanks to our Natter regulars, the luncheon run venues have been sorted and a list circulated. New Year’s Day was dry and sunny, so Old Red B was fired up and driven to Sir Greg Knight’s classic car gathering in Brandesburton. MGs were well represented, including one disguised as a Morris Minor, the original engine and drivetrain having been replaced by those removed from an MGB. Vale of York – Ken Cothliff Some 28 members attended the first lunchtime Natter of the New Year in glorious sunshine again Considering it was midJanuary it was a treat to be out and about. We welcomed new MGCC members Keith and Rita Lavender, from York, in their gold MG TF.
of Peter Moreland-Moore and Ralph Ewing. Expert coaches Ashley Lamont and George McMillan ran a pre-event tutorial for RWD/FWD respectively and reported rapid progress from the trainees, all of whom stayed for the autotest. Andrew Earney was in fine form in the FWDs and Jeremy Tomalin took FTD a smidgeon ahead of brother Tim, both in specials. We welcomed newcomer George Johnson and winning junior Jordan Moore, whose times steadily improved throughout the day. Thanks to new committee members, Brian and Liz Patterson, together with Trevor Reid and Terry, our Chairman, for marshalling. On the social side, Nosh and Natters are continuing bi-monthly at the excellent Poacher’s Pocket, Lisbane, with 17 mainly retired members attending the February lunchtime nosh.
Due to last-minute unforeseen circumstances we had to postpone the Film Night scheduled for February. The new date has been confirmed as Tuesday April 16, to arrive 7.00pm for 7.30pm, 22a Drumhirk Rd, Comber, BT23 5LY. It’s great to welcome yet another ‘young’ member, Jordan Moore, to the MG fold and we are sure he will progress well during the year. Dates for your Diary: March 9 Annual Dinner and Prizegiving – The Ivanhoe, Carryduff March 13 Nosh ‘n’ Natter – from 12.45pm The Poachers Pocket, Lisbane, Killinchy March 23 MG round of NI Championship – TTS, Crumlin April 16 Film Night – Tudor Cinema, 22a Drumhirk Rd, Comber, 7.00pm for 7.30pm
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 77
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Classic and Sports Cars are extremely proud to have for sale this newly completed MG TA Special. This MG TA Special recreation has just been finished to the highest standard and the rebuild and restoration quality is “probably” the best you will ever see. No expense has been spared and the eye for detail is second to none. SPEC All aluminium ‘Boat-Tail’ design bodywork. Small boot space for overnight bag. Side foot plates to aid entry to the interior. Fully overhauled XPAG Engine bored to 1300cc. Ported cylinder head and fully unleaded. New Sports Camshaft and matched distributor. Engine Fully Balanced. Stainless Steel fish-tail side exhaust. Supercharger Front mounted direct drive period style supercharger. 2” SU carburettor mounted on aluminium supercharger manifolds Aluminium induction tubes leading to aluminium coated cast iron inlet manifold with pressure relief. Suspension & Steering Front – New Andre-Hartford shock absorbers. Rear – Overhauled Armstrong hydraulic dampers. Rebuilt Steering Box New 15 ½” Blumel style Steering Wheel Brakes Aluminium Alfin style brake drums. Differential Differential rebuilt and all bearings replaced. Gearbox Gearbox rebuilt. All bearings and seals replaced. Remote shaft replaced and casting re-bushed. Bell Housing shaft replaced and casting re-bushed. Dashboard & Instruments Period style dashboard anodised matt black. Period instrumentation and controls matt black anodised bezels. Large rev counter, Radiator Temperature, Supercharge Boost, Oil Pressure, Clock and Lap Counter. Upholstery Wooden seat frames covered in maroon leather. Side panels with map pockets also covered in maroon leather. Split Tonneau in black mohair.
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REGISTERS
VINTAGE
IAN QUARRINGTON IanQuarrington999@BTInternet.com
Let’s start with a sunny photo as it is cold and wet and nasty outside. Here is Doug Harris with Janet Day at John and Janet’s home, getting ready to go to Yorkshire for last year’s VR tour.
Roll up, roll up, you have all had lots of notice so last reminders from me on the AGM and the Tour. If you have forgotten the dates, the AGM is Sunday March 17 at Shillingford
TRIPLE M
CATHELIJNE SPOELSTRA +31 (0)6 41216600 cathelijnespoelstra@outlook.com www.triple-mregister.org
Yes, it’s March! Spring is nigh! Enough with freezing your bum off in the garage, salt on the roads and other inconveniences stopping you from enjoying your car. Hang in there, friends, and all will be well again! Events The Register’s first event of the year in the form of another successful International MG and Triumph Spares Day has come and gone and so we can now turn our attention to the next one. Not a Register event, but one highly recommended, anyway, and most suitable for our cars is the South West Centre’s Kimber Classic Trial on April 13. I have elaborated on the matter in last month’s
80 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
notes, so I take it you have now all entered and are preparing yourselves and your cars?! If you have entered, make sure to hang around for the Sunday when Barry Foster and Hamish McNinch will once again put on a lovely gymkhana in their field. You could, of course, also just do the Sunday fun if you’re not in the mood for Saturday’s trial. Drop me a line if interested in either or both and you’d like more info.
Bridge Hotel. Please do get in touch with Debbie on this for two reasons: it always helps the planning for the meeting to know who is coming and equally who is not, so apologies are accepted (please) AND I expect if you are coming along you might want to make your lunch choices, too. The last late chance now to join the tour, as there is one room left at the hotel. Dates are Monday April 29 to Friday May 3, so you will get back in time to go to Brands Hatch to watch our racing weekend. Details again available from TED. Now some more good news. And time to say thank you. Your VR Bulletin has been carefully put together for more years than most care to remember by John and Janet Day and it is about time they
had a chance to step back and enjoy a bit of time away from this important task. We all owe them a great deal of thanks for helping to make this important way of keeping us together happen. And now it is a case of if you want something done then ask a busy person. Debbie is currently editing her first Bulletin so, going forward, any articles, letters, photos or suggestions, please send them to her, I know she will appreciate it. Having taken the minutes at Council for us all for ages, Debbie knows her way around getting the written word put into print properly. I am looking forward to helping her with reviewing it before it goes to Andy for publishing. Now, where is my highlighter pen!
only 250 of them made and not that many used for competition work back in the day, I actually struggled a bit to find a suitable pic. In the end I opted for this one of D0490 showing Don Fielding and mates having masses of fun, it seems, in the VSCC’s Lakeland Trial back in 1968. From it can be gleaned that even if some people don’t seem to really value the D-type, being somewhat underpowered
and such, it is actually quite a versatile model with a few of them currently being raced and all. Sure, you’ll find them at the back of the field but, eh, someone’s got to close ranks, right? If you’d like to learn more about the D-type, you might like to visit Club member Ted Hack’s website (www.mgdgroup.org) where you’ll find loads more on this lovely model. Until next month; Safety Fast!
‘Slow is the new fast!’ Seeing as we’re following the alphabet, the D-type is our Car of the Month. MG’s first fourcylinder four-seater Triple-M was basically an M-type on a C-type chassis, albeit a bit longer. With
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Saturday March 16 2019 URGENT PROOF Please check this proof carefully for errors in style, content and layout. Although every care is exercised in preparing your advert, we cannot hold ourselves responsible for any inaccuracies you may overlook. SHOULD YOU REQUIRE ANY ALTERATIONS TO THIS PROOF PLEASE TELEPHONE BEFORE _ _ _ _ _ _ _ AND QUOTE ADVERT NO. _ _ _ _ _
The open day will consist of:• A 45 minute presentaaon of "Best Pracace" in the Training Room. This is a great opportunity to ask quesaons and hopefully dispel a few myths. • An hour or so working on a visitor's car in our Detailing Bay to demonstrate products and techniques and give visitors an opportunity to try for themselves. • Every visitor receives a pack of sachet samples to take away. Telephone 01206 Fax 01206 500180 This dday is for enthusiasts with a passion for making their car look the best it possibly can. When such We reserve the right to charge for any alteration proof which people have experienced Meguiar's productstoforthis themselves, they invariably become is a for departure advocates the brand.from the original copy We aim to start the seminar at 10.00am but ask if you can aim to arrive for 09.30am where we will provide refreshments. For more details and to book your place please email the ZR/ZS/ZT Register Events Co-ordinator Paul Money on paulmoneymg@gmail.com
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MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 81
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REGISTERS
T TYPE
JOHN WARD 01621 773606 johnw.ward@yahoo.co.uk www.mgcc.co.uk/t-register It is incredible to believe that it is now nine years since I was thrust into the T Register Scribe’s chair at very short notice in January 2010. Having agreed to assist the then scribe to write these notes, due to a peculiar turn of events I found myself with the top job only a couple of weeks later. With no experience in publishing matters it certainly was a baptism of fire picking up the pen and what is more, coming to terms with computer skills not previously considered. Suffice to say, a lot was learned very quickly and these T Register notes, together and a year’s production of Totally T Type magazine which was then in
Y TYPE
production, was somehow achieved, with many thanks to Andy Knott in this connection. However nothing is forever, time to move on, hence these ramblings to advise that this is last time I will pen these notes for you. It has been a truly memorable experience and I have loved every moment of it. Thank you for having me! I pass the baton to a worthy successor, Paul Plummer, very much a T Type (with a TF) and having been the MGCC Overseas Director for number of years is well versed in all matters MG. I wish him well and am sure you will enjoy his company.
Future events The 39th T Register Rebuild Seminars Saturday March 23 at the British Motor Museum, Gaydon, Warwickshire CV35 0BJ just off junction 12 on the M40. The British Motor Museum has proved a very popular choice for members for the T Register’s annual Rebuild event. Entry will include admission to the Museum and will keep you fed and watered, with coffee and bacon rolls on arrival, together with a buffet lunch and tea and coffee throughout the day included in the price. As last year, the format of a single strand throughout the day, which has proved to be popular, will have two morning sessions and one in the afternoon plus a Question and Answer forum and will be followed swiftly by the T
by several good friends from the Y Type world – Peter Sharp, Peter JERRY BIRKBECK Vielvoye and Victor Rodrigues TEL: 01926 258691 MOB: 07855 566325 birkbeckjerry@gmail.com www.mgccyregister.co.uk from Switzerland, amongst others. An enjoyable show which In our variable climate it is hard filled up, later in the day, when forecast suggests good weather, to think ahead more than a day the weather improved. All the with temperatures in the midor too, let alone a month! So MG Clubs and offshoots were teens, as Stoneleigh day was when and wherever you receive present plus a number of wellrain right through until 3.00pm. known traders. There did seem to Driving an open car, albeit with Safety Fast! I hope that you have be more space, so whether some the hood up, for an early start been able to get out and drive of the independents chose not to (8.00am) was a tad challenging your Y! be there I have no idea. although the roads were relatively free. The real downside was all The MG and Triumph Day at Practical Classics Restoration the cleaning that had been done Stoneleigh Show at the NEC March before had to be undertaken Sunday February 10 22-24 again. The fun of the hobby! This is the first major event in the This is a show which has grown Y Types were poorly MG (and Triumph) calendar and over the last few years and is represented, save for Bernard is normally well attended. For well worth a visit. Should you Foad’s lovely YA, now some reason it has been brought choose to attend, might I suggest complemented with a slightly forward in the calendar. I recall it that drive to Tile Hill (Coventry), younger TD in his stable! They was normally the last Sunday in or Berkswell or Hampton-indo, nonetheless, form a great February but this year’s was earlier. Arden Stations where there is (or deal of conversation amongst It is ironic that as I write was last year!) free car parking. It fascinated spectators. I was met this the sun is shining and the
82 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
Register’s AGM, so don’t miss it! MG Era Day – Brooklands – Sunday April 14 2019 The annual MG gathering in Weybridge is always popular for all MGs. You can see all the details and buy tickets from the T Register website above. The 2019 T Register T Party – Shuttleworth Aeroplane Museum – Biggleswade Sunday August 4 2019 Once again we have decided to return to this favourite location, combining Wings with Wheels for the T Party. The last time we assembled in the paddock to enjoy the sunshine and watch these fabulous old machines enthral and entertain was 2015. All details and booking forms, etc, are on the T Register website and in the monthly Newsletter.
saves a lot of hassle and money compared with driving in and around the vast car parks at the NEC.
Richard Dick with his eldest grandson Alexander enjoying a Heritage Run. Sadly Richard passed away recently, there’s a tribute to him in the news section.
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REGISTERS
MAGNETTE
STEPHEN TICKELL 01737 760330 stephen.tickell@gmail.com www.magnette.org
You can tell it’s winter from the lively forum discussions of Magnette heaters recently – mainly how to get more airflow (and ideally more heat) from them. The original workshop manual has a nice line-drawing of the system, but very little on
servicing the Smiths heater box and valve unit – such information is mainly to be found on magnette.org and other MG forums. Still, not long now till spring and the first Register event of 2019, which is ‘Magnettes & Spies’ at Bletchley Park WWII Codebreakers Museum, near Milton Keynes, on Easter Saturday, April 20. There should be something to interest everyone
in the displays of wartime intelligence-gathering and early computers. To take advantage of the discounted entry (£15.50 per person) you’ll need to send a cheque to John Harris by April 1. Bletchley Park will be followed by Magnettes and Steam at the Dean Forest Railway, Norchard station (near Lydney) on May 6. Just to clarify, this was originally described as a weekend event, however the organised programme will in fact be mainly on the Bank Holiday Monday. Of course, this part of Gloucestershire has plenty to offer with both beautiful scenery and historic forest industries, and coordinator David Griffiths can point you to various other local attractions if you’re wishing to make the most of your trip. Also
on the subject of scenic trips, look out for European ‘Magnette Day’ booking information shortly. The annual three-day event will this year be based around Bodman-Ludwigshafen, on the German-Swiss border, with mountains and lakes to enjoy in your Magnette. There’s been an encouraging surge recently of people adding their Magnettes to the Register database and gallery for the first time, so I hope we’ll see some of the owners at our events, although possibly not Ann Munro from Canberra, or Daniel Sherrell from Perth – but they’re nonetheless very welcome! Recent UK additions include Donald Dalton, Ian Russell, Philip Drummond-Thompson and John Simpson (who is also Chief Mechanic at Practical Classics magazine).
MGB
DAVID BROADHURST 01209 614704 newsletter-editor@mgb-register.org www.mgb-register.org mgbforum.mgb-register.org It is a quiet time of year, not a lot is happening. My MGB is still under its cover in the garage with a strip heater under the sump and an intelligent conditioner/charger attached to the battery. There are signs this week that, for the moment at least, the gales and horizontal rain have abated so I might be tempted to lift the cover and see about waking JCP up. John Watson has actually been active and sent the following as a result of a Register presence at Stoneleigh. For the second year, the MGB Register took a stand space in Hall 3 at the MG and Triumph Spares day in February at Stoneleigh. We took a convoy of Bs up the M40 on
84 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
a very sunny Saturday afternoon. On arrival we positioned Andrew Vigor’s roadster and the Marathon B on the stand. We then took Geoff Edwards and Neil Hyett’s B GTs to the local Premier Inn where, after a couple of beers and dinner, we had sorted out all the world problems. The following morning we drove in heavy rain back to the show ground to add the GTs to our display in a very cold Hall 3. As with all these events, you spend so much time talking to many MG friends from around the World. We had a great discussion with a Peter who keeps a register of MGBs in Switzerland. We also welcomed a group from the Bridgend MGOC who had made a considerable
A selection of MGBs on the Register display at Stoneleigh
donation to the restoration of the Marathon MGB. They were so pleased to see the transformed car and had a group photograph around the B. We would like to thank everyone who took the time to visit us at Stoneleigh. Just a couple of quick reminders then….. March 23 MGB Register AGM 10.00am-12.00pm The MG Car Club Ltd, Kimber House, 12 Cemetery Road, Abingdon, OX14 1AS.
The MGB Register Spring Run 2019 Supported by British Motor Heritage This year’s Spring Run on April 7 starts at Millets Farm, visits the Classic Motor Hub Bibury, finishing at Bagpuize House. Entry is £26 and includes Route Book and Rally Plaque. Don’t forget, if you wish to visit the house this can be booked on the day. There is a maximum limit of 100 MGs – closing date for entries is March 23. Book Your Space Now.
www.mgcc.co.uk
THE MGB Register Spring Run 2019
Supported by British Motor Heritage Sunday 7th April finishing at Kingston Bagpuize House & Gardens OX13 5AX
Entry is £26 to include a full route book, rally plaque and entry to the Gardens, tea room and the toilets. (…you may book on the day to visit the House) We will be starting from Millets Farm Centre west of Abingdon
The event is limited to 100 MGs. Online booking is available at www.mgb-register.org in the events section, from Dec 1st 2018. OR - complete the form below and post with a cheque for £26 made payable to:- MGCC – MGB Register You can start at Millets or if you wish from your home and join us at Kingston Bagpuize Closing date for entries will be Friday 23rd March.
Co-driver’s Name
MGCC membership number if a member Telephone / Mobile
Address
Driver’s Name
MG Model Registration Number
Start Location MILLETS or HOME Registration Date
Postal entries to Roger Cooper 74 Great Bowden Road, Market Harborough LE16 7DG Tel 01858-463417 – If you have not included an email please enclose a stamped addressed envelope We collect your personal details to enable us to administer the event. We do not pass your details to any third party other than where required to facilitate entry as part of the event. Your name will be published as part of a programme or list of entrants. Pictures may be taken & used to promote future & past events.
REGISTERS
MIDGET
MIKE PARKER mikeparker78@btinternet.com www.midgetregister.com/ The Register has been busy since the start of the year, and has attended two events already. The first was on a dry but cold January 31, as we headed to Banbury for a stage of the 22nd Rallye Monte Carlo Historique. Does anyone know what happened and how the Midget 1500 in the photo got on? The names on the side were Ken Brown and Paul Wood, the number on the side was 0. It would be great if we could have some feedback, maybe for some news in a future issue of Safety Fast!. The other event was the MG and Triumph Show at Stoneleigh, which was even colder than the Rally in Banbury. We were inside, but the large shutter doors were left half open!
Thank you to everyone who gave up a day to show their cars, and the committee who spent most of the day talking to the public about their MG Midgets, and about the Register and MGCC. We were old when the day started but we looked a lot older at the end of the day! Roll on the summer and I, for one, will never say it’s too hot! It’s not too late to attend the Register AGM on March 10 2019 at Kimber House in Abingdon at 10.30am. We’d love to see you there. The Register is also looking for help at MGLive! on June 15-16 2019 – help is required for car parking on both days. We’re also trying to get a team
MGC
MIKE HAUGHTON mgc_mike@btinternet.com www.mgcc.co.uk/mgc-register/
March already! We will all be out and about soon, enjoying those nice spring drives and meetings. So if you have any stories or pictures – your first drive of spring after your winter restoration, maybe – please let us know! Some brave souls were out on January 1 – such as Jonathan Graves-Morris. I’m usually unable
to drive on that day, so well done that man! There are a few Cs getting together at Brooklands Era Day on April 14. We will be leaving from the Fairmile Inn, Cobham (after an early breakfast). Let Mike know if you are going so we can make allowance for numbers.
Jonathan Graves-Morris’s MGC out and about on January 1
86 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
of MG Midgets together for the California Cup on the Saturday of MGLive!. It’s the 60th Anniversary of this event so let’s put a team together, and on the Sunday we’ve got the Autosolo to compete in as well. Both the events are at the heart of all the MGLive! action at Silverstone;
regulations are on www.mglive.co.uk Don’t forget to get your MGLive! tickets in advance, as there’s a substantial saving. We look forward to seeing you and your Midget alongside fellow MG Midget owners in the Register area at Silverstone.
Please book soon for MGC Day – if planning the full weekend, hotel bookings should be made before May 12, otherwise our reserved rooms may get released! Details are on the C Register page of the website. I’m sure the weather will be just as good as last year! We already have friends coming from Holland, and New Zealand, so let’s make it a great event celebrating 50 years from the end of MGC production – August 1969. That was the same
month as the famous Isle of Wight Festival – were you there? A limited supply of MGC 50 merchandise is still available – Polo Shirts £12, Caps, Grille Badges £15, Key Rings and Pin Badges £3 each. Also available are fleeces with the traditional C Register logo. Contact Mike for sizes in stock, and colours of badges, etc, available. It’s your last chance to book for Jersey if you plan to go – see the web page!
Shorts and Sun at MGC Day 2018
www.mgcc.co.uk
MGC DAY JULY 7 2019
Terms Apply
HOLDENBY HOUSE, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE A special event for MGC Cars and their Owners! Event booking forms, prices, weekend hotel details if required, and further informaaon—all available now from: Mike Haughton—MGC Register Secretary Mi mgc_mike@banternet.com +44 787 657 2202 or +44 151 336 1994 And on the MG Car Club—MGC Register —News Page: www.mgcc.co.uk/mgc-register/news/ Book early to avoid disappointment! Last date for event only booking = June 7 La date for hotel booking = May 17 Last
Early warning to MGC Owners!
Let’s set the scene – we want to take you back to 1969. This is the year our beloved MGC’s rolled off the produccon line for the last cme and the Abingdon factory waved a final farewell to the MGC. Sad days and months ahead as both Roadsters and GTs went off in various different areas around the country. University Motors took a huge chunk, with the last cars leaving the factory as late as 1971. To mark this “End of an Era” your MGC Register Commiiee would like to put on an event to honour this date in history.........
End of Produccon Ball...
We would like to take you all back to the Chateau on October 5 this year and celebrate into the early hours with fabulous food, wine and dance and you never know, one or two other surprises along the way. It would be great to see as many MGC’s as possible aiending, although we don’t think we will ever see the dizzy heights of 217 MGC’s we all witnessed back in June of 2017 at Chateau Impney, celebracng the launch of the MGC. At the moment, this is just an idea your MGC Register Commiiee are talking about and making enquiries in various different areas. So m maybe if you fancy the idea of a great party night, in a great locacon, with a great number of friends old and new, with a few cars thrown in for good measure, then let us know. Express your interest by complecng the form below and if we think enough people are interested, we will most certainly put wheels into mocon and get this party started. Please send your completed form to our MGC Register Secretary Mike Haughton, either by e-mail or post, or simply telephone and add your name and details to the list. Mike Haughton, 1 Allans Close, Neston, Cheshire CH64 9SJ E-mail mgc_mike@bcnternet.com Telephone 01513 361994 We will be delighted to hear from you. www.mgcc.co.uk
Name................................................................................. Address............................................................................. .......................................................................................... Car Details Make.............................Model.......................................... Reg................................Colour.......................................... Chassis No......................................................................... I would like to express my interest in the “End of Produccon Ball” at Chateau-Impney. I will need accommodacon at Chateau-Impney Single Room Double Room I would like to aiend the End of Produccon Ball One Ticket Two Tickets I will be aiending with my MGC MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 87
REGISTERS
V8
VICTOR SMITH 0208 392 9434 victorsmith@v8register.net www.v8register.net V8 tacho conversion Chris Bound is carrying out a V8 conversion of his 1977 MGB GT fitted with a type RVC1414/00 tachometer, one of the last 80mm rev counters for a 4-cylinder car. It works with electronic ignition
systems but needed either modifying to accept the eight cylinder signal or a replacement. But he wanted to keep the look of his existing gauge, which has a long, white needle and it matches the speedometer pretty well. Earlier MG V8 tachometers look quite different and of course by 1977, the MG Factory wasn’t producing MGB GT V8s anymore and there isn’t a V8 equivalent to this unit. Chris later reported that Speedograph Richfield quoted a price of £55 plus VAT for converting the tachometer to suit the V8. As it seemed reasonable, and given that he wanted to keep the look of his existing gauge, he felt it was hardly
FWD
BEN HATTON ben2692@hotmail.co.uk www.mgcc.co.uk/fwd-register/
On Saturday February 9 the MG FWD Register held its annual general meeting. This year we were able to hold it at the MG Sales Centre at Longbridge. Initially, it was confirmed that six committee members were able to attend, namely myself, Colin Corke, Wayne Bates, Jim Lott, Ken Armstrong and Tanya Field. However due to unforeseen circumstances three members were unable to attend. There was a feeling of “should we postpone the meeting”, which would have probably been the case had it not been for a great idea from Wayne. Why don’t we use a Facebook video group chat! So, with myself, Wayne and Colin sitting around a table in the main presentation room at
88 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
Longbridge, we were linked up via Wayne’s laptop with Jim and Ken. Unfortunately, Tanya had come down with an attack of the flu so was unable to join us. After a few initial teething problems – we could see Jim but he could not see us – we soon got down to the business of the meeting. All in all, 2018 was a very successful year for us. Although we rank as one of the smallest Registers of the MGCC, we have slowly built upon our success of previous years and plan to continue this through 2019. The list of shows that we are now attending continues to grow and the ever-increasing popularity of our cars continues to be evident. We have always proved popular
worth attempting a DIY solution. So, he sent the tachometer off for conversion. Less than ten days later it was returned with a sticker on the outside of the case to say that it had been converted to eight cylinders, the calibration had been checked and it was guaranteed for 12 months. Chris felt it was a great service. His tachometer didn’t need any restoration work but they will do that if necessary. See our ‘More’ web page for contacts and information on Speedograph Richfield. V8 Technical Day The event will be held on Saturday June 1 at a study centre on a fellow V8 member’s farm near Watlington in Oxfordshire, just west of the M40. Details of the programme of presentations and speakers, together with
and successful at the Practical Classics Restoration show and this year is shaping up to be no different. We have been successful in getting another stand and already have lined up two MGCC members’ cars that are new to us and have not been seen at any previous shows. Additional cars are yet to be confirmed. We have also always had success, although by varying degrees, in the California Cup Autotest and although last year’s MGLive! did not prove to be our best, this is something we plan to focus and build upon for 2019. So, if anyone would be interested in joining and developing last year’s team with an FWD car please do get in touch. For 2019 our committee remains the same as last year and there was a real feeling of how things have moved on and how
booking details, are available on the ‘More’ web page. V8 Lincolnshire Tour The next V8 Tour will be from Thursday 12 to Monday September 16 2019 in Lincolnshire and is planned to give a taste of some of the attractions in this often underrated county. The tour will have contrasting scenery, from the open, flat fenlands to the largely unknown Wolds, with visits to Lincoln Castle and Cathedral, Heckington Mill Windmill, the 8 Sail Brewery, the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre and the Kinema in the Woods at Woodhall Spa. The tour organisers are Richard and Victoria Withington. An event information web page and booking details are available via the ‘More’ web page at www. v8register.net/more.htm
things can be expanded. When you consider that less than six years ago there was no representation of FWD cars within the MG Car Club, through their own Register things have moved on immensely. So 2019 will be another year of great developments for the MG FWD register and I hope we can continue to show that our cars are still very much alive and playing their part in the history of MG. Finally, I would like to thank Gemma Cartwright for organising our meeting venue at the MG Sales centre.
Why not join the FWD California Cup Autotest team for 2019?
www.mgcc.co.uk
YOUR KEY TO A BETTER MG
PAUL DEPPER MGS SALES, SPARES, SERVICING & REPAIRS QUALITY MG SPARES SINCE 1982
Classic & modern MG Spares available in store & online via our website & ebay, plus; * Car Sales * Inspections & Reports * T4 Diagnostics * * Servicing * MOT * WE HAVE MOVED TO NEW PREMISES IN BRIDGTOWN Please visit us there or at our growing online store at;
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MG Car Invite Club V8 Register you to their:
Autumn Tour of Lincolnshire ‘Bomber County’ In associaaon with the Lincolnshire Centre From 12th to 16th September 2019 Suppor Supported by: Hall’s Garage, Peter Best Insurance Services and Clive Wheatley MGV8 Parts We will be based at The Olde Barn Hotel, Marston NG32 2HT with tours around the County to: Lincoln Castle and Cathedral Lincolnshire Aviaaon Heritage Centre Kinema in The Woods Heckin Heckington Mill St. Wulfram’s Church Limited to 25 cars For full details please visit: MGCCV8 REGISTER, website www.V8Register.co.uk V8Events/Calendar Or contact : Organiser: Richard Withington e.mail: r.withington@banternet.com Telephone: 01949 844066 OPEN TO ALL MGCC MEMBERS
www.mgcc.co.uk
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 89
REGISTERS
ZR/ZS/ZT
JOHN THOMPSON Tel: 07854 275541 johnt5@btinternet.com www.mgcc.co.uk/zedregister Events And Shows Our first event of 2019 took place on Sunday February 10 when we returned to the MG and Triumph Spares Day at Stoneleigh. Having been the traditional season opener for us for many years, it’s good to return to Stoneleigh regularly again. Two of our trio of display Zeds arrived for setting up on the Saturday afternoon with the third arriving first thing on Sunday morning. We are very lucky to now have the use of the Club’s own ZR Express Van. It created a lot of interest during the show as it is one of only 68 built with the 1.8 litre VVC engine. The van is ideal for promoting the Club, the
MG6.3.5
Register, and our ‘Save Our Zeds’ campaign at events. Look out for it at the NEC later in the month. Making a return was Ray Kemble’s Trophy Blue ZS 180. Our third Zed was Paul Field’s recently restored ZT-T 190. This is an ex-MG Rover’s director’s car finished in the Monogram colour Garnet. This was the first of only nine ZT-Ts produced in this colour. We had a very good day with lots of interest in our events, many enquiries about our ‘Save Our Zeds’ campaign, and some new contacts for the future. More importantly we got the Register out there and noticed. This has set us up in good stead for the NEC in March.
STEVE HAINES Steve-haines@live.co.uk www.facebook.com/groups/MG635Register https://twitter.com/635register There’s lots going on with event This year’s saloon day booking and organisation behind will be held on July 28 at the the scenes on the Committee Shuttleworth collection in for 2019. BTCC Media day is Bedfordshire. More information at Brands Hatch this year on to follow on this one. March 27. It looks like a major If you have any queries or rebuilding is under way of the ideas for events, please either faithful old MG6s and it will check out the Facebook page be interesting to see our new events tab or the MGCC web drivers in the Exceler8 MG6s for page on our Register micro page, the year… where there is a full list of events Our first big event for 2019 for the year. If you are going to an will be the Pride of Longbridge at event, please indicate attendance Cofton Park on April 13 and we so we can account for numbers on will be booking a large stand for stands and allocate enough space 6 and 3 close to our neighbours, for everyone. the SUV Register. All are very The 635 Register has been welcome to come along. We supporting new MG GS and ZS will need an idea of numbers, so owners since the models’ launch, please add your names to the but now the Facebook group Facebook event page. is being run by the new SUV
90 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
Upcoming Events With Stoneleigh now behind us, I will briefly mention our Meguiars Open Day on Saturday March 16. If you are interested in attending, we have a number of places left so don’t miss out on this opportunity. Our attention now turns to the Practical Classics Restoration & Classic Car show later this month. Our stand will include all three Zed models. The popular ZR Express Van will be returning to the limelight, and a certain yellow ZS will help us officially launch the ‘Save Our Zeds’ campaign. We have also managed to secure a ZT 260 to make up the three. I think we’ll have another eye-catching mix of colours! We are located near the entrance to Hall 5 – adjacent to the main Club stand and MGs on Track.
Charity Of The Year As we mentioned in our January notes, our Charity of the Year is the Stroke Association. We are raising money for them in a number of ways. Our Monogram Sunday event in August is a charity day, and we will be supporting ‘Super Car Saturday’ in October. If you visit our website we have recently set up a Just Giving web page at www. justgiving.com/fundraising/ mgcczedregister if you wish to make direct donations to the charity. We’re launching a new section on our website called Member of the Week which gives members the chance to showcase their Zeds for seven days whilst raising money for our charity. Please visit our website for further details.
Register Committee specifically for the SUVs after the official formation of the new Register. Any events supported by the 635 Register this year will be run very closely with the SUV Register. New owners most welcome!
If you have any ideas or wish to promote any events, please contact Sean Round: sean@ seanround.co.uk We look forward to meeting 6, 3 and SUV owners at a gathering very soon…
Distinctive 6 on display at Pride of Longbridge 2014 www.mgcc.co.uk
CL ASSIFIEDS
BARRY WALKER
Estd.1968
British Motor Heritage approved
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1934 PA 2-SEAT SPORTS WITH FULL HISTORY An opportunity to secure a professionally restored ‘P’ type. Not a sloppy, run-of-the mill rebuild. Phoenix c/b crank, Carillo rods, lightened flywheel, B/Jones cam, water pump and proper oil filter system. Superb paintwork in Burgundy and black, red leather interior, d/duck full weather gear and Blockley tyres. 5 huge history files back to the ‘30s, old buff log book and orig. reg. No. on V5c.........worth way more than the asking price of....... £39,750
1946 MG TC SPORTS One of a batch of TCs exported by Abingdon to Ceylon. Returned in 1952 and now a total chassis-up rebuild to the highest standard; all matching numbers. Very interesting history. All paper work, orig. buff log book, V5c and original registration. Reduced to.....................................................£37,500
1934 MG PA EX. LEICESTER POLICE CAR A very original car with full history. Period police photos, factory extras as recorded in the chassis file. In fine driving order with nice patina. Uprated engine and gear box and still finished in its original black with green trim. Very good value. Reduced to.......£35,000
1933 MG J2 - 2 SEAT SPORTS The ‘Amelia Island’ concours winning car. It has to be seen if you want to see how a J2 should be restored. Heavy crank, forged rods, deluxe dash, immaculate paint & Collingburn trim & weather gear. Finished in the original colour scheme of black with brown interior, of which only 12 were supplied...£48,750
We carry a range of side-mounted and nose mounted superchargers’ service accessories, mirrors, luggage racks, genuine tool kits and mascots – see website
FOR OTHER CARS IN STOCK – PLEASE SEE OUR WEBSITE
Robin Lawton
COMMISSION SALES: Our highly regarded service is always available toVintage you. & Classic car specialist Tel: 01789 400181. Fax: 01789 400230. Mob: 07836 244103 Email: barry@barrywalker.com Web: www.barrywalker.comOver 50
years experience
Busy Pre-Spring already - thinking of selling? Talk to us first!! Vintage & Classic car specialist Fellow Enthusiasts always welcome at our new Premises in the Heart of The Meon Valley Over 50
Robin Lawton
years experience
Busy Pre-Spring already - thinking ofof selling? Talk toTalk us first!! Busy Pre-Spring already - thinking selling? to us first!!
SHEPPERTON, MIDDLESEX TEL: 01932 241843 / 07836 281493 WWW.CHURCHSQUAREAUTOS.COM EMAIL: MGSALES@CHURCHSQUAREAUTOS.COM
Fellow Enthusiasts always welcome ournew new Premises in the Heart of TheofMeon Fellow Enthusiasts always welcome atatour Premises in the Heart TheValley Meon Valley
1960 MGA MK1 1600 Roadster in Iris Blue - totally restored 1924 Vauxhall 23/60 OD Kington Tourer
1952 Healey Tickford Sports Saloon
1924 Vauxhall 23/60 OD Kington Tourer
Imposing and powerful - ideal for longer distance touring
Imposing and powerful - ideal for longer distance touring
1952 Healey Tickford Sports Saloon
In fastidious ownership last 20 years, extensive history
In fastidious ownership last 20 years, extensive history
1954 MG TF - many extras
LD
SO
LD
SO
MG TF 160vvc + H/top (just 7,100 miles)
1937 MG TA - correct MPJG engine, VSCC eligible
1964 MGB Roadster - O/d, many upgrades
2004 (04 Reg) Manual, Petrol, A very very low mileage high spec TF160vvc. Finished in Xpower Grey with a Grenadine cockpit and Black leather sport seats with Grenadine alcantara inserts, colour coded hard top, black soft top, sports pack 2 with soft ride suspension having also been fitted. Previously supplied by us at 4,256 miles in September 2008. Serviced at 1010m / 2340m / 3160m / 4412m / 4600m / 4643m / 4652m / 4669m / 4702m / 4715m / 4825m / 6970m. Purchased 1933 Riley 9 Lynx - Almost Certainly the best in existence £49,500 1931 Riley Alpine 14/6 Fabric Saloon by us again at 4,809 miles in December 2016 resold in Jan 2017. Having now 1959 Austin Healey Sprite Mk I 1960 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite covered just 7,100 miles repeat 7,100 miles. Fully documented service history Please see Red full information on all of theexample Motor Cars we are currently by visiting Cherry - Lovely restored BRGoff - ering original RHDour Website 9 Lynx - Almost Certainly the best in existence £49,500 1931 Riley Alpine 14/6 Fabricborders Saloon (including cambelt services) and every mot. Just serviced (Jan 2019) 1933 plusRiley a new 01420 474919 enquiries@robinlawton.com Surrey/Hampshire/Sussex Please see full information on allTotal of the Motor Cars we are currently SOLD after just 3 days with us! restoration, exceptional throughout, much history Mot, Immaculate outstanding condition unrepeatable collectors car. £7,995 offering by visiting our Website SOLD after just 3 days with us!
Total restoration, exceptional throughout, much history
1932 Riley 9 Gamecock
www.robinlawton.com of the Motor Cars we are currently offering by visiting our Website FAMILY BUSINESS ESTABLISHED 1981. OUR OFFICE/Please see full information on all 01420 474919 enquiries@robinlawton.com 1932 Riley 9 Gamecock SHOWROOM IS AT 62B HIGH STREET SHEPPERTON TW17 9AU 01420 474919 enquiries@robinlawton.com Surrey/Hampshire/Sussex borders VIEWING BY APPOINTMENT PLEASE Surrey/Hampshire/Sussex borders
www.churchsquareautos.com
Robin Lawton March 19 Page.indd 1
www.robinlawton.com
March 19 Page 97.indd 1
www.mgcc.co.uk
06/02/2019 13:59
05/02/2019 11:58
Robin Lawton March 19 Page.indd 1
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 91
06/02/2019 13:59
CL ASSIFIEDS How to Advertise Members can advertise their cars free of charge in Safety Fast. The advert will also be posted on the Club website in due course. This is for one insertion only. To place an advert or for additional insertions email colingrant@mgcc.co.uk with details of your car, around 60 words, together with an attached picture, your contact information, price of your car, the area where you live, and membership number. Cost for non-members to advertise is £20. All adverts should be submitted by the 10th of the month for the following months issue.
WANTED
Looking for a lowish mileage Trophy Yellow MGF Trophy with good service history. Anything available? Please send details, pics & price to Bob at mgcarsscotland@gmail.com or call 07870 407111
1980 MGB Roadster
Excellent condition, mileage 67508, MOT to July 2019. New hood and tonneau, also cloth cover. The rubber bumpers have had the chrome conversion. £5500.Tel 07787363713 or 01625 820380.
1974 MGB Roadster
MG registered. Heritage shell 11k from rebuild exceptional condition Crome wires walnut dash and trim garaged tonneau covers Chelsea pewter colour blue leather seats etc drives well lovely car £15000. Tel 07817451360. (West Yorks)
WANTED MG ZR 160
2004 MG ZS120
Facelift model, 53k miles – Would make an excellent track car project! It has one (not so careful) female owner. Is a Cat D status. Shod with ZR180 straight-spoke wheels (good tyres). Radiator replaced. Would make for an awesome track car project, as you could strip the interior out, change the windows for plastic, and this much loved, but abused MG would absolutely fly. Overall, much too good to be scrapped! £400 - £500 or an offer. For more info Tel: 02034479888 07940 573534. (North London)
1973 MG B 1950 cc Car has been loving restored (the process has been recorded) 22842 miles. Front suspension lowered. Engine fully reconditioned with a high lift camshaft and overdrive. Recently engine tuned up including two new batteries. Excellent body and engine bay. Drives brilliantly. £14,950. Contact: Andrew on Mob 07540577725. (Nr Reading)
I’d like to rehome a ZR! Any condition considered although I’d prefer one that’s relatively original externally, but have no problem with head gasket issues, minor rust, suspension needing work, MOT failures or general untidiness. The car will be repaired and returned to the road for me to use, not to be sold on or broken up. Please contact Maddy.tomkins@hotmail.com.
1946 MG TC
1994 MG RV8
2005 MG ZR 160 5dr
One of the last made in the rare Firefrost Red with red alcantara interior. 82k miles and meticulously serviced by owner. Lots of paperwork & history, genuine & Xpower extras. MG ZS 11 spoke alloys. BCU new relays. Custom Xenon headlamps. Strut brace. Full Janspeed manifold, sport cat, stainless mid & rear box. Driver’s rear arch rust cut out and welded. Couple of small bodywork marks. A very high spec ZR. Future classic for £1950. Bromley, Kent 07743278342
Woodcote Green. Owned since 2009. Full service and maintenance records. Garaged and dry use only. MOT to end July 2019. 11,000 miles only - superb condition reflecting mileage. Asking price £20,000. Tel: 07774 888 144 or Email: lilianllewelyn@yahoo.co.uk (South Wales)
MG6 TC1 GT TSE. Service history, low mileage, leather heated seats, reversing camera. No colour preference, petrol model prefered. Please send details, photos & price to: d4ccopeman@aol.com
92 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
March. Chrome bumper. 2 family owners since 1976. Laid up for some years. Uprated front springs, shocks and anti-roll bar. Fitted wires. Solid and original but needs TLC. Fitted replacement B engine. Original included in sale and some parts. Best offer on 5500. 07775 737664 or germanuk@t-online.de (View W. Oxon)
1936 MGTA
TA0875 was restored from the ground up between 2008-2012 with new ash frame, new hood and side screens. It currently has the MPJG engine, 15 gallon wide tank, narrow rear wings and aero screens, and is in top condition. The current owner appears to be only the fourth owner. It is only being sold due to some health issues and three other classics to look after! The car is located near Huntingdon and is for sale at £35,000 or near offer. Email ysfparker@btinternet.com for more details.
1980 MGB Roadster
Rubber Bumper. White. Has been garaged for some years and not started. Car is intact but will need a bit of work to get it back on the road. It just needs to be loved again. £2000 ono. 01543377925 or mobile 07968494587. (West Midlands)
MG YT 1950
1968 MGCGT WANTED
British Racing Green. 1300 miles since full restoration by specialist. original buff log book. Much admired car with good history. £32000. Tel: 01933 350893. (Northamptonshire)
1974 MGB Roadster
Mineral Blue, In lovely condition and recently serviced, MoT until 21st March 2019 (Although MoT exempt from 20th May 2018) Loads of History and also comes with Heritage Certificate, Restored to original build. £21750 ono. Tel 07748146218. For further information email: stevencollins3@sky.com
RHD. Chassis no YT 4775, purchased April 2018 from private seller in California USA. UK duty paid and registered UK. Had extensive renovation over many years in Huntington Beach, by renowned MG expert G Goguen. Checked thro by present owner, adding flashing Indicators [ discreetly] for safety. Many boxes of new spares from a bulb to a half shaft, lots of paperwork, manuals, appraisals etc etc, Offers in the Mid £20.000.00 Oxfordshire 01235 835392 peter40stevens@gmail.com
MG SA Tickford
An “Edwardian” MG (built 1936 in K Ed 8’s reign!) – it is time to find a younger custodian of this elegant Coupé. Car has spent its entire life in the dry parts of South Africa, so is totally rust-free and lives in McGregor, near Cape Town. Very extensive work history available, as published in SVW Register “Technical Review” – copies available on request. £50 000 ono to the "right home". Keith Poole e-mail k-mpoole@lando.co.za or (27) 23 625 1306
www.mgcc.co.uk
CL ASSIFIEDS
1980 MGBGT MG SA Restoration Project Barn find. Complete with various SVW parts. Full restoration required. It is in 'basket case' state at present! £5900 ONO (all reasonable offers considered) Cherished registration number included: 'MG4869'. Email: johnclayton27@hotmail.com (Shrewsbury,Shropshire)
MG Midget 1500
Original UK car (RHD 1976) exported to Holland in 1979. One owner since. Due to passing away of the owner I am selling this car for his wife. The car is in excellent condition and driving very well. Dutch MOT till April 2021. A spare trunk lid in colour with luggage carrier is included. Email hans@maathuis.eu or phone +31165384118 for more details.
1939MG WA Keller Replica
Built in 1939 and exported to Malawi by factory. Reimported missing rear bodywork in 2000 and fully restored between 2008 & 2014. New body frame erected on chassis by SVW Spares & panelled by local expert. Painted in Rolls Royce Midnight Blue & upholstered in dark blue leather with dark blue double duck hood. Recent trip to Switzerland. £125,000.00 ono. Tel: 01388 526521 email m.standish521@btinternet.com (Co Durham)
4 owners. Mileage approx. 65000. Good condition with original striped seat covers. Regularly serviced with limited service history. Car was laid up for 13 years before current owner bought it. MOT until February 2020. Price £5250. Tel: Bill on 07946 155505. or Email billcarolevans602@gmail.com (Lincolnshire)
1959 MGA COUPE 1959 MGA TWIN CAM
Roadster in chariot red, with black interior and red piping, original from new. All as it should be. Off the button, owned 16-year plus. Paint minor blemishes, mechanically sound, 2 owners only in 30 years. A box full of original records, old MOTs, receipts etc etc., original green and buff registration documents, waxoyled, cinturato tyres, hood, tonneau and side screens good. £37,650. Tel: 01313432574. mandu787@gmail.com
Iris Blue, black leather trim. Low mileage. MOT to July 2019. MGB GT 1800cc engine. Converted to negative earth. Previously restored (photos included in sale). Extra photos of current condition available. Great winter project – requires some cosmetic chrome and paint work. £18,750. Contact (daytime): 01386 442758 ) to arrange viewing. (Worcestershire)
MG ZR 160 MK1
In Silver, manual, head gasket, cambelt and water pump all new. Lexus rear lights and spare originals. Good clean interior with BRM quilted door cards and dash. Great condition paint, wheels and tyres, 60,550 miles, huge history files from MG enthusiast owner, plus two remotes keys, currently sorned, full new MOT £1650 ovno. Call Peter 07739 760 950. (East Suffolk)
1978 MGBGT In absolutely stunning condition. Full professional restoration less than a year ago. Engine rebuilt by Brown and Gammons, restoration completed by Kim Cairns Classic cars. Numerous brand-new parts with original parts used where ever possible, lots of photos. A 1978 car but restored to look like a 1967 with appropriate chrome conversion, wire wheels, black leather interior, wood rim wheel etc. £7,495 ono. Tel: 01279 508386
SELLING YOUR CAR? 1929 M Type PROJECT
In pieces for many years but a lot of work carried out and a lot more to do!! Offers in excess of £12,000. Telephone 07503 670764 for further information. (Oxfordshire)
www.mgcc.co.uk
As a member of the MG Car Club you can advertise your car in Safety Fast for free. Just email your car details, max 60 words, together with a JPEG picture to Colin Grant at colingrant@mgcc.co.uk. Non member fee is £20
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 93
CL ASSIFIEDS
SPARES FOR SALE enquiries@mgsforsale.com
01707 876089
HOW TO ADVERTISE
www.mgsforsale.com
07831 556666 1980 MGBGT
MG SA Restoration Project Barn find. Complete with various SVW parts. Full restoration required. It is in 'basket case' state at present! £5900 ONO (all reasonable offers considered) Cherished registration number included: 'MG4869'. Email: johnclayton27@hotmail.com (Shrewsbury,Shropshire)
MG Midget 1500
Original UK car (RHD 1976) exported to Holland in 1979. One owner since. Due to passing away of the owner I am selling this car for his wife. The car is in excellent condition and driving very well. Dutch MOT till April 2021. A spare trunk lid in colour with luggage carrier is included. Email hans@maathuis.eu or phone +31165384118 for more details.
MGB Roadster 1967 Older Restoration (MUB211F), 3 synchro model with overdrive, first registered in Leeds in 1968, chrome bumpers, chrome wire wheels, original steering wheel, double duck hood, older early 90’s bare tub restoration by Colour Developments of Bradfordon Avon in Tartan Red with Black leather interior trim, restoration included complete power train, only three owners in last 27 years, heavy history file with photographic and documentary 1939MG WA from Keller evidence, invoices MGOC,Replica B Hive etc. etc. drives nicely, more recent upgrades include 12 voltinbattery conversion, electronic ignition, Built 1939 and exported to previously sold by us, just arrived, £14,950.00
Malawi by factory. Reimported missing rear bodywork in 2000 and 1959 MGA TWIN CAM fully restored between 2008 & Roadster in chariot red, with black 2014. New body frame erected on interior and red piping, original SEE OUR WEBSITE A COMPLETE LISTING OF OUR STOCK chassis by SVW Spares FOR & panelled from new. All as it should be. Off by local expert. Painted in Rolls the button, owned 16-year plus. Royce Midnight Blue & upholstered Paint minor blemishes, mechanically Do not confuse the above vehicles with cheaper inferior quality models offered elsewhere. Part exchange in leather with dark blue any dark make of blue Motor Car with generous allowances. Discounted cash purchases. by appointment only30 years. A sound, Viewing 2 owners only in please (available evenings & weekends) no obligation to purchase. All our vehicles carry a warranty, have an double duck hood. Recent trip to box full of original records, old MOT and are fully serviced prior to collection/delivery. Switzerland. £125,000.00 ono. MOTs, receipts etc etc., original Tel: 01388 526521 email green and buff registration docum.standish521@btinternet.comwww.mgmecca.co.uk ments, waxoyled, cinturato tyres, (Co Durham) Tel: +44 (0) 1953 717618 Fax: (0) 1953side 717850 hood, tonneau and screens good. £37,650. Tel: 01313432574. mandu787@gmail.com
URGENTLY WANTED ANY MG ANY YEAR, ANY CONDITION
www.mgsforsale.com
1968 MGC, Old English White, black trim with red pipe. Restored 8 years ago, bill for well over minilites, alloy maintained by In Silver, Amanual, head gasket, enthusiast. superb example £22,995 cam£15,000. Lita,MK1 knock on MG ZRMoto 160 rad. Body excellent. Very well
belt and water pump all new. Lexus rear lights and spare originals. Good clean interior with BRM quilted door cards and dash. Great condition paint, wheels and tyres, 60,550 miles, huge history files from MG enthusiast owner, plus two remotes keys, currently sorned, full new 1972 MGB ROADSTER, blue07739 , ochre MOT £1650 ovno. Callteal Peter trim. W/w, o/drive. A superbly original car, best 760 950. (East Suffolk) example of very rare ochre trim i`ve ever seen. Genuine 80,000 from new with full history. Excellent body, nice engine bay, drives superbly, nice original patina, cars like this come avaliable very rarely. £12,995
1957 MGA 1500 Old English White, red trim, w/w. Absolutely lovely car, restored very well a few years ago. Tonneau cover. Lovely panel fit. Reliable. Lady owner last 15 years. Used for many tours, loads of history. A superb car. £24,995
1978 MGBGT In absolutely stunning condition.
Full professional restoration less than a year ago. Engine rebuilt by Brown and Gammons, restoration completed by Kim Cairns Classic cars. Numerous brand-new parts with original parts used where ever 1959 MGA 1600lots BRG, trim. L/H/D. Original possible, ofblack photos. A 1978 car European car not USA. Chrome wires, boot rack, butengine. restored to Drives look really like well, a 1967 1800cc Tonneau. used for continental touring many times. Great looking appropriate chrome convercar,with nice usable condition. £19,995 sion, wire wheels, black leather interior, wood rim wheel etc. £7,495 ono. Tel: 01279 508386
SELLING YOUR CAR? 1929 M Type PROJECT
MGB Erminefor White (likeyears Old English), In pieces many but a black lot oftrim, red pipe. Antique Red carpets. Sports leather work carried out and a lotAllmore to seats. Moto Lita wheel. Minilites. new chrome. Red boot carpets, mohair hood. Genuine 55,000 do!! excessshell, of recent £12,000. miles Offers from new.inSuperb respray. Drives superbly.07503 A super 670764 car. £11,995for furTelephone ther information. (Oxfordshire)
94 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
As a member of the MG Car Club you can advertise your car in Safety Fast for free. Just Blue, email car 1966 MG MIDGET. Midnight redyour trim, black seats. 1098 engine. These are getting very rare max 60Lotswords, nowdetails, to find. New hood. of patina,together body has marks and small dents, as expected from a car with JPEG that’s been a used for overpicture 50 years.to JustColin had complete hanger and floor on n/s. Not Grantnewatrearcolingrant@mgcc.co.uk. many left like this £4,295 Non member fee is £20
4 owners. Mileage approx. 65000. Good condition with original striped seat covers. Regularly serviced with limited service history. Car was laid up for 13 years before current owner bought it. MOT until February 2020. Price £5250. Tel: Bill on 07946 155505. or Email billcarolevans602@gmail.com (Lincolnshire)
Members can advertise their spares for sale/wanted free of charge for items up to £250. Over £250, or for non-members to advertise, there is a charge of £20. To submit your advertisement email Colin Grant at colingrant@mgcc.co.uk. Please remember to include your membership number in all correspondence. All adverts should be submitted by December 4th for the January issue.
MGTF 2004
Front and rear suspension units, covered approx 25000 miles £120. MG Midget: Various tyres and ROstyle wheels. Tel 07703 532507
Wire Wheel 1959 MGA COUPE
Iris Blue, black leather trim. Low mileage. MOT to July 2019. MGB GT 1800cc engine. Converted to negative earth. Previously restored (photos included in sale). Extra photos of current condition available. Great winter project – requires some cosmetic chrome and paint work. £18,750. Contact (daytime): 01386 442758 ) to arrange viewing. (Worcestershire)
WANTED WANTED ALL MG MODELS! All conditions wanted, from barn finds to concours. Complete collections purchased. Cash buyer. Discretion assured. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you are interested in selling your MG and are looking for a prompt hassle-free cash buyer! Please feel free to contact me for a no obligation friendly chat.
I am especially interested in the following models: MG TC, MGA, MGB, MGC, MGB V8, Magnette and Midget.
CALL DIRECT ON: 07787 528131 UK Based Buyer
MIDGETS! WANTED
Contact the Midget Specialist MIKE AUTHERS on Abingdon 07703 465 224 CHROME BUMPERED MIDGETS in excellent condition bought up to £8,000. View current stock at
www.mgmidgets.com
19” x 2 ½ “ side laced Fitted with a 4.50 x 19” Dunlop tyre. £80.00. Tel: 01483 487546 or email: marystanley@talktalk.net
MGB
Back axle complete (wire wheel hubs) Overdrive gearbox. condition unknown FREE buyer collects. e-mail myrtlemoxom@aol.com (Weymouth)
XPAW
Used engine and gearbox, with starter, dynamo, inlet and exhaust manifolds, parts of the SU carb. It is a BM Gold Seal replacement unit part no 168630 engine no D 49929 HD (Wolseley 4/44), this unit having a 8" clutch. £1,900 Transport may be arranged Tel : Richard on 01833 660000 email: rgb_architects@gmx.com
MGB and MGF Parts
Rostyle Wheels and Tyres plus chrome wheel trims and centre caps, with Firestone tyres 165/ 14R/ 84T £95 MGB Original Steering Wheel with boss fitted £25 MGF Steering wheel, all black £25 MGF pair of Seats with headrests, patterned centres material and green piping, good condition, only slight mark of driver bolster piping, complete with all wiring £80 MGB Alloy Rocker Cover and gasket £20 MGB filter pair of, mounting plate bolts missing £20 Bucket Seats, pair of, Suede trimmed, with frames runners and brackets £100 Call Peter on 07739 760950 (East Suffolk)
Glass Burette
50 ml; used for accurate measurement of combustion chamber volume during head work. £25. Email: jshross@btinternet.com
www.mgcc.co.uk
REGIST T15 EM
Turbo 1. MG ??. krg969@ (Hampsh
123 Ele
From MG can be u Clean, g £145.00. 0192367 (Watford
Sealey
Model no tion. Hois for transp Will go in seats fol only. £6 (Scarbor
MGB P
Parts ref Bonnet £ Leather Hub £50 Box (non Cleaners fold. Orig £5. Fron Front stu Hubs £1 ter cylind £5. P/En 25D & 4 (new)£10 £5. Many individua £150. Bu Tel: 0130
MGB H
Finished good con Could be £475.00.
MG ZA
Used en was runn ZA. Com dynamo, radiator. Turns ov unknown Telephph peter40s
MGB
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REGISTRATION FOR SALE T15 EMG
Turbo 1.5 Engine MG. This IS Eco MG ??. £800 ono, please contact krg969@sky.com, 07955 767674 (Hampshire)
123 Electronic Distributor
Running board
Strip set for TD. Part No.281-248. Brand new in original packaging. List price £86, sell £43. Please telephone 01204 494597 (Bolton)
MG Z Magnette
From MGB. Adjustable settings so can be used on other engines. Clean, good condition. £145.00. Tel. Mike on 01923678160 or 07967146204 (Watford)
New & boxed. Speedo, fuel pump, stop/tail lamp, Dip switch, solenoid Also: Register badge, Workshop manual, glove box book, badge bar plus various glass and lots more. Tel: 01872 510373 (Mid Cornwall)
Sealey Engine Hoist
MGA
Model no ph10 very good condition. Hoist 1 ton when stored or for transport 62 inch x 17inch Will go in back of most cars with seats folded down. For collection only. £60. Tel 01723 374237. (Scarborough, North Yorkshire)
MGB PARTS FOR SALE.
Competition style windscreen 7ins height made from original frame with. Polished alloy side posts and Perspex screen, good useable condition but needs new frame to body rubber seal. £250 MGB. 3/4in front anti roll bar kit, includes drop links and centre mountings . As new £50 Buyer to collect or can deliver to MG live. For more info and or photos Tel 0191 5860075.
BELT-UP
©
SAFETY
FOR CLASSIC PROTECTION BELT- UP ©
SAFETY
SPECIALISTS IN SEATBELTS AND RESTRAINTS UK manufactured restraints for your cherished MG, classic or modern we have the products for you, including:
-UP • 2 and 3 point BELT ©
S Aseatbelts. FETY • •
BELT- UP
©
SAFETY
Static and retractable restraints. Classic retro or modern components. Complete vehicle kits and Fitting components.
Parts refurbished or in vgc. Bonnet £30. Boot Lid £30. • Leather rim Steering wheel and Hub £50. Wind Stop £20. Gear Box (non O/D) £35. Original air Cleaners £15. HS4 Carb & maniAll products are tested fold. Original cast exh manifold to relevant safety £5. Front Shock Absorbers £15. WANTED standards where Front stub Axles & Steel Wheel MG X Power Bucket race seat. Hubs £10. Single line brake masrequired Either cloth or leather. Please ter cylinder £20. O/E Oil filter unit H14 - ALDON_CLASSIC 18/01/2016 10:43 Page 1 send details, pics & price to Bob £5. P/Eng Starter £10. Distributer at mgcarsscotland@gmail.com or 25D & 45D £10. Facet Fuel pump call 07870 407111 (new)£10. Clutch slave cylinder £5. Many other items. Sold as individual items or as “Job Lot” WANTED £150. Buyer collects. MG TC grille with grille slats nose Tel: 01302 772140 (S/Yorks) emblem in any condition. Email
WANTED
Tel: 02393 990 081
e-mail: sales@beltupsafety.com www.beltupsafety.com
MGB HARDTOP
rupakghosh.80@gmail.com
Finished in black, glass windows, good condition and unmarked. Could be a works hardtop. Price: £475.00. Tel: 0131343 2574
MG ZA/ ZB //MGA
Used engine for sale (red engine) was running when removed from ZA. Complete with starter, dynamo, carbs and manifolds,and radiator. Clutch, gearbox, prop etc. Turns over but internal condition unknown. Sensible offers. Telephphoen: 01235 835392, peter40stevens@gmail.com
MGB
Old age forces garage clearout. Sensible offers for Laycock Type D Overdrive ( 3 synchro) spares or overhaul. 4 synchro gearbox good working order with uprated competition overdrive. Narrow Gearbox tunnel ( complete) cut out of early MGB, in primer. Suit early Heritage build . 4 185/70 14 Tyres ( worn) on 60 spoke wires – 3 chrome /1 painted. Ideal for storing car over winter. Assorted Speedos / rev counters/ Distributors. Call for details. Brand new Dunlop SP Sports 185/70/ R15 82-R, Rallye Mud or Snow on Brand new 72 spoke wire wheel - £150. Telephone: 01737-553417 (Croydon Nr M25/M23 junc)
Garage clear-out, after 50 years in MG’s I am trying to retire and get rid of all the junk. (Sorry not PC, all the beautiful previously cherished parts!) A lot of it is competition and ‘fast road’ but ‘normal’ stuff as well. Please go to my web site www.hewittsracing.co.uk and click on spares. I can also build you a good engine, and have time for just one more rebuild/ renovation.
Please ring 07831 104020 for a chat.
SPARES FOR SALE HOW TO ADVERTISE
Members can advertise their spares for sale/wanted free of charge for items up to £250. Over £250, or for non-members to advertise, there is a charge of £20. To submit your advertisement email Colin Grant at colingrant@mgcc.co.uk. Please remember to include your membership number in all correspondence. All adverts should be submitted by December 4th for the January issue.
MGTF 2004
www.mgcc.co.uk
Front and rear suspension units, covered approx 25000 miles £120. MG Midget: Various tyres and ROstyle wheels. Tel 07703 532507
REGISTRATION FOR SALE T15 EMG
Turbo 1.5 Engine MG. This IS Eco MG ??. £800 ono, please contact krg969@sky.com, 07955 767674 (Hampshire)
123 Electronic Distributor
Running board
Strip set for TD. Part No.281-248. Brand new in original packaging. List price £86, sell £43. Please telephone 01204 494597 (Bolton)
MG Z Magnette
From MGB. Adjustable settings so can be used on other engines. Clean, good condition. £145.00. Tel. Mike on 01923678160 or 07967146204 (Watford)
New & boxed. Speedo, fuel pump, stop/tail lamp, Dip switch, solenoid Also: Register badge, Workshop manual, glove box book, badge bar plus various glass and lots more. Tel: 01872 510373 (Mid Cornwall)
Sealey Engine Hoist
MGA
Model no ph10 very good condition. Hoist 1 ton when stored or for transport 62 inch x 17inch Will go in back of most cars with seats folded down. For collection only. £60. Tel 01723 374237. (Scarborough, North Yorkshire)
Competition style windscreen 7ins height made from original frame with. Polished alloy side posts and Perspex screen, good useable condition butSAFETY needs new frame MARCH 2019 FAST! 95to body rubber seal. £250 MGB. 3/4in front anti roll bar kit, includes drop links and centre
CM03.16/H14/ff
ALE
CL ASSIFIEDS
Insurance for all MG’s classic and modern
Colne Classics
Call for a quote today
01376 574000
www.classiccarinsurance.co.uk
STEVE McKIE SPORTSCARS CHESTERFIELD
MG Power Steering and restoration specialists
•
DERBYSHIRE
Specialists in the repair and restoration of MG cars Suppliers of parts for • MGA • MGB • MGC • Midget • T Type • MGF/TF
www.stevemckiesportscars.co.uk
View the website on www.colneclassics.com B1 Seaden Court, Gorse Lane Ind Est, Clacton, Essex. 01255 432693, 07714 675319
NEW MGB Baulk Rings
Tel 01246 454527 • Fax 01246 453681 Albert Street North, Chesterfield, S41 8NP Custom made and standard fit covers for your car from £99
Steve McKie Sports Cars Hi-Res.indd 1 www.bighealey.co.uk
CNC Machined in the U.K. to our specification
23/06/2010 13:46
Premium Quality since 2003
Brass 2nd & 3rd/4th
• Custom Indoor from £150
£59.95+VAT
• Custom Waterproof Outdoor £295 • Standard fleece-lined breathable from £112
Steel 4 synchro
£49.50+VAT
• Soft Indoor Stretch from £99 NEW! (Covers for all other cars too)
(Prices are subject to change. Please see our website!)
For the ‘best’ in MG high-performance Parts Hotline: +44 (0)1543 472244 E-mail: sales@bighealey.co.uk Kimble-SF_Nov-09.qxd:Kimble MGE 1_8 col 3.3DE13 26/10/09 DENIS WELCH MOTORSPORT, YOXALL, BURTON-ON-TRENT, STAFFS 8NA, UK
The Great British
Steering Wheel
13:0
Online database for the perfect cover at www.carcovershop.co.uk Tel 01780 749449
I-240085.indd 1
15/05/2017 13:33
The Brooklands We manufacture the BROOKLANDS
Steering Wheel from the original BLUEMEL tooling. It is not a Far Eastern copy and is made using the original methods and traditional materials. The CENTRE BOSS fixing kit, again from the original tooling, not only fits the MG TC and pre-war MGs, but the TD, TF and MGA. There are boss kits for other makes and kit cars too.
Ww14” ENo Nalso in NOW ABLE Ivo AILry AV
Now also 15½ inch wheel
BROOKLANDS AEROSCREENS are made using laminated glass to original specification to suit all vintage and sports cars.
john@johnkimble.co.uk
K KIMBLE
Manor Garage & Sons! Tel: 01235 767751
EST 1969
Tel: 01803 835757 Fax: 01803 834567
Unit 5, Old Mill Creek, Dartmouth, Devon TQ6 0HN.
URGENTLY WANTED MGA/MGB/MGC/V8/ MIDGET/SPRITE ETC
Any Condition from non runners to rebuilt cars
Please call Edward 01923 840236 or any time on 07774 484497 Email: ejwhitescars@aol.com Website: www.mgandporsche.com (Northwood, Middlesex)
96 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
• • • •
• • • •
Servicing and MOT Work Sill Replacement Restoration Professionally Spot Welded Gearbox rebuilds we have a stock of 4 synchro reverse gears that are currently not available Engine rebuilds Wiring looms fitted Very large stock of new parts for mail order 25 Years in Business
FREE 20-50 oil WITH EVERY SERVICE
Failing 6v batteries?
Fit Manor Garages twin 12v conversion.
Still 12v but with double the capacity. Fits existing battery boxes, with minimal extra wiring. Reliable starting power after your MG has been parked up. KIT £150 +vat.
Visit our website: www.manorgaragewantage.co.uk www.mgcc.co.uk
Call for a quote today
01376 574000
B4 - BARRIE CARTER_CLASSIC MOTORING 21/02/2019 11:20 Page 1
Insurance for all MG’s classic and modern
TC Race/fast road car, allegedly twice championship winner, fully modified to T reg. specs. Full race 1350 engine! “1/2” S.Us branched manifold, plumbed in ext. comp clutch, alloy body panels, 15” wheels, tramp bars modified brakes, teles, cage, race seat, and more. It’s as scruffy as raced and very quick. Ideal circuit, race or hillclimb. £23,950
Vauxhall 10, 1939. This lovely car was the property of a friend who used to show it. It appears to have had an historic body off rebuild and kept its lovely original interior. We are just finalizing engine work and it will have to be run in by its new owner. Not many like this.... £9,995
MGA race car, Prepared for the US series and raced at Watkins Glen. 1650 all steel engine, Kinky race seat, LSD, Fully plumbed in system, triple Mater Cyls, wires, uprated brakes, race suspension mods, lovely rot free body and chassis. Three GP wings one steel, steel wings available, fuel cell, twin facets, so much and so cheap. LHD but if you’re racing, no one’s coming the other way. Eligible for so many events or road. So cheap! £23,950
FIAT 124 COUPE 1975 RHD. Superb interior with dash protector, mini-lite rep wheels. Unmarked paintwork, lovely chrome. In lovely un-welded condition, you will never find one like this. Beautiful inside and out. £9,995
Citroen 2CV6 Dolly. What a lovely 2CV. Probably the best I’ve had. Plums and Custard they call the colour but this one has a gorgeous all leather Plums and Custard interior, lovely floors and panels, eyebrows, leccy ignition, Remote control radio, history and indicates 26,000 miles. It’s lovely and drives as it should. Faster than you think and handles and stops superbly and you can get a bike in the back!! 2CVs are highly collectable and appreciating... one of the last ones built. £8,995 Austin A40 Somerset, somewhat different, 30 odd years in the same garage owner’s possession, Already a very low mileage and unmolested car, he prepared it for long distance reliability rallies. It still has its Targa and Le Jog plaques. The brakes were uprated to A60, teles, uprated diff, and has a 1500 MGA type 1500 engine and modified it to. You’ll never find a better one. Goes extremely well, as you’d expect. Looks standard though. It’s lovely. £12,995
Amilcar body with dicky seat, 20s/30s in very good condition. Ready to fit a medium sized chassis. Body, wings, running boards, hood, doors, bonnet, all good and ready to fit. £3,250
CM04.19/B4/pa
I owned this incredible Alfa/Riley special about 30 odd years ago and marvelled at its fabulous design and hand beaten aluminium body panels and Panache. Built on a shortened Riley chassis it is a true special. Registered 1952 and with 2 ltr Alfa engine and 5 speed box it encompasses all that is vintage and classic imaging the style of prewar Alfas. It is a sculpture and drives as you would expect. Gorgeous and unique, and a star any where it goes and at fraction of its mentor. £26,950
www.classiccarinsurance.co.uk
ADVERTISERS’ INDEX
www.barriecartermg.com
4Sight Lighting Company....................76
JLH Minor Restoration.........................52
Adrian Flux ..........................................53
Just Right Autos Ltd.............................64
Aldon Automotive ................................95
Kimble Engineering Ltd .......................96
Autoseal...............................................27 Barrie Carter .......................................97 Barry Walker .......................................91
Manor Garage .....................................96 Martin Smith Used MGTF Spares ......27
Belt-Up Safety Products ......................95
MG Mecca...........................................94
Bespoke Rallies ..................................60
MG Motorsport ...................................53
British Motor Heritage.........................IFC
MG Sales Centre .................................39
Brown and Gammons.........................11
Midland Classic Restoration ..................3
Carole Nash Insurance ......................27 Church Square Autos ..........................91 Classic & Sports Cars (Essex)..............78
Mike Authurs Classics .........................94 Mike Satur ...........................................83 Moss Europe Ltd .................................38
College Motors Burford .......................76
Motor Wheel Services .........................72
Colne Classics .....................................96
NTG Services....................................OBC
Classic Motor Hub ...............................47
Oselli Ltd .............................................53
Crown Classic Cars .............................87
Paul Depper MGs ................................89
David Manners ......................................6
1989
Longstone Tyres .................................54
Beech Hill Garage................................93
Car Cover Shop ..................................96
EST’D
MG GEARBOX AXLE DIFFERENTIAL OVERDRIVE SPECIALISTS OVERHAUL – REPAIR – EXCHANGE UNITS
FULL WORKSHOP FITTING SERVICE AVAILABLE
All work carried out by time-served BMC/BL engineers
Worldwide Mail Order Service Visit our eBay Shop and Website for products and details Unit 20c (Rear of 20/22)
T 020 8577 1505
Greater London TW3 1UA
w heathrowtransmissions.co.uk
DONHOODS-SFAug07.QXD:Layout 1 23/9/09 16:22 Page 1 Hanworth Road, Hounslow E heathrowtransmissions@gmail.com
URGENT PROOF
DON HOODS
Peter Best ..............................IBC, 96, 97 Dennis Welch.......................................96Please check this proof carefully for errors in style, content and layout. Peter James Insurance .........................9 Distributor Doctor.................................83Although every care is exercised in preparing your advert, we cannot hold Rees Bros ............................................76 Don Trimming ......................................97ourselves responsible for any inaccuracies you may overlook. Retro Sports Cars .................................6 Duckhams ..........................................29
UNBEATABLE QUALITY – UNBEATABLE VALUE! DIRECT FROM THE MAKERS – WITH OVER 40 YEARS EXPERIENCE
SHOULD YOU REQUIRE ANY ALTERATIONS TO THIS PROOF PLEASE
EJW Classic and Sports ......................96
Rimmer Bros Ltd .................................34
Fishers Services ..................................74
Robin Lackford Motor Engineering .....83
Footman James ..................................31
Robin Lawton ......................................91
___ TELEPHONE BEFORE _ _ _ _ _ _ _ AND •BETTER QUOTE ADVERT NO. _ _ QUALITY THAN ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT
Foston’s Ash Inn ..................................70 Frontline...............................................42 Get Patina ............................................48 Halls Garage ........................................76
Scenic Car Tours .......................... 13, 19 SMR ....................................................94 Steve McKie Sports Cars.....................96
•STITCHED AND WELDED FOR MAXIMUM LIFE •WIDEST CHOICE OF COLOURS AVAILABLE •ALL FASTENERS & FITTINGS INCLUDED D PRICE FOR LEAFLET AN LIST CONTACT Ltd Don Trimming Co. 7JJ
Choice of heavy duty PVC, ICI Vynide, Everflex, Duc k and Mohair AL MAKES & L incl: MG, MODELS Tr Escort, Giumph, olf etc.
ingham B23 Hampton Road, Birm
The Hutson Motor Co Ltd ......................3 1313 373proof We reserve the right to charge for any alteration to this which Tel: 0121 Hewitt Racing ......................................95 Torro Sports Cars Ltd...........................94 N SALES OFFICE SOUTHER is a departure from the original copy 00 22 CARPET SETS FOR MOST 74 Hoyle Suspension ................................72 Vitesse Global Ltd ................................74 MODELS Tel: 01202 Heathrow Transmission .......................97
www.donhoods.com
www.mgcc.co.uk
MARCH 2019 SAFETY FAST! 97
LOOKING BACK IF YOU CAN TELL US MORE ABOUT ANY OF THESE CARS OR THE EVENTS, WE ARE ALWAYS KEEN TO HEAR FROM YOU AT KIMBER HOUSE; CONTACT THE MGCC ARCHIVIST PETE NEAL ON PETERNEAL@MGCC.CO.UK.
The official publication of The MG Car Club Incorporating ‘The M.G. Magazine’, ‘The Sports Car’ and ‘Brooklands Track and Air’, Safety Fast! Copyright MG Car Club 2019 Editor: Andy Knott 01235 849730 / 01235 555552 andyknott@mgcc.co.uk Deputy Editor: Colin Grant 01235 849733 colingrant@mgcc.co.uk Editorial Committee: William Ball, Andy Knott, Colin Grant, Adam Sloman PR and Communications: Jade Beckett 01233 849731 Advertising: Hine Marketing 01452 730770 Published by: Hine Marketing, Hill Farm Studios, Wainlodes Lane, Bishops Norton Glos, GL2 9LN. Tel: 01452 730770 Distributed by: Air Business. Merlin Centre, 4 The, Acrewood Way, St Albans AL4 0JY Tel: 01727 890600 President: John Day Vice Presidents: Ron Gammons, Don Hayter, Peter Best, Bill Silcock. Chairman: Dave Tynan Vice Chairman: George Wilder
O
ur first image, from the Alan Peacock collection, shows the delightful Jacques Coune, MGB based, special bodied Belinette Coupe from the early 1960s. We believe this photo was taken at an MGB Register event at Stanford Hall in August 1968. Perhaps you can tell us more, especially about the gentleman with his hands full of silverware. Gary Hilton has asked for help in tracing his late father’s red MGA 1500, registered 837 JMV. The photo shows Gary’s father with the car in the late 1960s. The car is registered at DVLA, but has not been taxed since 1983. If the car can be traced Gary would very much like to acquire it if possible and restore it. If anyone can help please email mgcarclub_mgaregistrar@hotmail.com Who needs Formula One when you can watch MG Midgets bouncing off the kerb like this! Can you add any further details regarding these colourful little racers?
Treasurer: Richard Colston Directors: Dave Saunders, Peter Opie and Peter Cook Company Secretary: Colin Grant Staff Members: Adam Sloman (General Manager 01235 849732), John Hutchison (Competitions Secretary 01235 849738), Andy Knott (01235 849730), Lauran Gallacher (Assistant General Manager 01235 849735), Liz Allsworth (Membership Secretary 01235 849734), Colin Grant (01235 849733), Jade Beckett (01233 849731), Cherina Scarrott (Finance Officer 01235 849736) and Ineke Sherman (Merchandise 01235 849737) Honorary Members: Michael Allison, Ron Gammons, Peter Best, Don Hayter, John Quenby, Sir Stirling Moss, Paddy Hopkirk, Norman Ewing, Piers Hubbard, Rob Oldaker, Steve Hanegan, Gerry McGovern, June Wallis, Ann Hawke, John Dutton, John Day, Julian White, Bill Silcock. Company limited by guarantee The Club, as a corporate body established as the MG Car Club Limited, is a company limited by guarantee. Every member of the Club undertakes to contribute to the assets of the Club in the event of its being wound up while he is a member, or within one year after he ceases to be a member, for payment of the debts and liabilities of the Club contracted before he ceases to be a member, and the costs, charges and expenses of winding up, and for the adjustment of the rights of the contributors among themselves, such amount as may be required, not exceeding one pound. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information at the time of going to press, neither The Publisher (herein referred to as Hine Marketing), the Editor, nor the MG Car Club can accept any responsibility or loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from action as a result of any material in the publication. The opinions of authors are their own and Hine Marketing, the Editor and the MG Car Club are not bound to agree with opinions expressed herein. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Safety Fast! and The MG Car Club badge are protected through trademark registration in the UK and in the foreign countries where Safety Fast! circulates. Readers are warned that if they attempt any mechanical or other modifications or methods referred to herein, they do so at their own risk and no liability will attach to the MG Car Club, the Editor nor Hine Marketing. Neither shall the MG Car Club, the Editor nor Hine Marketing have any responsibility for the accuracy of the content of the editorial, neither the content of any advertisement published in Safety Fast! It should be noted that neither Hine Marketing, the Editor, nor the MG Car Club make any recommendation in respect of any goods and/ or services advertised or featured in this issue. It is the responsibility of readers to satisfy themselves that the goods or services offered or referred to are bona fide and in no instance shall Hine Marketing, the Editor or the MG Car Club be held responsible for the quality or suitability of any such items.
98 SAFETY FAST! MARCH 2019
www.mgcc.co.uk
classic car insurance PBIS specialises in classic car insurance, as well as insurance for other collectable classic vehicles. We have been supporting the MG Car Club, its Centres & Registers, for over 30 years so we know what is important to you. Approved Insurance Provider
Our ‘Abingdon’ policy covers classic use for MG’s 3 years and older.
Policy benefits may include: • Free agreed valuations • Roadside assistance and recovery within UK/EU • Limited mileage options • Discounts for multiple car ownership • Club member discounts
ask us today about our classic mg cover call now for an instant quote
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visit: www.classiccar www.classiccarinsurance.co.uk email: info@classicc info@classiccarinsurance.co.uk
Peter Best Insurance Services Ltd Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registration No. 307045 | Registered in England No. 2210270
Parts for TA to TF 1936-55, YA YB YT, MGA & Magnette. Secure online shopping at: www.mgbits.com or by phone. Worldwide shipping.
T&Y Type or MGA & Z series catalogues- email or phone for your copy Disc brake conversions for most models (TD TF YB shown) from
ÂŁ612
NTG Motor Services Ltd 282-284 Bramford Road Ipswich IP1 4AY Tel: +44(0)1473 406031/2 Fax: +44(0)1473 742087 sales@mgbits.com British Motor Heritage Approved - founded 1966