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For those of you in the area the annual GOF for the Texas MG clubs will be held in Salado Texas this week end at the Stagecoach Inn. From Thursday till Sunday the car show is downtown on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. There is always a good turnout and is great car show. The evenings in the parking lot at the Inn aren't too shabby either. Lots of horror stories about MG'S, little libation and lots of friends. OK OK lots of libations!! And maybe a cigar or two. If anybody interested you can e-mail me for details until... MORE
I think you're correct Jeremy, only Cooper Ss (and the occasional MG 1300) had 11 stud heads as standard. David "David Jacobs" 21717... MORE
standard Metro Turbos used 9 studs. David "David Jacobs" 21716... MORE
Thanx, David... Wasn't sure. Figured like the higher compression Cooper "S" 1275 engines, the 11 stud head config. might be used on the later standard Turbo Metro. Guess any weakness was really in the block and not the head, in view of the fact the later "A+" blocks were ribbed and even stronger than the later thick- walled "A"'s, yet evidently used only a 9 stud rather than 11 stud cylinder head configuration even on a turbo motor....interesting. Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 21718... MORE
Yesterday I happened to be in Bakersfield California returning from a 4,633 mile round trip to Louisiana when outside the window of the restaurant I was having breakfast at was parked a 74 MG Midget. A woman left the restaurant and headed toward it. Curious I rushed out and spoke to her. "There is a big British car event nearby in Buttyonwillow" she said. "You should go over and have a look" she added. Seeing that is was only a mile off I 5 which I was headed for that seemed like a good suggestion, even though dark pendulous... MORE
Ohhh, great. It appears that there are no holes there. I see holes for chrome trim and a single larger hole on the driver door but no holes that one would attach a mirror to. And speaking of attaching a mirror...how is that done? My restoration book sucks at the details. "Virginia" 21655... MORE
0s. You can get a lot of e 'old' 900 (K reg and before). ith the backs seat down. It has been reliable and cheap to insure, true! But, when I said practical I meant a car in which you don't need to wear a blanket over you in the winter, will sit on the motorway at 85mph and will carry surfboards! ********************************************************************** This message is confidential as it contains information about the person we are sending it to. If you have received this message by mistake, please de lete it and do not copy it to anyone else.... MORE
"....now I'm wondering..." Chris... Bearing in mind Peter C.'s response to you're problem with respect to different tolerances for different valve guide materials, what did the machine shop have to say on "clearances" in terms of the way the job was done initially. Did you "learn" anything in this respect which might reflect on the original job? Did your cam come as a "kit", most especially with respect to valve springs (poundage) to be used with this cam grind utilizing the STOCK rocker ratio? Most likely, according to my mechanic, the best you can hope for out of the... MORE
I do 8-10k miles a year in my mk2 Sprite so they can be practical you just have to spend a bit of time and money fixing all the problems that have bui lt up through the neglect of previous ownership. Yes you might spend some money on it but eventually every problem will be fixed and you'll have a re liable car that is cheap to maintain and insure and doesn't depreciate. one you own! It's in pretty good nick as it had a full rebuild of engine & body around 1 0 years ago. There are a... MORE
Finally decided that the Midget is not a practical car when it's the only o ne you own! It's in pretty good nick as it had a full rebuild of engine & body around 1 0 years ago. There are a few cosmetic spots of rust appearing, but no rot as yet. I've got some pics on: http://uk.photos.yahoo.com/superfluker Since we've owned it (my wife has been driving to work everyday in it) we'v e spent a fair amount of cash on repairs, including your standard servicing (at MG specialist), new exhaust, fuel pipes, wiring problems and seized st eering... MORE
Ok...I'm looking in the Haynes Restoration manual at how to replace the seats. It goes into great detail about recovering the seats but not much into how to take the old seats out so I can put the new seats in. I'm sure it's a simple matter of unfastening some bolts but want to make sure before I start. I'm also missing the rails that the passenger seat slides on. Can those be ordered by themselves? Ginger "Virginia" 21588... MORE
My Mk2 Sprite doors had no padding on them, just red vinyl with a slight ridge at the edges when I purchased it new in Jan. 62. They will be that way when I get to that point in my restoration. Nelson "Nelson Wittstock" 21582... MORE
This isn't an 'either or' situation, I think there is room for both. My mk2 Sprite has to earn it's living and doing 10k miles a year I could not do that without my Toyota 'box, 1275 and to a lesser extent my HIF44. I really believe though that if all Spridgets had to be original then there would be less Spridgets on the road than there are today and surely that would be a bad thing. There are also many 'original' cars out there that have been subject to the broom syndrome i.e. new handle and new head.... MORE
The SO and I ventured to Old Mesilla (mess eee yaa) New Mexico this past Saturday for the annual british car show. Morris was the featured mark, and they had a half dozen or so...but only one Minor...the rest were minis. Gorgeous cars! a 29 Morgan 3 wheeler, Jags from 57 up, XKEs, Spridgets, bugeyes, big Healeys, Mga A's B's an Ts...and even TR 3,4,and 6s. My favs were the 68 Morgan and the Ace Bristol. Beautiful cars, beautiful place too, and geat weather, and this year, a mile up the road one way was a hot-rod show, and... MORE
Jeremy Cogman... Sure...this is true. If I couldn't use my car as a daily driver, I would not own it. I love the BE but it's gotta "work for me" practically speaking. The original worked just fine for me back in the late 50's, early 60's. Not surprising as it was built for the road/ traffic condtions of those times. Today..... in my circumstances, the car would be pretty useless (and dangerous) in it's original mechanical form as a daily driver insofar as modern highway traffic flow is concerned. Thus, were I to keep it original, it would force... MORE
We are not talking about Bugatti Royales, Healey 100Ms or Lightweight E Types here. Tens of thousands of each type of Sprite or Midget were made and a certain amount of them are owned by enthusiasts who keep them in 'concours' original condition. and those cars will probably stay like that now because now one would buy one to 'modify' it when they could buy a cheaper less original / tattier car. However for those who like to use the car and in some cases have to use it as a daily driver then some modifications is appropriate. For... MORE
No way, Nigel... Safety Fast! It's Cooper "S" spec. 1293 gets it's 45DCOE right after I finish a little body/paint work this week, which could easily stretch into next week, should we get a little rain later during the latter part of this week! Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 21557... MORE
I posed the same question to the Bugeye list while restoring my car. They told me that the card former is in both cars, but the MG Midget MKI was suppose to be a upgrade/fancier car and the foam padding was installed on them. The panel kits are for both cars so include the foam. My car isn't concourse, and I didn't like the looks of the vinyl glued to the pressboard panels with metal edges, so I installed the foam and did not attach the panels to the doors (with the screws) but just use the metal slides... MORE
George I don't think it makes a lot of difference to be honest - a different from original powerplant is a different from original powerplant - no matter whether its an A series or not. Being able to restrospectively fit the original powerplant and gearbox clearly is an advantage, but it still ceases to be a Frog/Bugeye (insert spridget version). As far as period performance modifications are concerned - if they were an option or an add on option at the time of manufacture then there's every possiblity that the car could have been supplied with them from new... MORE
Hi Bill I consider myself a 'purist' what I mean by that is that I feel these car's are best as the makers originally intended. I'm sure there's people out there who'll counter that by saying ahh well, if you change x y and z with a b and c they'll run better blah blah blah. That's fine, I (in my personal opinion) feel the cars are best as original. And no, I do not have a carpet in my Frog/Bugeye, as I do not have a Frog/Bugeye, I have a 1971 MG Midget, although I must confess to... MORE
Folks I'm confused about the door pocket trim panels fitted to mk1 & 2 Sprites and mk1 Midgets. Of my stock of eight, seven are padded and one has a card former under the vinyl to give 'relieved' effect. I 've just had a look in OSM and got even more confused. There are pictures of both types of car, mk1 and mk 2 Sprites with both types of door panel 'relieved' and padded. The text for the mk 1 does describe the 'relieving' but doesn't mention an alternative padded version (though some of the pictures are definitely padded... MORE
Paul.... Can't beat the old leaded Sunoco "260" 102+ RON stuff!! Now you can understand why back in the good ole' days, you could bolt a Judson blower to a 948cc Spridget, throw in a set of colder plugs, turn the key and drive away with 40% more torque than stock!! :) Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 21540... MORE
Thanks, Your the only one who has said STOP ! I most probably will not make the change. My car is all orig, except the new Yellow paint and the Locally made floor mat. I cannot fine an orig. floor mat. If you know of a good orig. I'm interested. Thanks, Bill French Hilton Head, SC USA frenchww@... 21525... MORE
Nigel. This is Bill French. I am the one who is considering this up grade. I have a '59 stock, almost orig. Bugeye and a '73 RWA Midget. It would be a big step for me to make the switch also. Just thinking. Your a purest? Does your Bugeye/Frogeye have carpet? Bill frenchww@... 21523... MORE
David and Brad, Thanks for the info. I've never experienced anything like this before. I suspect that my master cylinder is leaking slightly and I bought the rebuild kit for it today. I'm going to let a friend with more brake savy than me do the overhaul. Also, Brad or anybody else who is into scale cars; does anybody make a plastic or metal model of the MK-II Sprite. I've looked everywhere and can't find one. Thanks again, Jack "austinbud2002" 21515... MORE
