Dave
Simpson's MG B GT
The
history of the MG is well documented so it is not necessary to list the
models history here. This particular car, a racing green GT series 2 was
first registered in 1968 and has been in my possession since 1998, I had
been looking for a decent condition one for a while and came across TTN in
Harrogate, as it was in a dealers workshop it was a simple job to get it
on a lift to give it a going over and it seemed to be a sound car.
It
was fitted with wire wheels and a wood veneer dash although part of my
spec list was to get one with overdrive but this wasn't fitted, although
the engine had recently been overhauled.
The
car was to be an every day user and it still is, it has a very large
history file part of which came with the car and has been added to by me
over the years. As far as I can tell it has spent all its life in the
North East, although its early life is unknown I have service documents
issued in Tyneside , Redcar, and Harrogate.
The
first few years of ownership were trouble free with only a few updates
being added and regular servicing, In the last couple of years however
work has been done to keep it reliable although the car has never been off
the road for any lengthy period, it has had a re-spray after some sill and
wing work and bodily is in pretty good condition now. I have also changed
the back axle to enable me to fit Minilite alloy's which I prefer to wires
(easier to clean) and the suspension has been re-bushed with polybushes.
The
engine was sent to CAS
Engineering ( Craig's magical emporium), for the operation to remove
all the inside bits, and boy did we get a surprise. If I said that the big
end bearings were worn out it would be an understatement, also various
broken piston rings and a knackered con rod all came to light and it
didn't knock or rumble (well not much) and it always started !
The
rather tired engine sat in Craigs workshop for a couple of weeks as Craig
is a very busy chap until he had time to attack it, but true to form it
was returned just before Christmas 2006 in pristine condition ready for
returning to its home beneath the bonnet of TTN. It now produces about 97
BHP (against the standard spec of 95BHP for a B series engine).
While
the engine was out I acquired an overdrive gearbox and fitted that, which
I think makes the car a much improved and restful drive, especially when
cruising at higher speeds. It has only ever failed one MOT test in my
ownership and that was for a small nick in a brake hose that I had missed.
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