Can any MGB on Earth go above 55 mph?
Discussion
aeropilot said:
bstark said:
I know what you mean but, yes, the chap who used to sprint race his 300bhp V8 MGBGT in the same series as me a few years back didn't hang around. He could get round Lydden Hill in the same time as my Caterham...
Was that the dark green one with the Sebring flared arch kit on it.....?If so, it sounds like the same guy I used to sprint against back in the early 90's.
That was a very well sorted V8 B.
However, having driven a few standard BGT's back in the day when they were new/almost new.......I wouldn't want to drive one much above 55mph on a m/way
Breadvan72 said:
Economists have recently been re examining traditional theories of market behaviour, which are arguably flawed because they posit that humans make rational choices, but, of course they don't, and hoorah for that. After all, classic car ownership is arguably not strictly rational, unless the car is a sure fire investment winner, and relatively few are, but classic cars press other buttons.
There are understandable reasons why the MGB became the UR-classic car of the 80s and beyond (they look pretty, they can be made to sound good, they can be modified fairly easily, there are lots of them, an industry developed to match, and you can show your edgy individuality by having the same classic car as all the other edgy individualists have*); but one of the odd things about the phenomenon is that the cars were, as made (not as modified), not very good to drive even by the standards of the time.
I suppose that when looking to buy new you had little choice, as the (much better) TRs and GT6s and Sunbeams were more expensive, the (much better) Midgets and Spitfires were too small, Vitesses had too many seats, and the (much, much better) European small sports cars and Lotuses were a lot more expensive and regarded as exotic and fallible.
The marketing and sales teams of the time did well, and in pure business terms a product that lasted so long with so few changes and such little development expenditure (ending its life not much better and possibly worse than when it began) was a winner; and the success has continued beyond the grave by supporting an industry.
The point about the inside lane types is that most well looked after cars of the 60s to late 70/early 80s should be able to operate fairly normally in modern traffic, but I get the impression that many a boggo MGB is driven as though it was a precious heirloom, the last one in all the world, and that's just silly.
* See also the modern and modern ish VW scene
Excellent. Wish I was as brave as you.There are understandable reasons why the MGB became the UR-classic car of the 80s and beyond (they look pretty, they can be made to sound good, they can be modified fairly easily, there are lots of them, an industry developed to match, and you can show your edgy individuality by having the same classic car as all the other edgy individualists have*); but one of the odd things about the phenomenon is that the cars were, as made (not as modified), not very good to drive even by the standards of the time.
I suppose that when looking to buy new you had little choice, as the (much better) TRs and GT6s and Sunbeams were more expensive, the (much better) Midgets and Spitfires were too small, Vitesses had too many seats, and the (much, much better) European small sports cars and Lotuses were a lot more expensive and regarded as exotic and fallible.
The marketing and sales teams of the time did well, and in pure business terms a product that lasted so long with so few changes and such little development expenditure (ending its life not much better and possibly worse than when it began) was a winner; and the success has continued beyond the grave by supporting an industry.
The point about the inside lane types is that most well looked after cars of the 60s to late 70/early 80s should be able to operate fairly normally in modern traffic, but I get the impression that many a boggo MGB is driven as though it was a precious heirloom, the last one in all the world, and that's just silly.
* See also the modern and modern ish VW scene
Edited by Breadvan72 on Monday 7th April 09:36
I owned one for about three years. Not my favourite car. Yet when I put an advert in the paper to sell it the 'phone never stopped ringing. Weird ... I can never understand the fascination. There's a lot better out there.
John
LordBretSinclair said:
I can't believe how many incorrect generalisations (cars and drivers) are being put forward on this thread 
c'mon you've been around enough to know that stereotypes do actually exist in personI didn't believe in stereotypes until I was about 19 and got around more, a lot of water has passed under the mattresses since then and I've meet many
I used to work on quite a few MGB's in the 70's. Even crashed one, a customer's car......
Anyway, I always fancied one then.
A few years ago, I worked on a couple of them, one a V8. I was aghast at how awful they were. So, Patrick, you are right!
I might be heading for 60, but won't be replacing the Lotus or the Bentley Turbo R which is being converted for track use, any time soon with an MGB.
Just sold the Midget though. Fun car.
Anyway, I always fancied one then.
A few years ago, I worked on a couple of them, one a V8. I was aghast at how awful they were. So, Patrick, you are right!
I might be heading for 60, but won't be replacing the Lotus or the Bentley Turbo R which is being converted for track use, any time soon with an MGB.
Just sold the Midget though. Fun car.
Reply to V8 FOU ;- (I was agast at how awfull they are !) I am really surprized to see you made such a statement after admitting to only basing your assessment on just one V8 example.(not your own) There are quite a few more out in the real world so maybe you should get out more and drive some better ones. Being a fan of Midgets, this is probably up your street ? Rover V8 engined [driving test special] does 13's flat in the 1/4 mile 
Those who say that MGBs are fab appear to be talking mainly about MGBs that have been tweaked. The basic platform was, arguably, not really suited for a sports car when the cars were new. Modify the hell out of it and you may get a sports car. Kudos to the marketing guys, as noted above, for the big sales, given that other manufacturers in the UK (leaving aside the Europeans) were able at the same time to produce what were by contemporary standards decent sports cars and sporty saloons that would out drive any standard MGB but which sold in lower numbers. The MGBs looks gave it a great leg up, and it's still a pretty car, but other factors to do with customer inertia identfied by others above, and great marketing, formed part of the story.
There is no need to thrash any old car, and pootling is fun, but the inside lane stereotype, like many stereotypes, has something in it, as that is where you see them from April/May to September. The rare ones seen between September and April are, surprise surprise, sometimes seen to be going at normal car in traffic speeds. If there were only ten MGBs left, then you could understand treating them as ancient monuments, but there are rather more than ten. Of course people are free to drive their cars just how they please (subject to the law and, preferably, not being selfish on the road), but by the same token others are free to chuckle at people conforming to a stereotype.
BTW, I saw someone not long ago in a fabulous 1960s Ferrari that must be worth a vast six figure sum. He was driving it like it was a Ferrari. If I had one, I would too.
There is no need to thrash any old car, and pootling is fun, but the inside lane stereotype, like many stereotypes, has something in it, as that is where you see them from April/May to September. The rare ones seen between September and April are, surprise surprise, sometimes seen to be going at normal car in traffic speeds. If there were only ten MGBs left, then you could understand treating them as ancient monuments, but there are rather more than ten. Of course people are free to drive their cars just how they please (subject to the law and, preferably, not being selfish on the road), but by the same token others are free to chuckle at people conforming to a stereotype.
BTW, I saw someone not long ago in a fabulous 1960s Ferrari that must be worth a vast six figure sum. He was driving it like it was a Ferrari. If I had one, I would too.
nta16 said:
having had a couple of Bs and a GT6 Breadvan72 is wrong to say a GT6 is better than a B, a GT6 is the size of a Spridget without any of the advantages
False. A GT6 has more room in it than a Spridget. Further more it is much easier to work on than an MGB, handles better (in Mark 2/3 guise) is usefully faster, sounds nicer and looks prettier (I know that last one is subjective).I agree. A good (standard) GT6 is altogether a better proposition than a good (standard) MGB, and can rightly be called the poor man's E Type (hey, not that E Types are all that good, really, but that's a whole different kettle of monkeys).
All of these cars are toast, driving wise, when placed alongside a 1960s/70s Lotus Elan, but Lotuses costs a lot back then (as now), and, even putting all the "loads of..." pub myths aside, can be a bit less robust than the cheaper cars.
All of these cars are toast, driving wise, when placed alongside a 1960s/70s Lotus Elan, but Lotuses costs a lot back then (as now), and, even putting all the "loads of..." pub myths aside, can be a bit less robust than the cheaper cars.
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 8th April 16:49
Breadvan72 said:
I agree. A good (standard) GT6 is altogether a better proposition than a good (standard) MGB, and can rightly be called the poor man's E Type (hey, not that E Types are all that good, really, but that's a whole different kettle of monkeys).
Edited by Breadvan72 on Tuesday 8th April 16:49
Yeah, but the MGB GT is the poor man's Aston Martin. (I have both and I'm definitely poor
)MGB to tweak or not to tweak ?
Breadvan 72 correctly stated that most of the discussion involved cars that were tweaked/restored ,which may well be true but lets face it , who wants to raise a storm over a car that ceased being available in 1980 unless something has happened to make it noticeable/desirable. The problem that I encountered on arrival in the USA in 1992 was that the MGB had been out of the showrooms for 12years ,allowing for annual mileage of 10 thou meant the majority were in excess of 100 K miles on the odometer.
Consequently there was a surplus of really knackered /battered old cars about {American teenagers are notoriously heavy handed with first cars} but the cars would not die [drive it till it dies] but they didn’t.
Having been handed down to the impoverished student status, owners would come into my workshop and enquire :- “Please, Sir, how much will it cost to weld-up the corroded exhaust and do you have a sec/hand shocker that I can fit myself ?
There was no prospect of me living the American Dream or participating in any high end extremes if I was destined to resuscitate junk-yard dogs for the rest of my days, therefore a solution had to be found.
One of my lifetime passions has been “Hot-rods” so by adopting these principles, taking an old nail and recycling it into something that was desirable to customers of all shapes & sizes may well pave the way to a better future and create a strong business presence in an otherwise stagnant British Car Market.
Consequently work commenced on the MGB GT Sebring Rover V8 to end all others, This car was a no expense spared , throw every conceivable modification at it and then some ! The result :- A BIG Trophy at the annual auto show.
You have to remember that the American market had not had the privilege of exposure to any of the MG V8 machines (none officially type-approved and it was illegal to import one) but they were crying out for them, we just could not make them fast enough to meet demand
Breadvan 72 correctly stated that most of the discussion involved cars that were tweaked/restored ,which may well be true but lets face it , who wants to raise a storm over a car that ceased being available in 1980 unless something has happened to make it noticeable/desirable. The problem that I encountered on arrival in the USA in 1992 was that the MGB had been out of the showrooms for 12years ,allowing for annual mileage of 10 thou meant the majority were in excess of 100 K miles on the odometer.
Consequently there was a surplus of really knackered /battered old cars about {American teenagers are notoriously heavy handed with first cars} but the cars would not die [drive it till it dies] but they didn’t.
Having been handed down to the impoverished student status, owners would come into my workshop and enquire :- “Please, Sir, how much will it cost to weld-up the corroded exhaust and do you have a sec/hand shocker that I can fit myself ?
There was no prospect of me living the American Dream or participating in any high end extremes if I was destined to resuscitate junk-yard dogs for the rest of my days, therefore a solution had to be found.
One of my lifetime passions has been “Hot-rods” so by adopting these principles, taking an old nail and recycling it into something that was desirable to customers of all shapes & sizes may well pave the way to a better future and create a strong business presence in an otherwise stagnant British Car Market.
Consequently work commenced on the MGB GT Sebring Rover V8 to end all others, This car was a no expense spared , throw every conceivable modification at it and then some ! The result :- A BIG Trophy at the annual auto show.
You have to remember that the American market had not had the privilege of exposure to any of the MG V8 machines (none officially type-approved and it was illegal to import one) but they were crying out for them, we just could not make them fast enough to meet demand
Yertis said:
nta16 said:
having had a couple of Bs and a GT6 Breadvan72 is wrong to say a GT6 is better than a B, a GT6 is the size of a Spridget without any of the advantages
False. A GT6 has more room in it than a Spridget. Further more it is much easier to work on than an MGB, handles better (in Mark 2/3 guise) is usefully faster, sounds nicer and looks prettier (I know that last one is subjective).20 years ago I had a Spridget as a daily, since then I've had other small classics and modern cars as dailies, so I'm used to small cabins, 7/8 years ago I had a Mk3 GT6 with the extra height windscreen and it made me feel a little cramped driving it despite being used to small cabins, for the last 6 years I've had a Midget as a daily and last year I had a passenger ride in a very well presented and very good mechanically GT6 Mk3 (with the extra height windscreen) and I felt even after 6 years with a Midget that the GT6 felt very small
(note: I'm less than 5'5" (1.65m) short - this was my Mk3 GT6)
I'm not sure even a Mk2 or Mk3 GT6 handles better than an MGB
but I have to agree the looks of the GT6 are lovely - that's why I made the mistake of buying one!
Edited by nta16 on Tuesday 8th April 20:42
before I bought one my mate warned "they're cramped and far too hot in the cabin"
of course I didn't listen as it was the sight of a GT6 that got me into this ruinous 'hobby' of buying and running overpriced old cars called 'classics'
and of course he was dead right, note in the photo above all six windows were open even thought the weather wasn't at all warm
of course I didn't listen as it was the sight of a GT6 that got me into this ruinous 'hobby' of buying and running overpriced old cars called 'classics'
and of course he was dead right, note in the photo above all six windows were open even thought the weather wasn't at all warm
Edited by nta16 on Tuesday 8th April 20:55
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