RE: MG TF: You Know You Want To
Discussion
suffolk009 said:
I admire the spirit of the fella who did this.
It's Maidstone Sports Cars (of Elise/Honda converting fame) who have done the conversion and are selling the car. Whilst it might be on behalf of a customer it seems more likely its their own project being sold rather than a cavalier privateer.No doubt it will be a competent conversion, given its from MSC, but its crazy money. As has been said, you could buy the equivalent car in Elise guise for the same money.
I had an original MGF when they were first out. I was only about 18 and spent £17k or so IIRC on what was a distinctly average car. Years later I picked up a cheap MG TF for a girlfriend for a few grand and it wasn't a bad car for that money. Still rattled and wasn't massively competent but as a sub £3k shed it was amusing enough and looked pleasant enough. For £25k you'd be nuts, irrespective of the wonderful engine.
As an aside, I would expect greater performance from a SC K20 engine than those estimated.
Dale487 said:
Boxster RS 60 Spyder £18k with sport exhaust, Sat Nav, full leather for example
Does that not have about half the power-to-weight ratio of this? I don't think there's ever been an official Boxster-platform road car which gets even close to 350bhp/tonne? Unless you were to strip significant weight out, you'd need well over 400bhp. kambites said:
Dale487 said:
Boxster RS 60 Spyder £18k with sport exhaust, Sat Nav, full leather for example
Does that not have about half the power-to-weight ratio of this? I don't think there's ever been an official Boxster-platform road car which gets even close to 350bhp/tonne? Unless you were to strip significant weight out, you'd need well over 400bhp. PistonBroker said:
kambites said:
Dale487 said:
Boxster RS 60 Spyder £18k with sport exhaust, Sat Nav, full leather for example
Does that not have about half the power-to-weight ratio of this? I don't think there's ever been an official Boxster-platform road car which gets even close to 350bhp/tonne? Unless you were to strip significant weight out, you'd need well over 400bhp. Maybe buying a £7.5k Boxster S & turning it into a £25k 350bhp/tonne Speedster is a better idea.
I'd rather have the handling finesse of a Porsche than the power to weight ratio of the MGF
jmcc500 said:
Nice but still wouldn't. Better bet than the TF I guess. jmcc500 said:
That must be absolutely fearsome! The TF is great for its lunacy but likely only really worth that money to the guy who built it.
SpudLink said:
After all, who in their right mind would have chosen this rather than the Elise as the basis for their project.
I've had a TF. I wanted a VX220 or an Elise. I tried both but the only way I could get in was to put both feet into the footwell, hands on the road, and slide in over the side of the tub. I'm no giant, but unless you are a midget or uncommonly bendy these cars arent acceptable as daily drivers! The TF is not as capable a track toy but is a good daily driver and with this bhp rather rapid.
Mx5 is a different sort of car - it is more fun and tailhappy with the 145bhp engine and LSD but it is slower than the 160bhp tf in a straight line and in the corners.
donkmeister said:
I've had a TF. I wanted a VX220 or an Elise. I tried both but the only way I could get in was to put both feet into the footwell, hands on the road, and slide in over the side of the tub. I'm no giant, but unless you are a midget or uncommonly bendy these cars arent acceptable as daily drivers!
The TF is not as capable a track toy but is a good daily driver and with this bhp rather rapid.
Mx5 is a different sort of car - it is more fun and tailhappy with the 145bhp engine and LSD but it is slower than the 160bhp tf in a straight line and in the corners.
Eh!? Sit in the seat and swing yer legs in. Not rocket science!The TF is not as capable a track toy but is a good daily driver and with this bhp rather rapid.
Mx5 is a different sort of car - it is more fun and tailhappy with the 145bhp engine and LSD but it is slower than the 160bhp tf in a straight line and in the corners.
PistonBroker said:
kambites said:
Dale487 said:
Boxster RS 60 Spyder £18k with sport exhaust, Sat Nav, full leather for example
Does that not have about half the power-to-weight ratio of this? I don't think there's ever been an official Boxster-platform road car which gets even close to 350bhp/tonne? Unless you were to strip significant weight out, you'd need well over 400bhp. Maybe buying a £7.5k Boxster S & turning it into a £25k 350bhp/tonne Speedster is a better idea.
I'd rather have the handling finesse of a Porsche than the power to weight ratio of the MGF
C.A.R. said:
annodomini2 said:
Till the MR2 also munches it's engine and/or gearbox, these are not the most reliable cars either, check the web there are plenty of horror stories.
Throwing the 'reliability' card at a Toyota when considering an MG TF is a bit of a non-competition though!These things are plusher than an MX5 but not as fun, poorly built cabins but cheap. Take the cheap part out of the equation and they don't really make much sense.
Used to work with a guy who had a 160vvc and whilst it was nippy, it wasn't desirable - I had an import MX5 at the time which was worth considerably more money despite being much, much older. The MG had flaking paint, interior was falling apart, seats had sagged, all the paint on the bright red calipers was coming off, the wheels had started losing their lacquer...
But, according to him, it was faster than a BMW M3 he raced on the A10 because "they're limited to 155 aren't they, but my MG is a 160 model, so it will go 160...."
Har, har.
MX5 would be a better bet.
Or on the £25k budget, Elise, VX220, Boxster, Cayman etc
pigeonskirt said:
You'd have to be pissed, on drugs or insane to sink anything like 25k into that! They were s
t new and they're still st now. Sticking a decent engine in one and upping the power does not suddenly change this.
Depends what you're after I suppose. The build quality was certainly a bit iffy, the driving position is horrible and if you're unlucky they leak like a sieve but they handle pretty well, IMO. Certainly better than the much lauded MX5. t new and they're still st now. Sticking a decent engine in one and upping the power does not suddenly change this. Still not worth £25k though. Or even half that, for that matter.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff